King and I just returned from four nights with our daughter, her sons and another friend in Big Bear City, Calif. It was a good trip, but I haven’t decided if it was relaxing or hectic. I think it was a combination of both.
Big Bear is a popular skiing destination in Southern California and usually receives about 120 inches of snow annually. The average daily winter temperatures are in the mid-40s with lows in the mid-20s. For this midwesterner, it’s pretty balmy.
However, this winter Big Bear weather has been warm(er) and more dry than normal so when we planned the trip we were more hopeful than expectant that there would be snow.
We got lucky and winter did not disappoint.
We left last week Thursday afternoon and drove three hours into the mountains to the north and east of Carlsbad, Calif., and arrived at our rented cabin Thursday evening just before the snow started. By Friday morning the boys woke to about eight to 12 inches of heavy, white snow – perfect for making snow forts and snowmen – a great snowfall for two young boys who don’t see snow on a regular basis (as in not at all).
We spent Friday morning building a snowman and moved on to building a fort in the corner of our yard after a cranky neighbor complained to the owner of the airbnb we were renting about the kids stepping onto his yard for fresh snow. His cabin was next to the one we rented.
I believe his is a vacation retreat and a ring camera alerted him to the wayward snowmen builders.He was not present. I can’t say much about the curmudgeon as King is a cranky old man when it comes to “his” grass at the campground during the summer.
Saturday the boys, our friend and our daughter went to a tubing/slide park. King and I opted to stay home and nap. We sat by the fire in the fireplace, watched old TV sitcoms and occasionally went out to shovel snow in the driveway. At an elevation of 8000 feet we both learned it definitely is more difficult to exert oneself at a high altitude – at least that’s our theory.
Sunday we all took the boys to Snow Summit Ski Resort. We had hoped to arrive early enough to get the boys enrolled in group snowboarding lessons, but it took us longer to get out of the driveway than we had anticipated. King had our daughter try a few different midwest “techniques”(shoveling, rocking, carpet under the tires, etc.) to get out, but in the end it took a couple of midwesterners putting their backs into it to free the car.
We arrived at the ski resort too late to get into the group lesson so our friend bit the bullet and signed the boys up for private lessons. The instructor was a young man and seemed to be really good with the young children, but being they are identical twins wearing matching helmets he never learned to tell them apart. He reported to us what each one had learned by placing his hand on a head and saying, “This one had a hard time getting off the chair,” or “this one picked up stopping quickly.”
I should add the boys loved it and are ready to go again. And again. And again. Their mother asked if they needed more lessons and seemed relieved when they said they thought they could manage on their own. I sensed a sigh of relief.
Anyway, the four adults sat on a picnic table placed in the snow while the boys took their three-hour lesson. I’m guessing the temperature got up into the high 40s, low 50s. In fact I alternated between wearing my winter coat and going without. Today I’m slightly sunburned.
It was a good break, but now King and I are back home and that’s good too.
Stay warm. Drink lots of hot chocolate and don’t be a curmudgeon.
