Big Bear Lake Area Campgrounds

There are 6 beautiful Big Bear Lake area campgrounds and all offer great family camping. The 6 campgrounds include Big Pine Flat, Hanna Flat, Heart Bar, Holcomb Valley, Pineknot and Serrano.

At 6,752 feet in elevation, Bear Lake is a great place for Southern California residents to enjoy clear/cool mountain air and experience the great outdoors. The lake is popular for its  fishing and water sports. The town of Big Bear Lake also offers a variety of shops, stores, restaurants, bars, a golf course, museum, zoo and other attractions.

Big Pine Flat

Big Pine Flat has 19 campsites for tents, trailers, motorhomes and RVs.  The campground is about 5 miles away from Big Bear Lake and tucked away in a secluded area of the San Bernardino National Forest. The campground is set among a forest of large pine trees. Camp roads and parking spurs are gravel, and the campground is first-come first-serve.  Each campsite has a table, fire ring and grill. The campground has drinking water and vault toilets.

Hanna Flat

Hanna Flat is located about 5 miles north of Big Bear Lake in a valley filled with Jeffrey and Ponderosa Pines, Oaks and Willow trees. It has 86 large campsites that can accommodate tents, trailers and RVs. It’s a great place to ride a mountain bike or off road vehicle, explore nearby historic mining sites, hike, rock climb, horseback ride and picnic.  The campground is first-come first-serve and has vault toilets and drinking water. Each campsite has a table, fire ring and grill.

Heart Bar

Heart Bar is a large, well-maintained campground with paved roads and parking spurs. The campground is 21 miles from Big Bear Lake off highway 38 near the San Gorgonio Wilderness. There are 93 large campsites that can accommodate tents, trailers and RVs.  The campsites are reservable,  but there are also 26 first-come first-serve campsites. Firewood is available for sale here (camp host), and there’s also drinking water and flush toilets. If you don’t want to head over to Big Bear Lake, you can fish at nearby Jenks Lake or the South Fork of the Santa Ana River. Other outdoor activities include hiking, biking, horseback riding, backpacking, wildlife viewing and picnicking.

Holcomb Valley

Located in Holcomb Valley, the campground is near historic town site of Belleville. Nothing much remains of the old gold boom-town, but you can see some old structures, gravesite, cabins, mining sites and even a hangman’s tree. The area is also great for off-road vehicles, mountain biking, hiking, stargazing, horseback riding, picnicking and wildlife viewing.  The campground is first-come first-serve and has 19 campsites. It’s a well maintained campground set among towering Ponderosa Pines and is about 9 miles from Big Bear Lake. There are vault toilets, but no water (bring your own).

Many a bad men hung from a noose on this tree in Holcomb Valley.

Pine Knot

Pine Knot has 47 reservable campsites that will work for tents, trailers and smaller RVS. It is set up in 2 loops and is located at the base of Snow Summit Skit Resort in the town of Big Bear Lake. Each site has plenty of shade from large Jeffrey Pine and Douglas Firs. The roads and parking spurs are paved. The campground has drinking water, flush toilets and firewood for sale from the camp host.  Also nearby is the Mountain Bike Center, which has mountain bikes for rent.

Serrano

Last, but not least of our Big Bear Lake Area Campgrounds – and across the road from Big Bear Lake – is Serrano Campground. The campground has 132 campsites and many are large with ample space between neighbors. There are also 14 ‘double’ campsites, as well as another 29 campsites with full hookups. The campground has drinking water, flush toilets, showers and an RV dump station. Group camping is also available. Serrano is a great family campground and is a nice basecamp to enjoy boating, swimming, canoeing and water sports on Big Bear Lake.

So that’s our report on Big Bear Lake Area campgrounds. Hopefully you can get on up there for some camping fun.

Regards,

Camp Ranger