Southwest Shore Colony Celebrates 100th Anniversary!

2012 Centennial Logo

Last Saturday afternoon families and friends emerged from every corner of the Southwest Shore Colony -- from cabins near the dam and cabins near the Castle Rock Trail, and from everywhere in between. Over 200 people of all ages, many wearing blue Big Bear Centennial T-shirts, converged on Keystone Point to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the founding of the Southwest Shore Colony. What a celebration we had! The early settlers smiling down on us must have felt a sense of pride and satisfaction to see that the spirit of camaraderie and cooperation they initiated 100 years ago, is still alive and flourishing in the Southwest Shore Colony of 2012. Please read more about the Centennial Celebration Dinner last Saturday night. Those of you who attended the celebration will long remember the event. Those of you who were unable to attend missed "the party of the century!"

The celebration was made extra special by the unveiling of the Southwest Shore Centennial Album, a beautiful 10" by 8" hard-cover book that contains nearly 200 pages of photos and history about the first 100 years of the Southwest Shore Colony. Over 100 copies were distributed to Association members on Saturday, and each person remarked about how wonderfully the album captured the essence and feeling of the Southwest Shore experience. If any members do not yet have a copy and would like to order one, please read the ordering details.

The Trip to the Colony

We were honored and blessed to be a part of this milestone celebration in the life of the Southwest Shore Colony. We are in awe of the early settlers, who braved incredible obstacles just to get to the Southwest Shore in those early years, and who then persevered to carve out modest, rustic living quarters so that they and their families could enjoy the wonder and beauty of their surroundings. Let's strive to be good stewards ourselves of the Colony for whatever portion of the next century we are here, so that future colonists of the Southwest Shore will be celebrating our legacy at the 200th anniversary.  Have a great summer!

Forest Service Needs Volunteers

Our local Forest Service Ranger Katie Nelson recently sent out a notice to all the SBNF tract groups indicating which tracts would be inspected later this summer.  She is looking for volunteer inspectors -- which can be individuals or teams -- to do these cabin inspections using a prescribed Forest Service Inspection Form.  You cannot do the inspection for your own tract!  If you are interested in inspecting one of the following tract groups, please email Katie Nelson and indicate your willingness to volunteer.  If you have a preference for a particular tract, let her know.  Katie would like to hear from you by Friday, June 29, so please send your email now!

• One-half of the Southwest Shore of Big Bear Tract (48 cabins)
• The other half of the Southwest Shore of Big Bear Tract (48 cabins)
• Lake Arrowhead tracts (15 cabins)
• One-half of the Lakeview Tract (48 cabins)
• The other half of the Lakeview Tract (47 cabins)
• Poligue Tract (24 cabins)
• South Fork Tract (50 cabins)
• Stetson Creek Tract (22 cabins)

Katie will be scheduling at least two training sessions to make sure that all volunteers are applying the inspection criteria in the same manner.  Once you are trained, Katie will provide inspection forms, tract maps, and "Forest Service Volunteer" vests to indicate that you are official!  

If you have some free time, we encourage you to volunteer for this important project. Invite some of your Big Bear neighbors to join you on a team. This will be an interesting chance to see other Forest Service tracts within the SBNF.

Please send your email to Katie Nelson as soon as possible, with a copy to Roy Glauthier, president of the SBNF Cabin Coalition group.  Roy will help keep track of which tracts still need volunteers.

Thanks in advance for your help.

Beware of Bears -- Two Sightings Reported!

Black bear walking near lake - Harlan Kredit - NPS

During the past two weeks there have been two bear sightings in the Southwest Shore Colony. The first reported incident was on Memorial Day weekend on Spring Road, where a bear was discovered about 5:45 a.m. on the porch of Cabin 45. We are not sure whether the bear or the cabin owner was more shocked and frightened, but both parties took off quickly in opposite directions! The owner promptly ducked back inside the cabin, while the bear hastily retreated down the front stairs after leaving two large piles of scat and knocking a bird feeder to the ground.

The second bear sighting occurred this past weekend in front of Cabin 16 at the Keystone Road turn-around circle. One of our owners was out walking with a friend and her dog on Friday evening.  The bear apparently spotted them and scurried up a tree across from Cabin 16, out of harm's way. On Saturday the owners of nearby Cabin 17 reported that the bear had visited their deck, destroying their hummingbird feeder and other bird feeders.

Other incidents have been reported near Spring Road at Cabin 78 (bird feeder ripped down from a tree); Cabin 55 (a bear broke into the kitchen to eat fruit, leaving behind the telltale pile of scat as a "thank-you"); and Cabin 52 (bear prints in the snow on the front porch.)  The bear (or bears) must be getting desperate for food, and they are willing to venture into inhabited areas where food may be present.  We must be vigilant to avoid any unpleasant incidents.

Please do not leave food, garbage, bird seed, nuts, or other consumable items out where the bears will be attracted.  As long as the bears find food, they will keep coming back!  We are now on the bear's regular route, and are likely to remain so as long as the bear gets rewarded on each visit with something tasty:

• Leave no accessible garbage, either indoors or out;
• Keep all garbage indoors, sealed in sealable plastic bags so that odors do not waft outdoors to attract the bears;
• Frequently (daily) dispose of trash, especially trash containing any food refuse, at the public trash drop-off across from the Performing Arts Center, which is just east of the old drive-in movie area above Metcalf Bay;
• Do not feed pets outdoors;
• Limit bird feed quantities, and take bird feeders indoors at night.

Be vigilant, especially from dusk to dawn hours. Fortunately, this bear is typical in that he or she is shy and tries to avoid human contact. The bear is not hunting humans and is not accompanied by cubs (the most dangerous situation for aggression.) Rather, the bear is opportunistic and dependent upon human-originated food or garbage, which the bear can smell from long distances.  Do not sleep outside after having handled food, garbage or dish washing, as black bears have mistaken a sleeping human carrying such odors as actual food, with very sad results.  If you plan on sleeping outside, shower first to remove the possibility that the bear might associate you with food or garbage.  If confronted by a bear, do not turn and run, but rather back away slowly so that you do not trigger a chase response.

The bear is simply following its instincts.  We do not want to facilitate successful ventures into our area. It would be tragic if the bear hurt someone, and would be a shame if the bear had to be euthanized should it become too comfortable with the area or started to become aggressive. Please take this warning seriously!

Several Southwest Shore owners contributed to this story.  If you have your own bear stories to share, or would otherwise like to comment, please submit your remarks in our "Leave a Reply" form at the bottom of the page.  Thanks.

Forest Service Bills -- Were You Surprised?

By now everyone should have received a bill from the Forest Service for the 2012 annual permit fee. Because the proposed Cabin Fee Act (CFA) has not yet become law, the fees continue to be calculated using the existing CUFFA rules. As you may recall, CUFFA dictates that the annual permit fee will be 5% of the most recent appraisal value, which is now the 2008-2009 appraisal.  The fee amount will be adjusted annually by an inflation index. Because of some CUFFA fee phase-in regulations, the annual fee in 2012 is limited to no more than 125% of the 2011 annual fee. Since CUFFA is now using the 2008-2009 appraisal values, the 2012 permit fee for all three of the Big Bear Tract lot categories will be capped by the 125% rule. We do not know exactly what each cabin owner's annual fee should be in 2012, because the 2011 fees were slightly different for cabins within each lot category. Therefore, each cabin owner should locate his or her 2011 fee amount and then multiply that amount by 1.25. The resulting amount should equal the 2012 permit fee shown on your Forest Service bill. If it does not, you may wish to contact Katie Nelson at the Forest Service for clarification.

Here are the 2008-2009 appraisal values and CUFFA calculations for the four lot categories in the Big Bear Tract:

If you have questions or comments, please use the "Leave a Reply" form below, or send a private message to us using the "Contact Us" link in the main menu above.

For those of you who feel that the fees are unreasonably high, and that the 10-year appraisal process is too arbitrary and time-consuming, this would be a good time to redouble your efforts to convince Congress to enact the Cabin Fee Act (CFA). For more information about how you can advocate for the CFA, please read the recent post called "Cabin Fee Act (CFA) or CUFFA?"

Cabin Fee Act (CFA) or CUFFA?

The Cabin Fee Act (CFA) is once again working its way through Congress with bipartisan support and little controversy.  However, with a crowded election year schedule in Congress, the CFA needs some grassroots support and enthusiasm from cabin owners in order to gain enough momentum to become law.  CFA must pass this year, or we may be stuck with the old CUFFA rules and much higher fees for many years to come! Please email or phone the offices of both Senator Dianne Feinstein and Barbara Boxer, asking them to encourage Jeff Bingaman (Dem., New Mexico) to move the Cabin Fee Act out of committee and onto the Senate floor.  Bingaman is Chairman of the Senate Subcommittee on Energy and Natural Resources (ENR).  Follow this link for information on how to contact Senators Feinstein and Boxer.

Please read the attached CFA Status Report for more information about the current CFA situation.  Thank you for your continuing support of the efforts to implement the Cabin Fee Act.

New Southwest Shore Website

The Big Bear Southwest Shore website was long overdue for a make-over, and here is the first look at the direction we are taking.

Easier Access to Website Content

On the previous Southwest Shore website, a login name and password were required to access all of the information on the site, much of which was not confidential and did not justify such a high degree of security.  The new website will now allow access to much of the content without logging in.  However, Southwest Shore financial information, administrative matters, owners' contact information, and other selected items will have access restricted to authorized Southwest Shore members.

Southwest Shore members have requested less restrictive access, since many times they simply visit the website to check on non-confidential Big Bear news or to look at the Cabin Cam.  Logging into the site for such tasks was unreasonably restrictive.  That restriction is gone now!

Another benefit will be easier access to website content for our North Shore neighbors, who are also interested in news about the Big Bear Tract.  Just like Southwest Shore owners, North Shore owners have a vested interest in the Cabin Fee Act, Forest Service pronouncements, National Forest Homeowners activities, and other issues that affect the Big Bear area in general, and Big Bear Tract cabin owners in particular.

Easier Website Registration and Security For confidential website content, such as Southwest Shore administrative matters and owners' contact data, we want to insure strong, easily managed security.  If you are a Southwest Shore owner, family member, or friend who would like access to the restricted area of the website, please visit the New Member Registration page for further information.

We encourage you to register now, even if you do not immediately need access to restricted information.  It may take a day or two for the webmaster to review and authorize your registration, so you want to register well in advance of your need to login.

Forest Service Bills Coming Soon

In a recent email from Katie Nelson, our Forest Service administrator, she indicates that our annual bills should be mailed sometime in the next two weeks. Here is the text of her email, as well as all her contact information, in case you need to reach her:

Sorry, I just realized I never replied to your email. The bills for the Big Bear Tract should be going out in the next week or two. There were some errors in the database, but our billing person has them corrected, and is now starting to issue the bills.

Thanks, Katie

Katie L Nelson, Special Uses Permit Administrator San Bernardino National Forest 41374 North Shore Drive PO Box 290, Fawnskin, CA 92333 klnelson@fs.fed.us Phone: (909)382-2812 ---- Fax: 909-866-2867

2012 Amgen Bike Tour Returns to Big Bear

Amgen Tour of California 2012 Map - Big Bear Stage 6

On Friday, May 18, Stage 6 of the Amgen Tour of California bike race will return to Big Bear Lake, following the same route as its last appearance in 2010. According to an article in today's Big Bear Grizzly, the Stage 6 route is 115 miles long, and includes more than 12,000 feet of climbing. The race is scheduled to begin in Palmdale at approximately 10 a.m., and is expected to reach Big Bear Dam around 2:00 p.m. After traveling from the dam through Fawnskin along the north side of the lake, the cyclists will cross Stanfield Cutoff and end the race at Snow Summit sometime between 2:35 and 3:25 p.m. Please read the Big Bear Grizzly article for more details.