Bear Valley

When most people think about skiing in Northern California, they probably think about Tahoe. However, the Northern Sierras have plenty of mountains outside of the Tahoe region, and some of them even have ski resorts of their own. One such mountain is Bear Valley, located off of Highway 4 south of the Tahoe region. Can a lesser known mountain hold its own against some of the behemoths in Tahoe, or is there a reason that Bear Valley flies under the radar of many skiers and riders even in Northern California? Let’s delve into it.

Size

Bear Valley offers just over 1,300 skiable acres and 1,900 feet of vertical descent, which is a step below some of the Tahoe destinations but still quite impressive for a local ski resort. However, under 60% of this terrain is lift served, so the mountain in practical terms is substantially smaller for most visitors than its footprint would suggest. Even so, when the mountain is fully open, there is more than enough to keep most guests busy for a few days.

Terrain Layout

Bear Valley is divided into four major mountain areas, each of which offers a unique experience targeted towards different types of guests. Only three of these areas are lift served.

The front side, which is all that guests will be able to see when they arrive at the resort, offers all of the resort’s beginner terrain surrounded by a mix of shorter intermediate and advanced runs. The main lodge is located at the base of this area, which is actually well over half way up the total vertical drop of the resort. Bear West is a mostly intermediate-focused area with longer groomers and gladed runs. The lower mountain, which consists of two large bowls, is an entirely advanced and expert focused area littered with cliffs, ridges, chutes, and endurance runs.

Village Side

The final mountain area, the Village Side, may be Bear Valley’s most unique feature. The large, wide open, southeast-facing slope lacks lifts entirely, and guests who venture into this area will need to take a bus if they want to get back to the resort. Because of this, very few guests ski or ride the Village Side, and entering this area often feels like venturing into the backcountry. After navigating through the uncut trees at the bottom of the slopes, guests will have to follow a road back to the Bear Valley Village to catch a bus back to the resort. This can be easier said than done, as the roads are quite flat and require extensive pushing, plus there is little signage.

TRAIL MAP

Navigation

Thankfully, with the exception of the Village Side, navigating between mountain areas is relatively painless. From the top of the mountain, visitors can access nearly the entire mountain with little to no traversing, and both the front side and Bear West have high-speed lifts running to the peak. One potential point of frustration for some guests is that parts of the lower mountain cannot be accessed directly from the Grizzly chair, which is the only lift serving that area. This means that lapping these areas, or traveling to Bear West or the Village Side, requires two lift rides.

Lift Infrastructure

Navigating between mountain areas is made more frustrating by the fact that the Grizzly chair is an old, fixed-grip double lift, which is surprisingly common at Bear Valley. In fact, of the resort’s seven lifts (excluding two carpets), four are fixed-grip doubles of an older variety which tend to sway and bounce. Two of these serve the beginner area and run at a lower speed. Another is a fixed-grip triple which rarely runs, leaving just two detachable high-speed lifts.

Thankfully, the resort’s two high-speed lifts are well-placed. Both run from the base of their respective mountain areas to the resort’s summit, so some guests may spend an entire day on just these two lifts. Mokelumne Express, the resort’s newest lift, is a six pack, and is likely to be the lift that visitors ride most frequently on most days.

Additionally, many of these potential drawbacks are set to be fixed for the upcoming 2024-25 season. The Koala chair, one of the resort’s fixed-grip doubles, is set to be replaced by a (still fixed-grip) quad. Additionally, the Cub chair is to be replaced by a shortened triple chair that currently extends further up the mountain, and the Super Cub chair is to have its chairs replaced with more modern infrastructure. After these upgrades, the Grizzly chair will be the resort’s only remaining old-style double chair.

Crowds

Despite the dated lift infrastructure, Bear Valley will often feel empty compared to resorts in Tahoe or other destination ski regions. The only areas likely to see crowding are the bases of the mountain’s two high-speed lifts, so the older lifts elsewhere on the mountain aren’t as much of a problem as they might be at more well-known resorts. Even the Grizzly chair, the only way out of a large, steep mountain area, rarely has any lift lines at all.

While the mountain may feel empty, the same can’t always be said of the mountain’s sole lift-served lodge. Around lunch time, finding a place to sit may be a challenge. The longest line many guests will experience at Bear Valley is the lunch line.

Beginner Terrain

Bear Valley doesn’t have all that much beginner terrain, but at least it is easy to access. All green trails are in one pod right by the main lodge. Also convenient for beginners is that there is a clear intended order of progression. The Panda Carpet is a tiny bunny hill, and the Cub Chair (which is set to be replaced for the upcoming season) is a relatively short lift with a very mild, consistent slope. The Super Cub chair has some (slightly) steeper sections, more trees, and is right next to the main terrain park, so beginners who want to try something a bit more challenging will get some interesting spectacle. This whole beginner area is relatively short compared to some destination resorts, but there is enough terrain for first-timers to learn without having to lap the same run too many times. There is technically one more green trail on the Village Side, but this is nothing more than a traverse between two roads with no lift access.

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Intermediate Terrain

Bear Valley has more to offer for intermediate skiers and riders. Bear West is the most intermediate-focused part of the resort. Runs here are decently long, and there are a good number of groomed ways down and plenty of paths between them. This area also hosts some intermediate glades and ungroomed trails. The bottom section is relatively flat, but traversing isn’t typically required.

There are some worthwhile intermediate trails elsewhere on the mountain as well. The Koala chair is the other largely intermediate-focused lift at Bear Valley, with a mix of groomed and ungroomed runs. Most of these runs are fairly short, but there are a variety of pitches and some glades to be found here. Mokelumne Express has one main blue run back to the base area, which sees a lot of traffic (for Bear Valley). However, this run contains a fairly steep section that can be a major choke point and a challenge for lower-level intermediates. This run is required for intermediate skiers to return to the front side from Bear West without traversing. There are also two blue trails on the Village Side for more adventurous intermediate skiers who don’t mind the bus ride back.

Advanced Terrain

Advanced visitors are perhaps most well catered to at Bear Valley, with a wide variety of black diamond trails to be found in all major mountain areas. On the front side, advanced terrain consists mostly of relatively short but steep drops, some of which are often groomed. Adventurous guests will also find some cliffs scattered around this area providing some extra challenge, as well as a few steep gladed areas. Bear West has less advanced terrain than the front side does, but it does have some of the resort’s best advanced glades.

But where advanced skiers and riders will undoubtedly want to spend most of their time is on the lower mountain. This area is split into two large bowls, Snow Valley and Grizzly Bowl, totaling over 300 acres of advanced and expert terrain. The main run down Snow Valley (creatively named Upper Snow Valley and Lower Snow Valley) is sometimes groomed, but the rest of the lower mountain is over 1,100 vertical feet of ungroomed, leg-burning terrain. Except for a few of the upper gates into Grizzly Bowl, most of this terrain can be lapped via the Grizzly Chair.

The Village Side is also mostly geared towards advanced guests, though due to the time and hassle required to return to the resort, it is unlikely that guests will ski this area more than once or twice in a day. Still, when conditions are right, those who do venture into this area are unlikely to be disappointed, as most routes down will provide quite a few isolated turns with some of the resort’s best views, though the actual challenge level of the skiing here is relatively low.

Expert Terrain

Bear Valley fares better for experts than it may appear on paper. The resort only has four double black trails on the trail map, all of which are in the lower mountain, but all four of these runs provide a legitimate challenge. West Ridge, which is one of the parts of Grizzly Bowl which requires two lift rides to lap, contains the mountain’s gnarliest terrain, with a multitude of unmarked chutes and cliffs to be found in the area. There are also plenty of cliffs to be found around other parts of the lower mountain and even the front side which provide expert-level challenges but are not marked on the trail map. Finally, it is worth noting that Bear Valley is somewhat more conservative than many ski areas with its trail ratings, and some of the single black runs here would probably be marked as double blacks at many competitive resorts.

Terrain Parks

While Bear Valley may not attract seasoned freestyle skiers and riders, it does set up several terrain parks on the front side of the mountain. The Cub Park offers several small features and is a good spot for beginners to practice, while the Rodeo Park has several larger jumps and a few rails, boxes, and tubes. The Rodeo Park is located directly adjacent to the Super Cub Chair, so beginners in this area can get up close views of some neat tricks.

Snow

Due to its low crowds, Bear Valley tends to preserve snow much better than many of its Tahoe competitors. Guests who know where to look may find fresh powder days after a storm. However, due to the mountain’s unique layout, snow conditions can vary drastically across different mountain areas. The front side and Bear West have favorable exposure angles and are relatively high in elevation, and thus tend to preserve snow quite well. The lower mountain, however, may see rain in warmer storms, and when it does get powder it may not stay as long when temperatures rise. The sun-baked slopes of the Village Side are definitely the worst bet for good conditions, and are often icy or slushy when the rest of the resort is still powdery.

As far as its actual snowfall totals go, Bear Valley sees the same strong accumulation one might expect from a Sierra Nevada resort, with approximately 300 inches of average annual snowfall. However, like other Northern California resorts, Bear Valley can see multi-foot snow dumps, but can also see snow droughts for even weeks at a time.

Resiliency

Unfortunately, guests planning an in-advance trip to Bear Valley have no guarantee of actually being able to ski all of the resort’s best terrain. Bear Valley sees many of the same weather patterns that the Tahoe resorts are infamous for, including massive snowfall events that can shut down the resort, multi-week snow droughts, and low elevation rain, all of which can have substantial impacts on operations. The front side and Bear West are reasonably reliable, but the lower mountain may not open at all until fairly late in the season, and it can take several days or even weeks after particularly large storm events for this area to open due to limited ops team capacity. It is worth noting that Bear Valley changed ownership for the 2023-24 season, and the new owners have acknowledged the inconsistency in the lower mountain’s opening schedule and promised to make this terrain their top priority for the upcoming 2024-25 season. In a recent statement, the resort claimed that upgrades being made during the off-season will allow them to open and groom the lower mountain with ¼ the amount of snow currently required, which, if true, would largely address Bear Valley’s biggest weakness for advanced visitors.

Mountain Aesthetic

One area in which Bear Valley does stand out is its views. The resort is surrounded by beautiful mountains in every direction, and each mountain area provides guests with unique views of different mountains and ranges. Bear Valley sits on the edge of a canyon lined with prominent mountains including Mokelumne Peak and, farther north, the back side of Kirkwood. Visible from the resort’s upper ridgelines and the Village Side are the Dardanelles and other impressive peaks farther southeast. Additionally, the only small town near the mountain is tucked out of sight from most of the resort, which results in a very isolated feel. For the most part, Bear Valley Mountain itself is not quite as impressive as many destination resorts in California, though the Grizzly Bowl does have some impressive cliffs and walls.

Facilities

When it comes to facilities, Bear Valley has anything visitors might need, but is not going to blow anyone away. The main lodge, located at the base of the front side, has pretty much everything one might expect from a ski lodge, including a reasonably large kitchen, several large, open rooms worth of seating, a small shop, and two bars. However, the building itself is nothing impressive, and parts of it really show their age.

Besides the main lodge, there are very few other facilities worth mentioning. Atop the summit, there is a small shack which sometimes serves lunch or drink options, but guests can’t actually enter the small building. The resort also sometimes offers barbecue lunches outside the main lodge on spring weekends.

There is another lodge in the Bear Valley Village with more food and shopping options, but only skiers who venture into the Village Side and need to take a bus back to the main mountain are likely to even see this building.

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Getting There

Bear Valley is about a three and a half hour drive from San Francisco, comparable to its Tahoe competitors. The resort is also roughly two and a half hours from Sacramento and two hours from Stockton. Highway 4 is reasonably reliable in all but the very largest of storms from the west but is closed just east of Bear Valley during the winter, so visitors coming from Nevada have no easy access. Traffic is rarely an issue except on major holidays, and even then visitors will have a much easier time avoiding taffic compared to many competitors.

Parking

Bear Valley’s parking lot is essentially just the widened-out terminal portion of Highway 207, the access road to the resort. This means that the lot can extend as far as it needs to based on crowds, but on busy weekends and holidays some visitors may have to walk a ways or hop on a shuttle to get to the slopes. On weekends, holidays, and peak days, the resort implements a preferred parking system for the spots closest to the lodge, but the majority of parking is always free.

Lodging

The closest lodging to the ski area is in the Bear Valley Village, from which a shuttle ride is required to access the ski area. The Bear Valley Lodge is the main option, and while it may not impress those accustomed to slopeside lodging at destination resorts, it does provide a comfy place to stay with a more laid back feel and a large rock fireplace lounge room for relaxation after a long day on the slopes. Because of the lack of lifts on the Village Side, accommodations in the Bear Valley Village are technically ski-in but not ski-out.

Aprés-Ski

Bear Valley’s après scene can best be described as laid back. There are several bars in the main lodge and a few more in the village, but restaurant options are limited. The Monte Wolf Saloon, located in the main lodge, has a deck with a great view of the slopes and Mokelumne Peak. While it’s still much quieter than some of the ski towns in Tahoe, the town of Arnold, about 45 minutes down the highway from Bear Valley, offers far more in terms of restaurants. Slightly closer to the resort, the Lube Room Saloon in Dorrington offers good food and a fun mountain bar experience, though it can get crowded.

May 16, 2024 Written By Sam Daley

Verdict

While it is undeniable that Bear Valley lacks the infrastructure to fully compete with bigger destination resorts elsewhere in the Sierras, its diverse terrain, strong natural snowfall, family-friendly atmosphere, and unique mountain aesthetic result in a compelling option for those looking to avoid the crowds and hassle associated with more well-known ski destinations. Substantial resort upgrades in the near future promise to address the resort’s reliability issues and enhance the on-mountain experience for skiers and riders of all ability levels.

Pricing

Lift ticket prices undercut many of the more well known resorts in California, but they are still quite expensive, with adult lift tickets costing $135 on weekdays and $155 on weekends and holidays. Bear Valley is also on the Cali Pass, a $649 season pass which also grants unrestricted access to Dodge Ridge Mountain Resort, China Peak Mountain Resort, and Mountain High Resort and 3 days each at 19 Powder Alliance Resorts.

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