In 1845; Benjamin Davis Wilson--the future first mayor of Los Angeles and the grandfather of Gen. George S. Patton--led a 20-man posse into the San Bernardino Mountains in search of Native American raiding parties that had been attacking Riverside ranches. But what they found in a particular high-altitude valley were; instead; large and furry. Wilsons men soon roped 11 bears; bringing the creatures into camp; and the valley the Serrano Indians knew as Yuhaviat; or "Pine Place;" received a new map designation. Wilson named a nearby body of water Big Bear Lake (now Baldwin Lake; with the present-day; man-made lake co-opting the bruin moniker). Today; at elevations between 6;000 and 9;000 feet; the city of Big Bear Lake is an hour and a half from Los Angeles and a million miles from the rat race; where hiking; sports; and the absence of exertion thrive in a vacation atmosphere.
#446018 in eBooks 2003-06-17 2003-06-17File Name: B009A0AJEI
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