Charlie Zulu - yes, it was the same Arrer we all fly. She's showing her age a bit now, I'm afraid - flew absolutely fine, but the radios are past their prime, the VORs within tolerance but only just, and the airframe, well, "tired".
Although we only used our IRs on two of the 14 days, it was a great comfort knowing that we had the option if the weather turned out grotty. In the UK, the primary consideration is freezing level - that never got to us in California. Or rather, we never got to it: the best we managed was 10,500 feet and the FZL was usually around 13,000.
Big Bear is one of my favourite airfields, but needs that extra bit of work: try to take off with all three knobs fully forward, and you run off the end into the lake. Landing isn't the usual "reds, blues, greens" either! Anyway, we landed and departed from there a good few times (I have a favourite hotel up in the mountains, owned by a friend who flies a 182 out of Big Bear).
Chilli Monster was over there doing his CPL/ME/IR at the same time, so we met up several times. He seemed to be having a whale of a time, too. No doubt he'll have some pix to post when he gets back (about now, IIRC).