After a warm winter, San Bernardino County mountain resorts now blanketed in snow

After a warm, largely dry winter, ski and snowboard season has officially arrived in the San Gabriel and San Bernardino mountains.

“It’s exactly what we needed. It’s so beautiful out here right now. The trees are just frosted with whiteness,” Dan McKernan, spokesperson for the Big Bear Lake tourism company, Visit Big Bear, said Friday, calling from the slopes of Snow Summit resort. “It’s pure powder out here right now — that’s the reason I’m out here.”

And he wasn’t alone. Skiers and snowboarders were back on the mountain on Friday.

“They definitely discovered where the snow is, they are here,” McKernan said. He estimated more than 80% of the slopes at the resort were now open.

The snowfall means an influx of tourists to mountain communities, after what’s been a warmer and rainy winter in Southern California.

“Any time we get snow, that’s the direction we need to be in,” McKernan said, with tourist dollars flowing back into the mountain communities.

This week’s dump of snow might keep the tourists coming for a while.

A series of storms brought snowfall starting Monday afternoon in the Big Bear area. By midday Friday, between 24 and 30 inches had fallen, according to McKernan, and the Big Bear Mountain Resort website says nearly 4 feet of new snow has fallen in recent days.

Local slopes had already been making artificial snow, but with natural snow on top of that, some slopes could be open through Easter weekend, McKernan said.

The National Weather Service predicts at least partly cloudy weather throughout the weekend in the Big Bear area, with a forecast high of 45 degrees and a low of 23 degrees, rising to a high of 53 degrees and a low of 28 on Sunday.

In Wrightwood, across the Cajon Pass in the San Gabriel Mountains, the National Weather Service predicts a high of 46 degrees on Saturday with a low of 34 degrees. Temperatures will be a little warmer Sunday, with an expected high of 53 degrees and a low of 38. Temperatures are expected to rise through the week.

Mountain High in Wrightwood had received 28 inches of new snow by Wednesday, its largest snowfall of the season. More was expected with Thursday’s storm.

“Much of Mountain High’s West Resort is now open,” John McColly, spokesperson for Mountain High, wrote in an email Wednesday. The rest of the resort planned to open the following day, he said.

“This will be the first time we’ve had 100% of the West Resort open this season, and the most terrain available.”

Mountain High was also evaluating whether to open the East Resort slopes over the weekend.

“Other than that, things are looking good,” McColly wrote. “The roads are open … we’ve got snow, and there is a pent up demand. Today felt more like a Saturday than a Wednesday.”

All the snow means visitors will need to use caution, San Bernardino County officials warned.

“We recommend drivers should check weather and road conditions before leaving, carry properly fitted tire chains, and ensure their vehicle has a full tank of gas,” Amy Ledbetter, spokesperson for San Bernardino County’s Department of Public Works, wrote Thursday in an email. “We strongly encourage travelers to pack emergency supplies, including blankets, water, snacks, and extra warm clothing in case of unexpected delays.”

Vehicles must pull completely off the road and install chains when required.

Drivers are warned to be on the lookout for black ice, which can form in shaded areas, on bridges and during early morning and evening hours. What looks like a wet patch of road can actually be slick ice and motorists need to slow down, increase their following distance between themselves and other cars and avoid sudden braking or taking sharp turns, Ledbetter warned.

And for the popular pastime of driving up to the mountain communities and playing in the snow, doing so in or near roadways is extremely dangerous, Ledbetter warned, snow play should only take place in designated areas.

For more information, visit the following:

• Latest weather conditions at Weather.gov
• Up-to-date highway conditions and chain conditions, Caltrans’ QuickMaps website at QuickMap.dot.ca.gov
• Local roads and other safety information, San Bernardino County’s Snow Information website at SnowInfo.sbcounty.gov