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Visitors coming to Big Bear can start their adventure shortly after leaving the freeway. Families with small children can give them a break by packing a picnic lunch, taking Highway 38 and making a stop for lunch and a short hike.
Scenic Highway 38 takes a little longer than Highway 330, but it is a beautiful drive with less traffic. Located a short distance from the bottom is a wonderful area with lots of vegetation and a stream called Thurman Flats Picnic Grounds. This is a great spot for a picnic as well as a nature lesson for the little ones. Remember, overnight camping is not allowed and an Adventure Pass is required (inquire at the Ranger Station a little lower down on the 38).
Below is a passage from one of the displays located at Thurman Flats.
Imagine a concert given by over a million traveling singers! They give this performance almost any Spring or Summer morning in the San Bernardino Forest. From April to October , as many as 250 migratory birds species stop here on their world tour.
Every Spring and Fall they take their show on the road. Traveling from as far away as the rainforests of South America; they migrate north in the Spring. With the arrival of the cold weather they return to their warmer southern homes.
When looking for a place to nest, forage and rear their young, or simply looking for a rest stop on their flight north, songbirds prefer to stop where food is abundant and life is easy. They may seek out lakes, stream banks, desert, chaparral or meadows; all these places can be found in the San Bernardino National Forest.
Imagine silence instead of songbirds, forests in both North and South America are fast disappearing. As the forests disappear, so will the songbirds.
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