Of bikes and boulders, boots and brews, beaches and boats. Our Top Ten list for finding adventure that’s just minutes from your front door.
When you’re in search of things to do that widen your eyes and quicken your pulse, there are likely a gazillion options to explore around Truckee/Tahoe. Maybe a trillion. To help simplify your life, however, we’ve managed to narrow that roster of stimulants to a more manageable ten. Some involve a dash of huffing and puffing while others simply require a splash of water…or even a glass of beer. All should leave you with a sense of exhilaration as well as a lively tale to tell at the end of the day.
Just grab a cup of coffee, slide up to the edge of your seat, and dive into an article that’ll expose you to a variety of local activities and adventures, some thrilling, some chilling, and others that can be enjoyed in the company of friends and family.
1. The Art of Putting Tahoe Beneath You: Paddle boarding and Kayaking Tahoe.
If you thought the waters of Lake Tahoe were something to behold, then consider that recent years have seen great strides in clarity. In fact, the Secchi Test that lowers a white plate beneath the surface until it’s out of sight, measured Tahoe’s clarity at a whopping 72 feet deep, a clarity count that hasn’t been seen since the 1980s.
Far better than watching a white plate disappear is the option of heading out in a kayak or stand-up paddleboard and drifting aimlessly about. Not only are you getting your fair share of exercise, but you’re also enjoying views up, down and all around that won’t soon be forgotten.
Best place to start? Try your very own beach at Martis Camps’ Beach Shack at Lake Tahoe. The lake’s scenery is made more beautiful by knowing you haven’t got any traffic and parking hassles to worry about. In fact, there’s valet parking to go along with a lakefront lodge with a café, showers, changing room, and a long stretch of sand with plenty of beach toys – including kayaks and SUPs.
Head east toward and beyond Sand Harbor and you’ll be front and center with those legendary blue waters, punctuated by house-sized boulders sitting on the lake floor. It’s the ideal setting for the epic picnic. The closest kayak/SUP rentals and tours to the east shore include Tahoe Multisport, which ups the on-water experience with clear kayaks that reveal the waters below. Shuttles and entry fees to Sand Harbor are included. On the west shore, a hike down to the beach beside the stunning and historic Vikingsholm makes for a full day of hiking, picnicking, and roaming the amazing waters of Emerald Bay on kayaks and SUPs from Kayak Tahoe, who also offer rentals at Pope Beach and Baldwin Beach, further toward South Shore.
2. Wake Surfing Lake Tahoe: Making Waves with the Family.
When you hop on a wakesurf board, or wakefoil board and set off across a glassy Lake Tahoe, you’re creating more than just a wake, you’re also creating a memory that will grow more legendary with time, especially if it includes family and friends. That’s essentially the goal that Jeb Scicluna, guide and owner of Tahoe Surf Company, sets out to do with each expedition.
“For first time foilers, once a new balance and coordination level is realized and that ‘ah-ha!’ moment happens, that person is suddenly in love with the most exhilarating sport and they start racking up the air miles,” said Scicluna. Similarly, when a guest connects with the perfect wave surfing, “they start hootin’ and hollerin’ with shaka bombs and are sporting the biggest grins from east to west while family and friends in the boat are lighting up in roars of cheering, clapping, and laughter,” he added.
With ocean surfing roots and a long career in teaching skiing and snowboarding, it was natural that Scicluna, surfing, and foiling adventures would find one another. “I had to find a way to surf in the mountains,” he recalled. In 2016, he assured himself of that by leaving his firefighting job and founding Tahoe Surf Company where they “manufacture surfers” on a daily basis. That involves hiring dedicated coaches who have the skills and patience to help first-time surfers and foilers learn the joys of these sports to help advance their skills. Those who stick with it are eventually making bottom turns and slashing waters while stomping rad tricks in the company of friends and family. The return rate of those who ride on a frequent basis with Tahoe Surf Company is a stunning 90%.
With a constant flow of new gear (and Nautique surf boats) each year including performance wetsuits and even refreshments, Scicluna maintains a high quality and experience. Tahoe Surf Company’s passion for coaching and an endless supply of surf stoke is complemented by their energy and enthusiasm for teaching and their intimate knowledge of the physics of surfing and foiling. Tahoe Surf Company offers family outings for any occasion including birthday surf sessions, bachelor and bachelorette celebrations, corporate outings, and even sundown surf sessions for couples. It’s with families, however, where Tahoe Surf Company excels. “We’ll ask our guests in advance what goals they have in mind and then we’ll curate the ultimate surf experience,” said Scicluna. That means knowing where the glassiest patches of water are at any given time and heading off for the likes of DL Bliss, Emerald Bay, the East Shore, and other beautiful spots along the lake. Once there, families can shred the water or drop anchor and jump off rocks or settle into a kick-back afternoon of swimming in crystal waters.
For more details and to book a session, visit TahoeSurfCompany.com or call 530-401-6899.
3. Sailing Lake Tahoe: A Mile Above Sea Level.
When Tahoe’s glassy waters give way to an afternoon of shimmers and ripples, it’s time to put some winds in your sail and experience the lake from its most endearing angle – starboard on a sailboat. Many of the best destinations for sailing and sightseeing include stretches along the north and west shores of Lake Tahoe, including Emerald Bay.
If you’ve got some mariner in your veins, you’ll find places around Lake Tahoe where you can rent your own boat. If, on the other hand, you’re more interested in sitting back and catching the lake from her finest side, then turn to one of the many charter services at the lake, including Tahoe Sailing Charters in Tahoe (tahoesail.com), Tahoe Yacht Club in Tahoe City (tahoeyc.com) and on the South Shore at Ski Run Marina, Sail Tahoe Blue (sailtahoeblue.com).
Photo by Paul Hamill Photography
4. The Best Lake Tahoe Hikes: String Together a Necklace of Beaches, One Step at a Time.
Ever seen those ads or magazine spreads touting Lake Tahoe’s beauty? Big white boulders poking out from blue and emerald waters. Endless vistas. Coves holding blond sandy beaches. Chances are, those images were captured in one stretch of trails lacing the east side of Tahoe, less than an hour’s drive from Martis Camp. Hiking the east shore was made far easier recently when, in 2019, Lake Tahoe’s East Shore Trail was built – a wide, paved walking and cycling path running 2.75 miles from Incline Village to Sand Harbor State Park. You’ll find paid parking at the trailhead and drinks and food at the nearby Tunnel Creek Cafe.
A drive further east of Sand Harbor will take you to a trail system that’s raw in nature, yet oh-so-refined in its grandeur. All it takes is a backpack with a picnic, a pair of shoes, swimsuit and, hopefully, a handy parking space where you can drop down from State Route 28, which may incur midweek delays throughout the summer. Once you’ve landed a spot, mark your parking site with a GPS pin and head off to a series of trails that wander under pine trees from one stunning beach to another. Among those beaches are Chimney Beach (with parking lot and rest rooms), Secret Cove, Creek Beach, Whale Beach and Skunk Harbor.
Photo by Katey Hamill
5. The Best Mountain Biking in Truckee: The Latest Dirt on the Greatest Trails.
Dive into one of several apps such as Trailforks, Alltrails, and Mtbproject that specialize in matching you up with the best mountain bike trails in the Truckee Tahoe area and you’ll see a massive network of ups and downs and all arounds. It’s a virtual tapestry of opportunity for mountain bikers young, old, newbies and experts. And while you can hop in the car and dash off to many of these trails, you may be surprised to find that one local expert recommends going no further than your back door to indulge in some tasty single track.
“If you’re an expert, you may want to head off to some of those epic highline routes for a good day’s ride,” said Dylan Renn, “but for beginners and intermediates, you can find great riding that starts right out of Martis Camp.” Renn is the owner of A Single Track Mind, a locally based company specializing in building mountain bike riding skills and arranging tours, camps and clinics for everyone from first timers to those looking to drop in on some of the area’s legendary mountain bike trails. When it comes to coaches, few rival the talent of Renn. He’s raced at expert and pro levels for 20 years and has been a professional coach for 12.
Ask Renn to nail down that one best trail for beginners, intermediates and experts and you’ve presented him with a real head scratcher. For beginners, he’s a fan of many of the local parks, including the Truckee Bike Park and, a 45-minute drive north by Graeagle, the Blairsden camping/biking scene known as Everstoke. But push the matter further to name one destination for beginning bikers and he decidedly settles on Martis Camp’s Sawtooth trails with fire trails that provide easy grades. For intermediates, his top pick for adventure is Stanford Rock near Homewood and Sunnyside, a trail that climbs to a ridge with views of Tahoe to the east and mountain valleys to the west. And for experts, he considers Armstrong and Mr. Toad’s Wild Ride a memorable and challenging ride with a finale down Mr. Toad’s that serves up banked turns and steep, technical turns that will leave you both winded and wild-eyed. Info on tours and clinics from A Single Track Mind can be found at aSingleTrackMind.com.
Additionally, Martis Camp’s neighbor – Northstar California – is home to a series of bike camps and competitions and ranks high on the radar of top-tier experts. The Northstar Bike Park offers lift-serviced bike trails from the Big Springs Gondola, the Tahoe Zephyr Express, and Vista Express.
Photo by Paul Hamill Photography
6. The Tahoe Via Ferrata: Clip in, Climb up, Rock on!
In less than 30 minutes, you can arrive at a place that exudes all you might expect of the European Alps, a lush valley leading to a quaint Tyrolean village with restaurants, shops and bars, and something you might find off the beaten path in the likes of places such as Grindelwald or the Dolomites of Italy – a rock face calling out to your inner Sir Edmund. That granite edifice above you is the playground of the Tahoe Via Ferrata, a series of rock-climbing routes that take off from the center of The Village at Palisades Tahoe.
The best part: thanks to the details and professional supervision of Via Ferrata guides, just about anyone can ascend this 800-foot vertical cliff. From the moment you clip in at the bottom until you’ve bagged the top of the massif, you never come off the carabiner on the continuous lifeline that provides an unparalleled margin of safety and quality of movement. The first clip-in to the Tram Face attraction was in 2018, just two years after permits were issued and routes were envisioned. Today, it’s a popular place for team building, family bonding, graduations, celebrations and birthdays that go well beyond cake and candles.
“We’ve had people from 7-84 years old conquering this course,” said Sean Kristl, of Tahoe Via Ferrata. “They all come down with this ‘holy smokes, I did it’ sense of accomplishment,” he added. “And all this from people who mainly have no previous experience in climbing.” Once a phrase that drew looks of intrigue and confusion, Via Ferrata is an adventure experience finding its way into more and more mountain towns across the country. In those rugged hills of Europe, Via Ferrata has long been a part of their lifestyles.
While accessible to everyone from novices to experts, the Tahoe Via Ferrata is also a popular training spot for world-class climbers.
Even the University of Nevada, Reno football team taps the experience as an event that expands physical and mental skills while deepening camaraderie among the players.
Tours can be arranged to suit your schedule. There are two-hour tours, thee-hour tours, and four-hour tours for small groups and private tours of two, three and four hours as well. As for availabilities, reservations are recommended, especially for holidays. Open seven days a week, however, Via Ferrata is often available for last minute tours or walk-ups. Visit TahoeVia.com for more details.
7. Woodward Tahoe: Things that Go Jump in the Day.
A funny thing happens when moms, dads and kids step into that place known as Woodward Tahoe at Boreal for the very first time. “For kids, there’s this expression of wide-eyed disbelief and a mixture of anticipation and intimidation,” said marketing director, Tucker Norred. “As for parents, you see this look of ‘where was this when I was a kid?’ on their face,” he added.
Woodward Tahoe is that large complex in the Boreal parking lot that you’ve zipped past on your way to Truckee. It’s been there since 2012. Beyond its doors and onto the slopes beside it is a place that’s equal parts playground, training ground and classroom. It’s where kids can bounce ‘til their hearts content and where Olympians can refine new tricks until those moves become second nature.
Several camps, passes, activities and instructions exist, ranging from three- and five-day camps, one-month summer passes that allow unlimited anytime access, and sessions that can run from two hours to all day. Sessions are held both indoors and outside on ramps and slopes and classes cater to kids from ages 4 and up.
Norred noted that one of the great attributes of joining a Woodward camp isn’t solely about expanding one’s athletic skills, but that it’s also promoting a greater sense of self in kids. “Many of these activities focus on releasing a child’s artistic freedom and independence, which is often something new for many kids,” said Norred. “They meet new friends and try new things and, along the way, they get this boost in self-confidence that goes well beyond this facility.” Visit RideBoreal.com for more details.
8. Fly Fishing Truckee: The Joy of Getting Hooked.
Ask any fly fisherman what the difference is between spin casting and fly fishing and they may tell you it’s a bit more complicated but a lot more rewarding. Ask that of Matt Heron, owner of Matt Heron Fly Fishing, and you’ll be greeted with wide eyes and an enthusiastic explanation of how hooking into a trout on a fly rod is a world of difference. “With the delicacy of a fly rod and line, you feel every shake of their tail, every ounce of energy,” said Heron. “It’s a much more precise and intimate experience,” he added.
Heron’s passion for a sport he first discovered as a teen in upstate New York has only grown more intense. Not even the rigors of being a guide and instructor for 18 years has taken an edge off that joy, which is why those learning to fly fish as well as those looking to learn new methods and discover new waters find spending a few hours or a full day with Heron to be an investment in life.
The long-time Truckee resident is on the go with casting camps and classes throughout the area, including arranging frequent sessions at Olympic Valley and at Martis Camp’s own Concert Lake. “No matter what program you go with, you’ll learn techniques that’ll last a lifetime and you’ll have a ton of fun along the way,” added Heron. He’s also nationally recognized as having created one of the nation’s top fly fishing schools and is Regional Director for Cast Hope, a non-profit introducing at-risk youth to fly fishing the waters of Reno/Tahoe.
Heron has developed a top roster of renowned guides to match his clients with and also has a great selection of streams and rivers in the Truckee area that afford him a greater chance of hooking up clients with their “fish-of-a-lifetime.” He is also called upon (even by locals) to organize fishing trips across the globe, including a recent getaway to Christmas Island.
Heron can be booked for introductory lessons as well as for guided half-day and all-day outings. He can be booked online at MattHeronFlyfishing.com
9. E-Foiling Lake Tahoe: An Adventure that’s Taking Off, Literally and Metaphorically.
Ten years ago, reports of foreign objects hovering above Lake Tahoe’s waters would’ve been called “crazy” or “ridiculous.” Nowadays, it’s referred to as efoiling and rather than having anything to do with extraterrestrial life, it’s being more commonly associated with adrenaline, good times and high-altitude entertainment.
“Efoiling is like flying with your feet,” explained Matt Cook of Cook eFoiling, the company that pioneered the sport at Lake Tahoe. Cook provides instructions and tours introducing this high-tech thrill machine to people looking for something different, something that leaves them wide-eyed and full of wonder. “It truly looks like black magic when you first see someone flying so smoothly and impossibly fast over the water.”
That “someone” flying on the lake has greatly expanded in recent years, with efoiling gaining popularity among individuals and the terminally curious. His group instructions normally deal with 5-10 individuals, a four-hour party of sorts where fun flows as freely as the riders themselves. By the end of the session, most participants are able to ride “on foil” where the board is above the water. Those with good balance and athleticism can expect longer flights on their first lessons.
In addition to efoiling, which involves an on-board battery and caged propeller, Cook eFoiling also serves up wakefoiling where there is no on-board propulsion devices. You’re either towed behind a boat or you wing your way around under the assistance of a kite.
To see this phenomenon in action, as well as to gather for details and book a session, visit CookEfoiling.com.
Photo by Paul Hamill Photography
10. The Best Hikes in Truckee: The Summit of Activity.
Just beyond the beach at Donner Lake’s west shore and up the beautifully historic Donner Pass Road is Donner Summit, a place filled with people engaged in all kinds of outdoor pursuits. On those boulder cliffs looming above the old highway are rock climbers scampering about like spiders in the sky. A few twists before the photogenic turnout at Rainbow Bridge is an opportunity to see where indigenous tribes scribbled petroglyphs into slabs of granite, their messages still a mystery to science. Continue your trek another minute or so and the graceful Rainbow Bridge unfolds before you, a parking lot beside it offering the ideal setting for Instagrammers logging yet another adventure in life.
Along this route, you’ll find dozens of signs detailing information relevant to whatever stands before you, including the trials and tribulations of emigrant wagon trains and the back-breaking struggles endured in building the nation’s first transcontinental railroad. In fact, those train sheds you see clinging to the summit cliffs are no longer the domain of trains but are instead a very creative and unforgettable hike above the lake, especially attractive when its cool temps provide a respite to a hot summer day.
BONUS: Hoist Up a Well-Deserved Toast.
Fortunately, for as many adventures, activities and miscellaneous means of getting one’s heart racing, there’s also a fair share of less-challenging local attractions that go well with our Top Ten Adventures: brew pubs. Call it your well-deserved bonus for indulging in life if you will, assuming you need an alibi to justify a frosty one.
One brewery that’s been dubbed a “pico” brewery (smaller than a nano brewery) is Donner Creek Brewing Company with an indoor and outdoor pet-friendly setting, live music and a limited, but high-quality selection of crafted beer – their own as well as other local selections. Alibi Ale Works opened in 2014 and, like Donner Creek, offers beer drinkers and their pets a place to enjoy live music and a great selection of beers to be enjoyed in their outdoor beer garden. Other hot spots for cold brews include Truckee Brewing Company with its casual environment and deep menu of beers, The Good Wolf Brewing Company who pride themselves in a great variety of beers and foods alike and FiftyFifty Brewing Company on Brockway Road.
If you’re around on July 13th, consider sampling some of the area’s best in one setting at the summer tradition known as Truckee BrewFest. Located at the Truckee Regional Park, this festival is where you can choose from more than 30 varieties of award-winning liquid bliss while settling into live music from The Blues Monsters.
written by Scott Mortimore
photos by Paul Hamill Photography
