learn and explore bear valleys natural history With BVAC staff. All hikes are from 9:30am-12pm, Free, and family friendly.

Summer is sure taking its time to arrive. Ebbetts Pass is clear of snow, and cyclists and hikers report lovely conditions above Lake Alpine, but still, the highway is closed to vehicles. Soon enough, the wheels of summer activities will start turning, and Bear Valley will once again become one of the best places in the universe. 

As a late season snow storm works its way across the Sierra (Awesome April?), I'm reminded of the small, furry weatherman who predicted this may happen - he goes by the name of Punxsutawney Phil. Groundhogs, also called woodchucks, are a species of marmots, Marmota monax to be precise.

The winter of 25’/26’ is a wrap! It was a short but sweet season of cross-country skiing, snowshoeing, sledding, and tubing. In the end, the Bear Valley Adventure Company (BVAC) was open for winter activities for 87 days, which also included a few special days of ice skating on the meadow and mountain biking on snow-groomed trails.

Reba Blood, namesake for Mount Reba and BVAC eateries. Photo Courtesy of Calaveras County Historical Society.

“Water, water, everywhere, nor any drop to drink” is a famous line from Samuel Taylor Coleridge’s 1798 poem, The Rime of the Ancient Mariner. It describes sailors stranded at sea, surrounded by saltwater that they cannot drink.

George Hall, as we remember him, always smiling, always curious (photo by Vic Guillot)

Who says you can’t teach an old dog new tricks? Or, in the case at BVAC, we are relearning tricks from years past. Specifically, this winter's snow has gotten “old” with very little new (aka “young) snow being added to the mix.

Mom transitions from down hill to cross country skiing.

There is at least one Bear Valley resident enjoying our low snow year. They will be familiar to many of you. Traveling on four paws and generally considered a pest, coyotes are natives of the Sierra Nevada and fulfill necessary ecosystem roles, like controlling prey populations.

I haven’t worked at the Warming Hut for years, but I still love it.  Penny and I go skiing, and we see so many friends, so much so that socializing gets in the way of skiing.   It is nice to be in a place where everybody knows your name. 

While sitting down to write this article for the January edition of the Cub Reporter, a well-advertised “Christmas Miracle” storm is getting underway.  Over the next 48 hours, we are braced to receive an impressive amount of snow, even by Bear Valley standards.

As we reach the last day of November, we're still waiting for winter to arrive in the meadow. Without snowmaking, Bear Valley Adventure Co. (BVAC) depends on natural snowfall to open for cross-country skiing, snowshoeing, sledding, and tubing.

The waiting game for winter has begun, and it's hard not to check the weather forecasts multiple times a day. It's both exciting and agonizing as each nuance is analyzed. Is the storm door open or closed? Wax on, wax off.

As chilly mornings bring frost and fall colors to Bear Valley, it is time to bid adieu to summer. Winter preparations are officially underway! As folks around the village stockpile firewood and provisions for the coming winter, many of our friends outdoors have their own preparations underway.

Autumn arrived right on schedule, and we are enjoying a mix of rain and warm, clear weather. I even saw the first snowflakes of the season this morning, on October 3rd, but not enough to stick, which is okay with us this time of year.

Labor Day has passed, the trails are quieter, and it's another wonderful time of year to be in Bear Valley. The aspens are still green, but you know that the colors are right around the corner. Dreams of skiing have started …

Quaking aspens are a type of poplar tree named for their leaves that tremble given the slightest current of air. The feature is reflected in their latin name as well - Populus tremuloides.

Spend some time in a ski town, and you're likely to hear the saying, "every winter's different." While this is true, you rarely hear much about summer.

Summer is our favorite time of the year. However, we've also mentioned that winter is our preferred season. Regardless, mid-summer is upon us, and we are relishing the warm days, cool nights, and the abundance of outdoor activities.