San Bernardino National Forest

San Bernardino National Forest is located in California. It is administered by the United States Forest Service, a government agency within the United States Department of Agriculture.

The forest is made up of two main divisions, the San Bernardino Mountains on the easternmost of the Transverse Ranges, and the San Jacinto and Santa Rosa Mountains on the northernmost of the Peninsular Ranges. Elevations range from 2,000 to 11,499 feet (600 to 3505 m). The forest includes five wilderness areas: San Gorgonio, Cucamonga, San Jacinto, Santa Rosa and Bighorn Mountain. Forest headquarters are located in the city of San Bernardino. There are district offices in Lytle Creek, Idyllwild, and Skyforest.[2]

This site was the filming location for Daniel Boone in 1936; part of the 1969 musical film Paint Your Wagon was shot here.

Free camping is available at 11 different 'Yellow Post' campsites year round.

• California Inland Empire Council of BSA supports many camping and hiking programs throughout this forest.

Pacific Crest Trail

Much of the forest is bisected by the famous Pacific Crest Trail which runs 3000 miles from Mexican border, up the length of California, across Oregon and Washington, to the Canadian border. It provides numerous opportunities for both shorter and longer backpacking trips and high adventure training.

Trailheads:

Forest Activites

Tall Mountains

1. San Gorgonio Mountain - San Bernardino Mountains - 11,503 ft
2. San Jacinto Peak - San Jacinto Mountains - 10,834 ft
3. Sugarloaf Mountain - San Bernardino Mountains - 9,956 ft

Wilderness areas

There are eight official wilderness areas lying within San Bernardino National Forest that are part of the National Wilderness Preservation System. Two of these extend into neighboring Angeles National Forest and three into land that is managed by the Bureau of Land Management (as indicated).

• Bighorn Mountain Wilderness (mostly BLM)
• Cahuilla Mountain Wilderness
• Cucamonga Wilderness (partly in Angeles NF)
• San Gorgonio Wilderness (partly BLM)
• San Jacinto Wilderness
• Santa Rosa Wilderness (mostly BLM)
• Sheep Mountain Wilderness (mostly in Angeles NF)
• South Fork San Jacinto Wilderness

Vegetation

There are many different species of trees, many coniferous, that grow in the mountains. Pines, such as ponderosa pine, Jeffrey pine, sugar pine, Coulter pine, lodgepole pine, single-leaf pinyon, and knobcone pine all thrive here. Other coniferous trees, such as white fir, bigcone Douglas-fir (Pseudotsuga macrocarpa), incense cedar, and western juniper also thrive here. Canyon live oak, California black oak, and Pacific dogwood are other trees that also grow here. The forest contains an estimated 87,400 acres (354 km2) of old growth. The most common old-growth forest types are Sierra Nevada mixed conifer forests, white fir (Abies concolor) forests, Jeffrey pine (Pinus jeffreyi) forests, and lodgepole pine (Pinus contorta) forests.

Resources

• Nature of California - Guide to local wildlife and vegetation