Cougar Crest Trail (Bertha Peak)
Big Bear Lake / Fawnskin, San Bernardino Mtns · near Big Bear Lake / Fawnskin · Los Angeles / SoCal
Hiking
At a glance
- Difficulty
- moderate
- Route type
- out-and-back
- Distance
- 7.5 miles
- Elevation gain
- 1,450 ft
- Time needed
- day
- Best season
- May–November · Snow/microspikes in winter; fall color
Permits and booking
- Permit required
- No
- How the permit works
- A National Forest Adventure Pass (or Interagency pass) is required for parking in San Bernardino NF; the Big Bear Discovery Center across Hwy 38 sells them.
- How hard the permit is to get
- 1 of 5
What is here
- Features
- Joins the Pacific Crest Trail · Bertha Peak 8,201-ft summit · Big Bear Lake overlook · Jeffrey pine & juniper forest
Worth knowing
- Dogs
- Allowed
- Good for a first timer
- No
Hiking detail
- Intl tip
- You start above 6,800 ft — pace for the altitude and carry more water than a coastal hike of this length would need. The Big Bear Discovery Center sells Adventure Passes.
The guide
Big Bear's signature day hike: a steady, well-graded climb through high-desert pine and juniper to a ridge that merges with the…
In the Guidebook
Everything above is yours for free. The written guide to Cougar Crest Trail (Bertha Peak) — what it is actually like, and what we would tell a friend before they went — comes with the Guidebook.
Getting there
- Coordinates
- 34.264, -116.9108