36 Hours
Lake Tahoe
Brad Horn for The New York Times
Adventurers push off of a Hidden Beach after a break from a kayaking tour of the Sand Harbor area in Lake Tahoe.
By CINDY PRICE
Published: August 18, 2006
POLITICS and religion aside, 200,000 people can’t be wrong. According to the California Tahoe
Conservancy, that’s the estimated crowd at Lake Tahoe on a busy summer weekend. That’s
enough people to make you rethink your vacation plans, but Tahoe never feels too frantic. Maybe
it’s the enormous mountain lake standing center, proudly straddling California and Nevada, that
lets you know right away who’s in charge, but the weekenders who flood the 72 miles of shoreline
instinctively bow to nature’s pace. And there’s that other little fact, too — far less provable, but
widely asserted: There’s nothing quite like a weekend spent circling Tahoe. The endless activities
of summer are standard enough, but they’re set to a Sierra backdrop of soaring evergreens and
crystalline water worthy of a thousand poets. Throw in the late-night siren call of the Nevada
casinos, and it’s a tough act to follow.
Friday
3 p.m.
1) DEEPER SHADES OF BLUE
“It’s just like the Caribbean!” the tour guide, Kevin Hickey, is shouting over his paddle. “Until you
dip your hand in.” Wordsmiths have beat themselves silly trying to capture the true color of Lake
Tahoe, so take your pick — cobalt, azure, electric, sapphire. Suffice it to say that it’s pretty darn
blue. And cold. Even in late summer, the water averages 65 to 70 degrees, given the many
mountain streams that slither into it. Judge for yourself on a guided kayak trip out of Sand Harbor,
Nev., with the Tahoe Adventure Company (866-830-6125, www.tahoeadventurecompany.com),
which offers individual tours that are part geology lesson and part history lesson. Paddle out past
the children cannonballing off the rocks, and learn about the lake’s underlying fault lines, or that a
tsunami may have burst forth there in the last 10,000 years.
7 p.m.
2) A BEAUTIFUL LANGUAGE
Shake yourself dry, slip on your flip-flops, then head up the beach to the Lake Tahoe
Shakespeare Festival, (Sand Harbor State Park, Nev.; 800-747-4697;
www.laketahoeshakespeare.com). Patrons pile up on the inclined sand banks, carrying towels,
wine and fat dinner spreads. You can bring your own, or check out the offerings at the food court
and beer garden. This year’s rotating performances of “Twelfth Night” and “Othello” are staged at
dusk, the lake deftly employed as a silent witness to the unfolding action. If you miss these two
shows, which end on Sunday, you don’t have to miss the beautiful park. Check the Web site for a
list of events through Aug. 28.
Saturday
10 a.m.
3) FRANK’S JOINT
Think of it as the Chelsea Hotel of Tahoe. Frank Sinatra owned what is now the Cal Neva Resort,
Spa and Casino (2 Stateline Road, Crystal Bay, Nev.; 800-225-6382; www.calnevaresort.com) for
three short years (from 1960 to 1963), but he left a wealth of scandal in his wake. The resort,
called the Cal-Neva Lodge when Sinatra owned it, rests on the state line, and the property is
marked down the center. Poke your head into the dusty old Celebrity Showroom, where Frank
and his buddies performed. Marilyn Monroe often sat up front, and current members of the hotel
staff say she overdosed on sleeping pills here two weeks before her death, amid a swirl of rumors
of sex and foul play. Find the Indian Room yet? Secret passages run below it that lead to the
closets of Cabin 3 (Marilyn’s) and Cabin 5 (Frank’s). The Chicago mobster Sam Giancana is said
to have used the tunnels to conduct business.
12 p.m.
4) HIGH NOON
It’s noon on the lake, and you’re 6,225 feet above sea level. A cheeseburger washed down with
an ice-cold Anchor Steam ($4.50) is not only agreeable; it’s mandatory. Find your way through
Tahoe City and take a right just past Fanny Bridge (called “rump row” for the line of backsides
that form as people lean over the railing to stare at the Truckee River and its fish). Bridgetender
Tavern and Grill (65 West Lake Boulevard, Tahoe City, Calif.; 530-583-3342) is home to one of
the juiciest cheeseburgers ($6.95) on the lake as well as a generous outdoor patio that winds
along the Truckee.
2 p.m.
5) JUST DRIFT AWAY
Follow the hoots of laughter across Fanny Bridge and plunk down $32 at the Truckee River Raft
Company (185 River Road, Tahoe City, Calif.; 530-584-0123; www.truckeeriverraft.com) for a
lazy afternoon on the river. You can paddle, but the three-hour ride is best enjoyed as one long
floating party. Families drift alongside groups of friends, their tubes lashed together as they bask
and pass each other beer. A little more than halfway, you might find a shallow, standing-room-
only party complete with makeshift stickball games (the paddles double as bats). The ride is
probably about 30 minutes too long, but it’s worth it to see the occasional floater, untethered from
his group and tipsy, angling for a hitch to the finish line.
7 p.m.
6) COCKTAIL OF THE BRAVE
South Lake Tahoe isn’t known as a gastronomic hotbed, but a seat at the sushi bar at the Naked
Fish (3940 Lake Tahoe Boulevard, South Lake Tahoe, Calif.; 530-541-3474) offers up ace rolls
and a frisky pre-casino crowd. Kick your night off with an appetizer of barbecued albacore
($10.25) and the surprisingly tasty house drink, the Money Shot, which involves a bolt of hot
sake, a drizzle of ponzu sauce, fish eggs, a Japanese mountain potato and a few other nerve-
racking ingredients.
10 p.m.
7) POKER FACES, OLD AND NEW
Itching for the dull tumble of dice on felt, or the shudder and snap of a fresh deck of cards being
shuffled? Here’s the casino breakdown. South Tahoe’s casinos, snugged up against each other
along the border of Stateline, Nev., are getting sexier. Witness the vampy new MontBleu Resort
Casino & Spa (55 Highway 50, 775-588-3515; www.montbleuresort.com), a k a the old Caesar’s
sporting a slap of paint and a fresh attitude, or the swank new 19 Kitchen/Bar at Harveys Resort
Casino (18 Highway 50, 775-588-2411; www.harrahs.com). Still, old-timers and hipsters might
enjoy the old-school ambience and low-limit tables at the Lakeside Inn and Casino (168 Highway
50, 800-624-7980; www.lakesideinn.com), or hang-loose Bill’s Lake Tahoe Casino (27 Highway
50, 775-588-2411; www.harrahs.com), where an enormous hot dog and a draft will set you back
only $2.50.
Sunday
10 a.m.
8) NOW THAT’S VENTI
There’s a 28-buck cup of coffee in Tahoe, and it’s worth every penny. The first $24 gets you a
ride on the touristy-but-must-do Heavenly Gondola (Heavenly Mountain Resort, 4080 Lake Tahoe
Boulevard, South Lake Tahoe, Calif.; 775-586-7000; www.skiheavenly.com), a modern ski lift that
doubles as a sightseeing excursion in summer. Hop on board when it opens, and cruise 2.4 miles
up the mountain to the observation deck. Grab a very decent mocha ($3.75) at Café Blue, and
soak in the stunning views of the Carson Valley and the Desolation Wilderness — not to mention
that big blue thing in the center.
Noon
9) PESTO BREAD, JUST LIKE MOM’S
There’s an art to gathering beach provisions, and Tahoe regulars know that the best one-stop
shop around is the PDQ Market (6890 West Lake Boulevard, Tahoma, Calif.; 530-525-7411),
where customers can secure not only the usual Coke and sun block, but also one of the tastiest
sandwiches in town. Press through the store, and you’ll find a little homegrown operation pushing
out delicious sandwiches on fresh-baked breads like jalapeño or pesto. The half-size sandwich,
loaded high with shaved meats like pastrami or turkey, is a steal at $3.75.
2 p.m.
10) DECISIONS, DECISIONS
Trying to pick the right Tahoe beach is a bit like plucking a date off the Internet. Zephyr Cove is
young and likes to party. Meeks Bay is into poetry and likes long walks on the beach. The good
news is that each is better looking than the next. For those given to fits of polarity, try D. L. Bliss
State Park (Highway 89, South Lake Tahoe, Calif.; 530-525-7277; www.parks.ca.gov; $6 a car), a
camping ground with sheltered coves for swimming and lazing, as well as a few bracing hikes for
the restless. The pristine beaches make it darn hard to resist the former, though. Imagine you’ve
found the turquoise waters of Vieques in the middle of the Black Forest of Germany. Until you dip
your hand in, of course.