The practically unlimited water source for Big Bear Mountain Resort’s large scale snowmaking is Big Bear Lake. It’s pumped from the lake to the resorts and then up the mountains. Multi-million gallon reservoirs on the resorts store water for heavy production because the lines from the lake can’t flow enough water at those times. This lake water supply is the main reason Big Bear’s resorts can virtually guarantee skiing on most runs all winter long, even in the driest winter. Throughout the season, Summit and Bear each can produce at least twice the snow of any other local resort, which rely on limited amounts of on-site well water.

We have an annual allotment from the lake that we have never needed to exceed. If used entirely, it would draw the lake level, when full, down only about 4 inches – and at least 50% of that runs back into the lake during the spring snowmelt!