Lake Tahoe, California and Nevada

We left Snowflower Thousand Trails campground in Emigrant Gap and drove to South Lake Tahoe.  

On our route south along the west side of the lake, we had this small bear run right out in front of us and cross the street!

Our drive south along the lake was a bit stressful because there were so many people and cars parked along the side of the road.  Sometimes their cars would stick out into the travel lane and with our big trailer, it was stressful.  Al did a great job!

We returned to City of South Lake Tahoe Campground for 8 nights this time and celebrated July 4th there.  

We stayed at this same campground last year but earlier in the season so the water was too cold to enjoy.  That visit also included us planting sugar pine saplings where we were included in the story on the local news. 

 Here's the link to that blog entry and the news story if you missed it:  https://imagineourrvdreams.blogspot.com/2022/05/we-made-news-again-this-time-in-lake.html

We had a reserved site at this campground so there was no rush to get there.  We found our site and got set up.  I love being among the tall pines. 

The next day, July 3rd, we went for a walk to check out the area.  There were a lot of people enjoying El Dorado beach which was the closest beach to our campground.  It was right across Lake Tahoe Boulevard from the campground!

El Dorado Beach looking east to Nevada

El Dorado Beach looking west

Each day our truck and RV got covered with yellow pollen from the pine trees.  

Experts say a long winter coupled with a wet spring after years of drought has caused the pollen count to rise -- particularly pine tree pollen. At 199 PPM Lake Tahoe has one of the highest pollen counts in the country.

On July 4th, we walked over to Lake Tahoe Blvd and watched the parade. 

California Conservation Corps (CCC)

Tallac Hotshot Firefighters

 

Mount Tallac is a mountain peak southwest of Lake Tahoe.

The Tallac Hotshots are based on the Lake Tahoe Basin Management Unit and are one of three federally funded, Forest Service 20 person, fire suppression and fuels management crews in the Tahoe Basin.

 

 

Even Smokey Bear enjoyed the July 4th parade.

 

Now there's a way to get some advertising for your food truck.  Decorate it and put it in a parade!

 

 There were a lot more people at El Dorado beach on July 4th.

There really isn't that much beach so it got crowded.

Close to sunset we walked over to the beach area to get a spot to watch the fireworks.

Waiting for darkness so the fireworks can begin.

Looking east to the Nevada side of the lake

 

The next day we pumped up the inflatable paddleboards and put them in the lake at El Dorado Beach.  We were able to carry them from our campsite, across Lake Tahoe Blvd, and down the steps to the beach. 

 

This first trip we headed east.  The water was very choppy so we basically used the boards as a kayak. 

The parasailing boats were busy with tourists

 

Heavenly Mountain Ski Resort trails visible on the mountain

The tall building are the casinos at the Nevada state line
Golden Nugget, Bally's, Harrah's, and Harvey's

Then we paddled all the way back to El Dorado Beach.  It was probably about two miles paddling on that trip.

The steps at El Dorado Beach

Al chillin'

 

Cleaning up our gear

The next day we got moving earlier and drove about 40 minutes east and then north on the Nevada side of the lake to Sand Harbor Beach.  Since it was a holiday week we knew it would be crowded and we needed to be able to park our giant truck.  We had no trouble finding a good parking spot after paying the $15 entrance fee. 

The water was so calm and clear in this area

 

 

We first paddled north enjoying the scenery along the way.  The water was so clear!

 

 

 

 

 

We found some rocks to sit on and have our picnic lunch that we brought with us.

 

 

 

 

 

 

We went a bit further so that we were away from the state park so Al could get his drone out.  Drones are not allowed in many parks.  Here are some photos he took with it.

 

 

Al is a little nervous using the drone around water because it needs to have a place to return to and if you're on water, that landing zone moves.  He ended up landing it on shore and went to retrieve it.

 

Then we turned around and paddled south back to where we started and continued south around Sand Point and to the large beach area.

 

 

 

After our paddle we stopped in to the Visitor's Center.

Clear Forever?
The Tahoe Basin is one of the most studied environments in the world.  It is also one of the most regulated.  Why all this concern?  Known for its clarity, the lake is losing that clearness at about one foot per year, as measured by a special instrument called a Secchi disk. 

 
The Secchi disk is a valuable, "low-tech" tool used to measure Lake Tahoe's clarity.  Italian astrophysicist Pietro Secchi first created the device in 1865 to measure the clarity of the Mediterranean.  Commercially available, Secchi disks come in various sizes, the most common having an eight-inch diameter with black and white painted quadrants.  

How it works:

• The disk is lowered into the lake by unwinding the waterproof tape to which it is attached until it is no longer visible.  It is then raised until it reappears.
• The depth at which the disk vanishes and reappears is the Secchi disk reading.
• The depth level is recorded to the nearest foot by reading the tape at the lake's surface.

 

We took off a day to rest and then went for one last paddleboard trip.  This time we left from El Dorado Beach and paddled west to the Tahoe Keys Marina.  Unfortunately it was too far to paddle to Emerald Bay.

 

We paddled around in this area.

 

Then back to El Dorado Beach again to take the paddleboards out of the water and back to camp.

Before we left the campground, Al got up on the roof and washed all the pollen off.

Here is the location of Lake Tahoe on the California and Nevada border.

South Lake Tahoe, California

Our route from Snowflower and stops around the lake.

We had a great time out on the water on our paddleboards.  I'm so glad we have our own so we don't have to rent them and keep an eye on the clock to return them.  We can relax and enjoy our time on the water and take as long as we want.  Sand Harbor was definitely a highlight!  

Next we're headed to Reno to drop off the truck and RV and fly to Mexico City to surprise Al's Aunt Eva for her 80th birthday.  

Thanks for following along.......