Big Bear Discovery Center

Description:

• Stop by the new Discovery Center on the north shore of Big Bear Lake to plan your adventures in the San Bernardino National Forest. Stunning views of the lake and mountains are possible from the Observation Deck.

  Inside you can learn about the natural environment, participate in hands-on activities, join a Discovery Tour; view rotating exhibits on wildlife, wildflowers, and history while you learn about the many recreational activities in the Forest.

  The Big Bear Discovery Center opened its doors to the public on May 16, 1998. Since then, more than 450,000 visitors have taken advantage of this 5,700 square foot facility that overlooks the majestic San Bernardino Mountains and Big Bear Lake. Only 2• hours from Los Angeles and San Diego, the Big Bear Discovery Center is a popular day or weekend trip from either city.

  The Big Bear Discovery Center is brought to visitors through a partnership between the San Bernardino National Forest Association and the San Bernardino National Forest.

  Conceived as "Your Gateway to Adventure and Discovery in the Great Outdoors," the Big Bear Discovery Center has become both a portal to the forest and a destination in itself. Guests visit the Discovery Center for naturalist-led interpretive programs, evening nature lectures, hiking information, purchasing of permits, and lingering over constantly changing exhibits on everything from native animals to fire prevention. They also browse in the Adventure Outpost, a one-of-a-kind nature-themed gift shop.

  The more adventurous join a Discovery Tour on foot or by canoe. Over 1,500 people have participated in Eagle Tours or explored Big Bear Lake's Grout Bay by canoe, learning about waterfowl, aquatic life, beaver - even panning for gold. For 1999, the Discovery Center added a "Mountain Mining Tour" in which visitors learn about geology and minerals by touring a historical gold mine and a limestone mine still in operation today. "The Flowers and Flames Tour" bring participants an opportunity to experience the ashen remains of the 63,000 acre Willow Fire of 1999 and to see the plant life beginning to return in a remarkable display of regeneration.

  Educating visitors about the enjoyment and preservation of the Forest is the Big Bear Discovery Center's mission. This is especially important since use of National Forests has increased over seven fold in the past thirty years. Yet, in the San Bernardino National Forest, there has been a forty percent decline in funding in the last four years alone. The Forest, which encompasses almost 900,000 acres, has more endangered plant species than any other National Forest. It has more visitors annually than Yellowstone and Yosemite combined. Within a three-hour drive of more than nineteen million people, the population of the Big Bear Valley explodes from 17,000 to more than 100,000 on holidays and summer weekends. The role of the Big Bear Discovery Center is to help ensure that the San Bernardino National Forest is a recreational resource for generations to come.

  The Discovery Center is open 7 days a week, 8 AM to 6 PM.

  Be sure to visit the Big Bear Discovery Center website (see Contact Information link) for more details on activities, programs, events, permits, maps, etc.