If you're anything like me, you love an Alpine setting of mountains and snow. You enjoy skiing and snowshoeing. My favorite, though, is hiking the trails. I've hiked different places around the world, including through the Andes. But the trails at Big Bear never cease to surprise me.

We're very close to Lake Arrowhead, which is privately owned and can be used only by residents whose homes are within a certain perimeter of the lake. But our lake pr...