Perfect Tahoe Summer Break

Let's say you want a little afternoon getaway and you're on the South Shore. 

It's hard to beat taking a drive, or a hike, up to Echo Lakes near the top of Echo Summit. Echo Lakes are at 7400 feet. They are just down from the high country of Desolation Wilderness, which, at the end of July, is still buried in snow above 8500 feet. The snow-cooled breeze and the wind off the very cold water drove us to put on sweatshirts even as Tahoe, 1200 feet below, was quite toasty.

When you get up to Echo Lakes, you can hike along the shore and look at the cute little cabins, or you can hike up to the nearby saddle and look down at Tahoe and see a spectacular view that will stay with you forever. Or hike to the summit of Echo Peak or on to Desolation and enjoy an amazing wilderness experience. Echo Lakes is a great place that we go to every year.

Oh, one more thing. Stop in the general store and get an ice cream cone. You'll feel like a little kid again.

That's snow on the mountains in the distance. Up there is Desolation Wilderness and Lake Aloha at 8100 feet. The entire surrounding area is still buried in snow.

Best Kayaking In Tahoe - Sand Harbor

If you've ever spent time in Tahoe, you probably know that Sand Harbor State Park, on the East Shore of the lake just south of Incline Village, is one of the all-time great spots for beach stuff, water stuff, view stuff, landscape painting stuff, and even theater stuff (Shakespeare On The Beach at the amphitheater).

The park is comprised of a curved spit of land with amazing coves and beaches and foot paths.

If you've never been to Tahoe, check it out when you get here. Bring a picnic lunch and be prepared for an amazing experience.

Launching a kayak at Sand Harbor is extra special because of all of the above.

First, make certain you have your boat inspection sticker/paperwork.

While you can park in any of the lots and carry your kayak to the shore, the easiest way is to park in the boat-launch lot. (There are two entrances to Sand Harbor. The boat launch is at the north entrance.)

Much of the year, you can rent kayaks right on the beach next to the boat launch.

It is glorious to simply paddle around the area. For experienced paddlers, you can go up the shore to the north and paddle along the fabulous houses of Lakeshore Blvd. in Incline Village. This is where the billionaires have their lake cottages that often sell at upwards of $50 million.

You can also go the other way and paddle south down to the Thunderbird Lodge which San Francisco playboy George Whittel built in the '30s. George had a thing for fast boats and cars and exotic animals. (He kept his pet lion Bill at his 40,000-acre estate on the East Shore of Tahoe.)

The lodge, which is actually a stone castle, is now part of the Nevada State Park system. One of the closest views is from your kayak. Enjoy!

Here's a photo tour from our kayak (last fall when the water level was lower than it is now).

Tahoe Payback Signing Schedule

The 15th book in the Owen McKenna series is Tahoe Payback! I'll be all over the territory signing it and my other titles, giving talks, and meeting readers. I'd love to have you come and join us.

"ONCE AGAIN BORG HITS ALL THE RIGHT NOTES FOR FANS OF DETECTIVE FICTION in the mold of Dashiell Hammett, Raymond Chandler, Ross Macdonald, and Robert B. Parker." - Kirkus Reviews

Here's the schedule, organized by location.

Carson City/Carson Valley

August 4, 2017, 6:00 p.m. I'll be signing my new book TAHOE PAYBACK and giving a talk at Shelby's Bookshoppe, 1663 Lucerne St. in Minden Village, Minden, NV 775-782-5484.

August 5, 2017 8:30 a.m. Signing for TAHOE PAYBACK at The Red Hut Cafe 4385 S. Carson, Carson City, NV

September 19, 2017, 4:30-6:00 I'll be exhibiting and signing books at the Minden Library Author's Day, Minden, NV

September 23 & 24, 2017, I'm exhibiting books at the Candy Dance Festival in Genoa, NV.

Foothills

October 18, 2017, 1:00 p.m. I'm giving a talk and signing books at the Murphys, CA Library.

October 18, 2017, 5:30 p.m. I'm giving a talk and signing books at the Jackson, CA Library.

Kings Beach

August 11, 2017, 6p.m. I'll be giving a talk and signing books at the Kings Beach Library in "The Garden", Kings Beach, CA

Mountain View

September 9, 10, 2017, I'm exhibiting and signing  books at the Mountain View Art & Wine Festival, Mountain View, CA

Reno

July 29, 2017, 11 a.m., Talk and Signing for TAHOE PAYBACK, Sundance Bookstore at 121 California Avenue, Reno, NV (775) 786-1188

August 12, 2017 8:30 a.m. Signing for TAHOE PAYBACK at The Red Hut Cafe 3480 Lakeside #1, Reno, NV

September 16, 2017 3 - 8 p.m. I'll be participating in the Nevada Humanities Literary Crawl in Reno(details to be announced)

October 21, 2017, 10 a.m. - 2 p.m. I'm giving a one-day writing workshop called "How To Map A Murder" at the Truckee Meadows Community College Meadowood Center S315 in Reno.

Sacramento

November 3, 4, 5, 2017 Exhibit and sign books at the Sacramento Fine Arts Show,  Sacramento Convention Center, Sacramento, CA

November 17, 18, 19, 2017  Exhibit and sign books at the Sacramento Harvest Festival, CalExpo, Sacramento, CA

San Jose

November 24, 25, 26, 2017 Exhibit and sign books at the San Jose Harvest Festival, San Jose Convention Center, San Jose, CA

San Mateo

November 10, 11, 12, 2017  Exhibit and sign books at the San Mateo Harvest Festival, San Mateo CA

South Lake Tahoe

July 28, 2017, 4 - 7 p.m. The FIRST Signing for TAHOE PAYBACK, Artifacts 4000 Lake Tahoe Blvd (in the Raleys Village Center just southwest of Heavenly Village) (530) 543-0728

August 6, 2017 8:30 a.m. Signing for TAHOE PAYBACK at The Red Hut Cafe at Ski Run and Lake Tahoe Blvd., South Lake Tahoe, CA

August 15, 2017, 6:30 p.m. I'll be signing my new book TAHOE PAYBACK and giving a talk at the South Lake Tahoe Library.

Tahoe City

July 29, 2017 3 p.m. Signing TAHOE PAYBACK at Geared for Games, Boatworks Mall, Tahoe City, CA

August 14, 2017, 12 Noon. I'll be giving a talk and signing books at the Tahoe League for Charity, Tahoe City, CA (details to be announced)

Truckee

August 8, 2017, 6:00 p.m. I'll be signing my new book TAHOE PAYBACK and giving a talk at Word After Word Books, 10118 Donner Pass Road, Truckee, CA  96161

A Bike Ride Called The Death Ride? Yes!

Image a bike ride 129 miles long, with five climbs up mountain passes for a total of 15,000 vertical feet of climbing. Now put that entire ride at elevation with the low point being 5100 feet and the highest at 8730. Would anyone be nuts enough to do that in one day?

Over 3000 bike riders.

Welcome to the Death Ride - Tour of the California Alps, an annual ride that took place this year on July 8, 2017

Unlike the Amgen race, which came through Tahoe earlier this spring, the Death Ride is open to any bicyclist brave enough to try it. (But don't try it unless you are in SERIOUSLY good shape.) All the details can be found by poking around on the Death Ride website.

So just where does this ride take place? The California Alps are a bunch of mountains in Alpine County just south of Tahoe. There are three roads with high passes that go through the area, and the ride goes over those passes, Carson Pass, Monitor Pass, and Ebbetts Pass. The latter two are closed during the winter due to snow.

Here's a bit of detail about the route.

Just south of the Tahoe Basin on Highway 89 is Hope Valley. East of Hope Valley, down the canyon where the West Fork of the Carson River flows, is the tiny hamlet of Woodfords. This is where the Death Ride begins and ends. From Woodfords, the route climbs up Monitor Pass at 8300 feet and down the other side to near Topaz Lake at 5100 feet. Then you turn around and go back up and over Monitor. From there, you head up Ebbets Pass at 8700 feet, down the other side to Hermit Valley, and once again turn around and do it all over again. After that, you head back to your starting point in Woodfords and then climb up to Hope Valley and on up to Carson Pass at 8600. Then you make your final ride back down to Woodfords.

The final climb from Hope Valley up toward Carson Pass

In this photo near the end of the race, the 3000-plus riders were so spread out as they made the final climb, that this photo shows just one rider heading up and one of the earliest finishers coming down.

The Death Ride is a grueling ride through some of the most gorgeous scenery on the planet. Riding 129 miles with 15,000 feet of climbing is an astonishing feat. Anyone who completes it is amazing.

P.S. The oldest participant was 87 years old. The oldest person to complete the entire course was 79.
The youngest participant was 12. The youngest person to complete the entire course was 13. Wow.

Craft Brew In Tahoe? Yes!

When we think of Tahoe, images of skiing and boating and hiking and biking come to mind. Recreation paradise, right? But increasingly, what goes along with those activities is a nice glass of craft beer.

Like so many other places, craft beer is exploding in Tahoe, with great tasting opportunities around the lake. Here are a few, from south to north:

South Lake Tahoe and Stateline

Cold Water Brewery and Grill

The Brewery at Lake Tahoe

South Lake Brewing Company

Lake Tahoe AleWorx

Stateline Brewery

Sidellis Lake Tahoe Brewery

Tahoe City

Tahoe Mountain Brewery

Incline Village

Alibi Ale Works