Butler Peak in Big Bear

Butler Peak in Big Bear ©

July 5, 2012, Joel Hawk

(click on pictures to enlarge)

Our new adventure today is going to be shared with Jack “Motor” DeFranco, Dorie “Redneck” DeFranco and Chris “Warrior” Hogue.  We were off to a really rocky start on our bike/hike adventure.  Immediately following breakfast in Fawnskin, we received a call that our cats had gotten out of the cabin.  Being in the mountains and the kitties being indoor kitties, we knew that wasn’t safe.  So we went back to rescue our cute little pets.  Once all were safe in the cabin, we started off on our adventure again with a late start about 10:00.  We knew we were in for a hot one.

The trailhead is easy to find and is at the intersection of 2N13 and Rim of the World.  The road is closed to public vehicular traffic although is open to hikers, bikers and horses.  We decided we would combine our trip as a bike/hike.  After about ¼ to ½ mile, we took a right turn up a dirt road.  Pedaling uphill has never been one of my favorite things to do, but the ladies were having fun, so we pressed on. 

It wasn’t long before we hit really loose sand so we had to “push” our bikes through vs. ride them.  I have lasting scars and softball size bruises where my front wheel planted in the sand and I went over the top.  When that pedal hits you, it hurts and those of you who bike aggressively know what I mean.

At mile 2.7 we reached the base of Hannah Rocks and ditched the bikes.  Staying along the road, we walked upwards along a slight incline but it was steep enough to prevent us from riding.  This, coupled with really rough road made our decision easy preventing us from riding much farther up.

The devastation of the Oct 2007 fires could still be seen with the burned trees and barren landscape all around us.  Yet, there were signs of nature trying to return with beautiful wild flowers and some new seedlings. 

Unfortunately, the wild, thorny weed/shrub that has been introduced to our lands is taking over preventing the new seedlings from ever succeeding.  This shrub grows fast and chokes out anything trying to grow.  With the thickness of the plant and the thorns, and after only a few years the area becomes impenetrable and the beauty of our forests and open country hiking comes to a disappointing end.

The trail is along the fire road so it’s well marked.  Even though it’s on a road, it’s a very interesting hike.  And I always like to climb upon rocks and strike the pose! 

This is a ham; um, hummer that just sat there long enough for me to take his/her picture.

One of my personal goals is to hike the Seven Summits of Big Bear.  For more information about those hikes, you can visit the website at http://sevensummitsofbigbear.org/.  These are some seriously fun and challenging hikes in the San Bernardino Mountains with Sugarloaf and San Gorgonio being the most challenging and not to be taken lightly.  The punch for the Seven Summits of Big Bear at Butler Peak is located on the small pine tree at the bottom of the steps going up to the Lookout Tower.

On the way up Butler Peak, Chris had her first real sighting of our destination.  She didn’t say anything out loud, but my being almost deaf and a fairly good lip reader, I saw what she said.  She wasn’t happy about the challenge ahead of her and to us, it looked almost straight up. 

I felt she was on the verge of calling it quits and she was so close to her destination, but I know this lady and she’s in better shape than she thinks.  Using a mental approach called Kiazen I walked along side of her and supported her through the last ½ mile.  Briefly, Kiazen teaches us to break things down into smaller bytes and accomplishments like, take 25 steps and rest for a minute; then take another 25 steps and rest for a minute.  Setting these smaller goals and rewards when linked together over time will help you accomplish your overall goal.  You can apply this technique to almost anything in your life.  The hike really is for the advanced hiker, so if you’re a casual hiker, you may want to prepare yourself before taking this gem on.

The last 400 – 500 yards are pretty steep.  You’ll come upon the trail up to the Outlook Tower at the end of the Fire Road (2N13C).  It’s a very enjoyable trek up through the rocks and flowers.  Not much of a view until you get to the top, but once you do, WOW!

It was a nice day and surprisingly not too warm.  A gentle breeze along most of the way really helped.  We reached the peak at 5.2 miles with a 1437 ft total ascent and standing at 8530 max elevation.  This stage of the hike/bike adventure took us 2.0 hours from the trailhead. The views are killer looking out over the mountain ranges and down over highway 330 as it comes up to Big Bear Lake. 

Once we reached the top, we could walk around the tower and check things out.  Very cool, very cool.

I’m a Benchmark hound and I could tell on my topo map there was one at the peak so I set off to find it.  You’ll be amazed where it was and more shocked that I actually went there to look for it.  I’ll tell you where it was, but it will be our little secret ok?  It’s under the outlook tower and yes, you need to be careful if you decide to go there.  This is one of the older survey markers I’ve discovered being stamped in 1928.

There is some sort of puzzle we can’t figure out (if you know, please leave a comment so we can stop thinking about it).  There are a lot of the manzanita bushes that look like they have been randomly sprayed with something, but it doesn’t make sense because it doesn’t appear that someone drove up there and sprayed water or anything on the bushes.  A lot of honey bees are buzzing around the bushes in this area and the ground is wet under them like they had been watered, but it’s not water.  After about 50 yards or so, this stops.  Strange, very strange…

Our trip back down went a lot faster (they always do and it is always interesting how you see things you didn’t see coming up).  It’s almost like two different hikes.  Chris commented she didn’t like the bikes going up, but sure loved the ride back down.  She hardly had to pedal very much and the sand didn’t seem to bother her so much coming in this direction.  The coasting part of this bike ride was her favorite.  I was very proud of her pushing through and Dorie “Redneck” promptly dubbed Chris with her new trail name, “Warrior.”

There is always a rewarding feeling at the end of a good hike.  In this case, it was the companionship of friends and a cold one in our hands.

This is a shot from Hiway 330 at the Lakeview turnout.  We’ve driven this road for years and have never seen the Butler Lookout Tower, yet there it is prominently jutting out into the sky.  It’s a very cool thing to say to someone, “I’ve hiked up there before.”  I’m really zoomed in with this picture.

{As a bonus, I found this article somewhere, but I forget who the author is or where the source came from.  Apologies to the original author for including this, but I thought the information was very interesting to know.}

“RIM OF THE WORLD HIGHWAY” HISTORY.

When the rock dam at Big Bear was built in 1885, it created a new lake at the east end of the San Bernardino Mountains, that began attracting tourists like a magnet.  Unfortunately the only way to get to this new lake was by making a two or three day journey on some ancient dirt roads or trails left over from the mining days.

In 1888, three years after the rock dam was built, two local Big Bear ranchers Gus Knight and John Metcalf, decided to build a resort hotel for those brave tourists that were determined enough to make all the way to the new lake at Big Bear.  The resort they built was called the Bear Valley Hotel, and despite all the problems in getting to Big Bear, it hotel was an immediate success.

A few years later in 1891, Knight and Metcalf incorporated the Bear Valley Wagon Road Company, and built a toll road from Fawnskin through Holcomb Valley to  Green Valley Lake where it connected with existing toll roads which had been built years earlier by the lumber companies.

The Bear Valley Toll Road was built by Big Bear ranchers Gus Knight and John Metcalf.  It later became part of the Rim Of The World Highway. The new Bear Valley Wagon Road allowed travelers to travel all the way to Big Bear in the comfort of a wagon, and it reduced the travel time from San Bernardino to just 1 1/2 days.

In 1915, San Bernardino County took over all of the old toll roads and combined them into a single dirt, but well maintained highway through the San Bernardino mountains. It was known as the Rim Of The World highway.   As a result, Fawnskin started growing quickly and was on its way to becoming the main population center, because this is where the new highway entered Big Bear valley.  But this all changed in 1924, when the section of highway from Green Valley to Fawnskin was abandoned by San Bernardino County, and replaced by today’s Highway 18 from Running Springs to the dam, which then ran along the south shore to the Big Bear Village.  As a result, growth in Fawnskin slowed to a crawl, and Big Bear Village began to evolve as the community center of Big Bear valley.

Keep in mind that when you drive the route to Butler Peak as described on this page, you are stepping back in time and traveling the old Bear Valley Wagon Road to Big Bear and later the Rim Of The World highway as it existed back in the late 1800’s and early 1900’s.

The Rim Of The World Highway entered Big Bear Valley at Fawnskin which in the early 1920's was rapidly growing into a major population center. - Rick Keppler collection.

Be safe, enjoy living and appreciate our lands.   ~ Joel

Directions and the numbers:

Travel through Fawnskin, California on the Northwestern Shore of Big Bear Lake.  Go North on Rim of the World Drive by the fire station for about a mile or so until you come upon 2N13.  It gets a little confusing, so be sure to have a road map with you.  You will need the Adventure Pass for all roadside parking in Big Bear, so save yourself some hassle.  For the joy we get in return, it’s a worthwhile investment.  Total round trip is appx 10.4  miles, 1650 feet total ascent with a max elevation of 8530 ft.   Overall this took us about 3 hours and 35 minutes. 

For more information and different approaches to Butler Peak, you can press this link.  http://sevensummitsofbigbear.org/butler-peak/

Lat/Lon: 34.25670°N / 117.0077°W

If you wanted to contact the local Forest Service for this area, you can call 909-382-2600.