Bear Mountain Base in Big Bear Lake — Live Webcam

Big Bear Lake — A Mountain Lake in Southern California

Big Bear Lake is a high-altitude mountain lake and a town of the same name in the San Bernardino Mountains, approximately 100 miles northeast of Los Angeles. Situated at an elevation of about 2,058 meters above sea level, this region has long been one of Southern California's premier recreation destinations. Visitors come here for the clean mountain air, conifer forests, and the chance to ski amid a typically California landscape — pines, oaks, and granite rock formations. The webcam at the foot of Bear Mountain lets you see this area in real time without leaving home.

Big Bear Lake was formed in 1884 by the construction of a dam, and today it serves not only as a reservoir but also as the heart of the resort area. The San Bernardino National Forest surrounds the lake, making the region attractive for hiking, fishing, and wildlife watching. The local bald eagles are one of Big Bear Lake's signature attractions, and they can often be spotted from the lake shore.

Big Bear Mountain Resort

Big Bear Mountain Resort is a year-round mountain resort in Southern California, combining three mountains: Snow Valley, Snow Summit, and Bear Mountain. It is one of the few California ski resorts located so close to major metropolitan areas — you can get here from Los Angeles in about two hours via the mountain switchbacks of Highway 18, known as the "Rim of the World Scenic Byway."

Bear Mountain, visible on the camera, is considered the resort's freestyle hub. It features some of the best terrain parks in California — with jumps, rails, and boxes for freestyle riders. Snow Summit, on the other hand, caters to traditional family skiing and offers more relaxed runs. Both areas are covered by a single lift ticket system: one pass covers both resorts — Snow Summit and Bear Mountain, located 2 miles apart with a free shuttle service.

Summer at the Foot of Bear Mountain — Recreation Area

When the snow melts from the slopes, the base of Bear Mountain transforms into a full-fledged summer recreation area. This is exactly what the webcam shows: green slopes free of snow cover, conifer forests of firs and pines on the upper parts of the mountain, and a developed base area with canopies, green-roofed gazebos, tables, and chairs. The glass structures likely belong to a restaurant or café with panoramic slope views.

In summer, the resort offers the only lift-served hiking and mountain biking in Southern California. The gondolas and chairlifts that carry skiers in winter transport hikers and downhill riders to the summits in summer. The hay bales visible on the slope add a pastoral charm to this mountain scene.

Winter Season — Skiing, Snowboarding, and Night Sessions

In winter, the base of Bear Mountain looks completely different: the slopes are covered with snow, snowmaking systems are activated, and the resort operates at full capacity. 100% of the resort's terrain is equipped with snowmaking systems fed by a pipeline from Big Bear Lake, ensuring reliable snow cover even in low-snow seasons.

One of the distinctive features of Big Bear Mountain Resort is night skiing on illuminated slopes — Night Sessions at Snow Summit. Floodlights illuminate the runs, creating a dramatic scene against the dark mountain sky. If you watch the camera in the evening during winter, you can see the lights brightening the slopes and silhouettes of skiers descending downhill.

Resort Infrastructure — Lifts and Runs

The resort features 12 lifts capable of moving 16,590 people per hour across 93 hectares of skiable terrain. These include chairlifts of various capacities, ranging from two-person chairs to four-person chairs with weather protection domes. Bear Mountain operates lifts numbered 1, 2, 3, 5, and 9 (located on Goldmine Mountain), while Snow Summit has lifts 1 and 8.

The resort reaches an elevation of 2,432 m, and Bear Mountain spans three peaks: Goldmine Mountain, Silver Mountain, and Bear Peak with a vertical drop of 504 m. This vertical is sufficient for a variety of runs — from green beginner trails to black expert terrain. Bear Mountain's terrain parks are regularly recognized as some of the best on the West Coast of the United States.

Climate and Weather in Big Bear Lake

The high-altitude location of Big Bear Lake shapes its climate: it is cooler here than in the Los Angeles basin, and significantly more precipitation falls. Average summer temperatures are around 24°C during the day, but nights remain cool — about 8°C. In winter, daytime temperatures hover around 5°C, while nighttime temperatures drop below freezing, creating good conditions for maintaining snow cover.

The snow season in Big Bear Lake typically begins in November and lasts through April. Average snowfall is about 170 cm per season, and the snowmaking system compensates for any shortfall in natural snow. You can monitor weather conditions in real time via the online webcam at the foot of Bear Mountain — it shows the current state of the slopes and visibility.

What You Can See on the Camera

The camera with a view of Bear Mountain's base broadcasts a live feed from Big Bear Mountain Resort in Big Bear Lake, California. The frame shows mountain slopes with ski runs free of snow cover, gondolas and chairlifts, and conifer forests of firs and pines on the upper parts of the slopes. In the lower part of the frame is a recreation area with canopies, green-roofed gazebos, tables, and chairs, as well as glass structures — likely a restaurant or café. Hay bales are visible on the slope. The area looks like a summer recreation zone of a ski resort. This live webcam allows you to assess current slope conditions and the atmosphere of the Big Bear Lake mountain resort at any time of day.