Bear Valley
Bear Valley is a ski village at 7,000 ft of elevation in the Sierra Nevada Mountains. It's an out-of-the way place, with beautiful alpine forests and lakes, but without the crowds around Lake Tahoe 50 miles to the north and Yosemite National Park about 100 miles to the south. The price of that quiet scenery is a 2-4 hr drive from any major airport. So make sure to plan your ground transportation well in advance. If you tend to get carsick don't forget your dramamine, as highway 4 is extremely winding. It's worth it, we promise!Plan for warm days (70F - 90F) and cold nights (40F - 60F) around Bear Valley. Afternoon thunderstorms are possible in mid summer, but rare. Most days will be sunny and dry.
Choose your airport
Sacramento Airport is the best bet for the shortest drive (and least traffic). Otherwise, drive time is similar from the major Bay-Area airports. If you wanted to tack on a trip to Yosemite or Kings Canyon national parks, flying into Fresno might also make sense.Drive time to Bear Valley (without traffic)
Sacramento Airport: 2.5 hrs
Oakland Airport: 3 hrs
San Francisco Airport: 3.5 hrs
San Jose Airport: 3.5 hrs
Fresno Airport: 3.5 hrs
Google thinks it's about 2.5 hrs from the Reno Airport as well, but that is likely an underestimate as there is no cell coverage for large sections of that route over the Pacific Crest. It is a VERY narrow and winding road, you'll be going about 25 miles per hour for about 30 miles over the pass. So you probably won't save any time that way, but it would be a very scenic option. As of May 4, it's been cleared of snow and open for the summer.
 |
| Suggested routes to Bear Valley |
Getting to the Lodge
Need a ride? Got extra seats? Check out the ride sharing google doc.
3 Bear Valley Rd
Bear Valley
CA 95223-9997
Be sure to start with a full tank of gas and keep in mind that the town of Arnold is the last chance for services before ~45 minutes of rural highway to Bear Valley. Electric car owners: Bear Valley Lodge has a charging station.
If you're coming up on Friday night, we'll be hosting dinner in the town of Murphys about an hour west of Bear Valley, so you may want to time your drive to hit Murphys on the way up. If you're coming up another time and want to stop for a meal, we recommend stopping in Angels Camp, Murphys, or Arnold. (some restaurants are suggested here). Keep in mind, things mostly close between 8 and 9 pm up here. If you're coming in late, Mike's Pizza in Angels Camp is open till 10PM.
Lake Alpine
Lake Alpine is just over 3 miles east of Bear Valley on CA Hwy 4. It's an easy drive but parking can be limited on busy summer weekends. We will try to get a shuttle service going to the lake from the Bear Valley Lodge (which has ample parking) on Saturday so we don't completely overwhelm the parking up there. In past years, Bear Valley has run free shuttle from the lodge to the lake, though they are still negotiating permits with the US Forest Service for 2018. We are also looking into getting a driver for the day to make several runs with the Bear Valley school bus.
Folks with limited mobility or small children may want to park at the Marmot Day Use Area parking lot (see the map below). To get there just keep driving east on Hwy 4 past the lodge and past the turnoff for the Bear Valley Ski Area. Hwy 4 will turn into a tiny little road without even a center dividing line. Just before the lake there will be a sign for the Lake Alpine West Shore area. Take this right onto West Lake Alpine Road. Go past the turn for the Lake Alpine Campground and turn left into the Marmot Day Use Area. This lot may very well fill up on Saturday so getting there early is a good idea.
 |
| The Bear Valley/Lake Alpine Area |
 |
| Sign for the turnoff for the Marmot Day Use Area |
 |
| Map of the Lake Alpine West Shore Area |
