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Big Bear Summer
STORY BY LORREN REPTON * PHOTOGRAPHY BY LARRY ULRICH
Trekking the one mile interpretive loop of Woodland Trail in Californiaıs Big Bear Valley, I hear the cackling banter of the gray squirrel in chorus with the scolding chatter of the black-crested stellarıs jay. In the distance, the methodical drum of a woodpecker drilling for insects echoes. Iım on the lookout for an endangered variety of the checkerbloom, a dainty pink member of the mallow family.
But the pungent bouquet of wild sage distracts me. I envision grizzly bears roaming the verdant meadowlands as they did in 1845 when Benjamin "Don Benito" Wilsonıs expedition in pursuit of renegade Indians led him to a swamp "alive with bear." Nowadays Big Bear Lake, man-made, seven miles long, and 6,750 feet above sea level, fills the former swamp. Big Bear Valley has become a four-season resort, and in summer the lake is its main feature. Its 22-mile shoreline is sprinkled with timeshare resorts, luxury homes, and cabins leased by the U.S. Forest Service.
Construction on the original Bear Valley Dam was completed in 1885; a taller dam followed in 1912. Both were intended to satisfy the water needs of Redlands-area citrus growers. But as the highland community flourished, Bear Valley residents and vacationers also saw the lake as a scenic and recreational attraction in the San Bernardino National Forest. ...
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The March/April 2003 Issue is out. Find it at Las Vegas bookstores today.
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