John Muir said it best:  “The mountains are calling and I must go.”  One of my favorite things about San Diego is that though they’re off in the distance, the mountains are a part of many scenic views.  We were glad for the chance to have several days to escape the hustle and bustle of city life and retreat into the northern mountains of San Bernardino.  Big Bear Lake is a beautiful nature retreat quietly tucked away high in the mountains, surrounded by cabins and ski slopes and the lovely village of Big Bear.  Ahhhhhh.  Don’t you feel relaxed just picturing it?!  We stayed several days at the International Traveler’s House, a fantastic hostel that was full of so many fun people to meet!  The community feel of hostels is always so refreshing, and you can’t beat dinner every night by the fireplace, chatting with company from around the world.  We hiked the Cougar Crest Trail for magnificent views of Big Bear Mountain, and rented bikes for a day of pedaling around the lake.The village offered tons of unique restaurants, coffee shops, boutiques and art galleries.  We didn’t want to leave!  But that’s the nice thing about a getaway, is the chance to experience a change of pace and scenery.  The mountains are good for the soul!

 

Here’s a little video my husband put together of some of our Big Bear Lake adventures – he’s so talented!  Glad he knows how to work a GoPro, I’ll stick to my camera :)

 

 

Driving through the mountains to Big Bear, I think we pulled over ten times to ooh and ahh over each beautiful overlook!

A mini-hike through the forest!

Can I just say how proud I am of accomplishing this?!  We hiked all the way up Cougar Crest, the view from the top was totally worth the climb!

Our hostel!  Such a fun place to stay!

Biking day was my favorite!  We biked a trail surrounded by fields of juniper, it was incredible.

The best mountain man :)