palm springs to...big bear?

it'd been awhile since we'd gone on one of our day-long road trips, and with the bean's winter break coming to an end we all hopped in the truck for a fun drive.  with the rain we'd gotten a few days before, there was a ton of snow on the local mountains.  tempting, but we knew that meant that everyone and their mother would be heading up there for some snow play.  instead, the hub decided to take us on a different route - one that started with a drive out towards palm springs.

and then we veered off onto a dirt trail that led us here - pioneertown, built by a group of actors in the 40s who wanted a permanent set for filming western movies.  we stopped at pappy & harriet's to order a takeout lunch, and on that gorgeous day we were definitely not the only ones.  the wait for food was about an hour, which was okay because there was plenty to see within walking distance.

in non-covid times, they put on a stunt show here.

we passed the entrance to the local motel as we headed towards town.

and while there were a good number of people out and about, it wasn't hard to keep our distance and still be able to see everything.  all of the buildings seemed to be functional, with real businesses operating inside.

the hub made a new friend here.

it was interesting to walk down the street and look at all the buildings.  and people actually do live here, too.  

at the far end of town, we came across this sign.

and then beyond it, a plaque that gave a brief history of the town in front of what's billed as "the most photographed post office in the u.s."

as we ambled back through town towards pappy & harriet's, we passed the local newspaper office.

and even a bowling alley.

we finally picked up our lunch and got back in the truck to continue the day's adventure.  the original plan was to taken an off-road trail that would drop us off in big bear, so we could play in the snow.  but we'd gotten a later start than we'd planned, and by the time we were done with lunch the sun was already going down.

as we bounced along on the bumpy, rocky road we rounded a corner and came across these guys:

it was a fun road, and while the hub had a blast driving it the rest of us just held on for the ride.

eventually we were rewarded with a snowy view of the setting sun.

and then we finally made it to big bear.  we got lucky and found a parking spot in town right by the coffee shop we love to visit and then found some dinner before heading back home.

we never did get to play in the snow, but it made for one really fun day.  and one that we'd like to do over one of these days.  i don't know if there's any snow right now, but there's some pretty nice, cool and possibly wet weather coming our way.  i'm crossing my fingers.

heading up to the mountains

we decided on a whim one weekend to head up to big bear for the weekend.  the hub managed to find a cabin that was available for one night that had three bedrooms and was dog friendly, and so we coordinated with the old lady and her special friend and packed a bag.

i say "packed a bag" like it was that easy...because packing for the puppies took longer than anything else.  heh.  we had to make sure there was a pen of some sort, food, leashes, beds, toys...it's seriously like having new babies.  sheesh.  anyway, we finally got our shit together and packed up in the truck and then off we were.  i'd bought a waterproof hammock-style seat cover for the dogs - you know, in case of any potty accidents - and after we figured out how to get it set up so that there was still room for the bean to sit back there we were finally on the road.

of course, they didn't want to sit on their side of the back seat.  instead, they made their way over to the bean (who was more than happy to cuddle them the whole way anyway).

because we couldn't check into the cabin until 4pm anyway, the hub made a pitstop once we got up the mountain to do a little reminiscing.  he'd gone to this boy scout camp every summer when he was a kid, and he was pretty crestfallen to find that it didn't seem to be in operation anymore.  it made for a good potty break for the puppies, though.

 we stopped here too:

as we made our way towards the office to pick up cabin keys, we found a fun little dirt road to bounce along.  the bean and the puppies held on for dear life while the hub and i giggled like little kids in the front seat.

the cabin was rustic and pretty much what you'd expect for a rental up in the mountains.  it was just right for a quick little family getaway.

the old lady and co. arrived not long after that.  stevie wasn't sure how he felt about everything, but he was distracted by the puppies, who were thrilled to see their friend.  i'm not sure if he was as happy to see them, but he played with them anyway.

i must not have been in the mood to take pictures for the rest of the night, but we did have dinner at a mexican restaurant nearby.  we came back to the cabin to find the dogs getting along nicely and the guys went out onto the patio to smoke cigars and enjoy some adult beverages.  the rest of us conked out one by one and called it a night.

the next morning, i remembered to take pictures of the upstairs bedrooms.  the bean was being a moody tween and didn't want to get out of bed, so she ended up in the shot i took of her room.  heh.

she didn't even want to come to breakfast, so we left the dogs under her care and went without her.  yelp brought us here, for gigantic pancakes:

it was a really pretty day up there, with temperatures in the 70s.  perfect.

we piled everyone in the truck and went driving on more dirt roads, which was really fun.  it was so bouncy that i couldn't get any decent shots of anything, but there really wasn't much to see anyway.  you just kinda had to be there.

and then on our way home i realized i'd never gotten any shots of the lake.  everyone and their mother was out there in their boats, and some folks were even playing in the water.  it was warm, but not THAT warm.

maybe we'll head back up there in the wintertime, when there's snow to play in.  it'll be hilarious to watch the dogs' reactions to that.