Several times Saturday we were asked where we were going. David was kidding around and I’m sure our replies didn’t seem to answer the question and seemed evasive, but they were truthful. We weren’t really going anywhere. We were just going.
This is my favorite type of travel, heading out to see what we can see. I find it the most interesting and the most fun. It reminds me of a tradition in my family from the time of my great-grandparents, the Sunday Drive.
David and I set out with only a vague direction in mind. We had both been thinking of a road we had never taken and wondering where it went. After finding out we were both thinking the same thought, that’s direction we headed. That was the extent of our planning. We loaded the dog into the car, made sure we had the camera, water and a snack, and then took off.
As it turned out, it was an amazing day to be out in the forest exploring. Instead of a “blue bird” day with a completely sunny sky, we had a roiling thunderstorm on one side of us, and mostly clear skies on the other side, with occasional puffy or wind streaked clouds. No matter where we went, we were followed by rainbows.
It was mid-afternoon when we headed north from Fawnskin on the north side of Big Bear Lake. Passing the fire station, we followed the Forest Service road designated as 3N14. It’s a well graded dirt road that goes through the area of the Butler Peak fires from several years ago.
Passing Camp Whittle and the Hanna Flats Campground, we traveled past meadows of rabbit brush blooming bright yellow. Marks of the fires were still visible. Disbursed camping areas were closed to ensure no more sparks and the lower portion of pine trees were charred, but large clumps of manzanita and live oaks were growing vigorously, with occasional prickly poppies and red penstamen flowers adding touches of white and red. The area was beautiful with the sun peeking out from under the clouds.
When we arrived at the Big Pine Flat Campground, we had choices to make. Would we turn east toward Holcomb Valley, turn west toward Green Valley Lake, or continue north on the road we had never followed before? Of course we decided to continue north!
We descended toward the desert fairly quickly, following a creek full of red penstamen, willows, and lush grass. We didn’t see water, but knew it was there from the greenery. Soon we came into a valley with a few clumps of pines and wide open meadows. This area had obviously burned several times. Large trees lay on the ground, blown over after burning. It was our guess that this was the area of the Willow Fire in 1999.
Crossing a saddle, we were closer to the desert, with juniper, joshua trees, and mesquite becoming prevalent. We also noticed areas where the road had run with a lot of water quite recently. In some areas there were puddles and we could see that little or no traffic had passed since the storm.
A truck stopped to ask us, “Where are you going? Are you lost?” We assured them we were not. Although confused to see us “four wheeling” in a Subaru, we chatted with them for a while. Their ranch is high up in the canyon we were descending through and they reported a storm the previous night with marble sized hail. After reassuring them again that we hadn’t had any trouble getting through, we went on our way.
As we got closer to the desert, the storm that was rumbling off to the east of us seemed to grow in intensity. We could see the rain falling and beautiful rainbows. Thinking it would be a good idea to be off the dirt road and in the valley when the storm started, we continued on what we discovered was the Coxey Truck Trail, then ended our back road experience on Bowen Ranch Road and Central Avenue in Apple Valley.
As we turned on to Bear Valley Road, the hail started. It began pea sized but as we drove toward Lucerne Valley to return to Big Bear, the storm became so intense I was afraid the windshield would not withstand the large hailstones powerful rain. Driving by the high power lines, the lightning struck the metal poles several times. The road was a river of muddy, fast running water. If there had been a place to pull over without washing away, we would have. Instead we slowed to less than 20 miles per hour and passed through the worst of it.
On our way back up the mountain, we enjoyed the sunset peeking through the still billowing thunderheads across the desert. As we came around a curve just above Cactus Flats, the almost-full moon appeared as the sun made the clouds rosy beneath. As we crested the hills above Baldwin Lake, the sunset gave its last, painting the clouds off to the north with a final yellow and blue outline, and we were home.
We couldn’t have planned a better trip. Because this magic has happened to us over and over, now we plan our explorations without planning. We just go and see what we will find.
