Breathtaking Lake Tahoe

   Darlene and I left Reno and drove west 32 miles to Truckee, California. My wife got to scratch another state off her list of those which she has visited.

   The drive higher into the Sierra Nevada Mountains was very scenic following the Truckee River and snow capped peaks. We both noticed this west side of Reno was much different and prettier than the east side. We got into the town of Truckee and similar to Virginia City to the east, it is mostly a main street town. Most of the shops and restaurants are lined on that main street. We visited a couple of the local shops and talked about how nice the people were and how they were proud of their town. They have planters and flower carts lining both sides of the street giving it a very clean, fresh, and colorful appearance. The brick sidewalks were level and easy to walk on.

   We left Truckee and headed higher up into the mountains 8 miles to Donner Lake and continuing higher up to Donner Pass. The mention of Donner conjures up images of a harsh wagon train story gone horribly wrong. The year 1846 and The Donner Wagon Train turned off the Oregon Trail and got stranded at a mountain pass by an early snow storm. This became the first recorded act of cannibalism in U S history. It is a fascinating tale for history buffs like me.

   Donner Lake is a beautiful deep mountain lake that is a rich blue color. There are some nice boats and houses that line the shores today. We continued to wind up the mountain road to Donner pass. It is still remote today and a noticable drop in temperature at that elevation. The scenery from the pass looking down on the lake was gorgeous.

   I never knew there was a wagon train prior to the Donner party. In fact, 2 years prior. The Stephens, Townsend, Murphy train. I guess the pass and lake were not named for them because nothing tragic or bizarre happened to them.

   We left the Donner and Truckee area and headed down the west side of Lake Tahoe. Darlene and I stopped first in Tahoe City, California for lunch at Duff’s Diner. She had a turkey sandwich and I had the philly cheese steak. Both were pretty good and the restaurant was located on the waterfront. They even had a working pay phone in the old booth.

   We continued on around the loop to South Lake Tahoe, California and Stateline, Nevada. The lake from here going up the east side of Lake Tahoe is absolutely stunning. The clear deep blue waters of Zephyr Cove and Emerald Bay mixed with the teal green waters of the bays is a site that makes one thank God for their eyesight.

We did drive by the entrance to Hidden Cove, but did not enter. This is an area of the lake that is a clothing optional beach.

   We left the lake and headed back to Reno via Mount Rose Summit. This is a peak of 9700 feet in elevation. The temperature was a balmy 57 degrees with 20% humidity which was a relief for this couple from Alabama where it was in the 90’s with 85% humidity. The scenery at the summit was pretty and provided a view of Lake Tahoe in the distance below

   We then headed back to Reno and went back near the Riverwalk for dinner at The Silver Peak Grill. Darlene had a Chicken Quesadilla with Corn Chowder and I had a  Half Pound Burger. Both were good. We then went back to the hotel and chilled in the Casino for a bit before heading to the room. We leave our Reno base for a couple of days in the morning. Come back to this blog to travel with us to Carson City, Nevada and down to Bridgeport, California.