i recently relocated to the bay area. one of the exciting prospects is having new places to visit that aren't too far. also, up here there are more opportunities to camp. on a whim, i decided to plan a 4-day camping trip centered around lake tahoe, as i had never visited. lake tahoe is known for being the largest alpine lake in north america. it felt like a good time as early june would be warm enough with no snow, but before the peak season. i left early in the morning (like 5 am early) so i could beat rush hour. i also took a deour as i was stubborn and refused to pay the $8 toll to take one of the 2 bridges north. that meant i traveled south (in the wrong direction) to be able to head inland and get on the I-5. would i do this again? maybe. $8 is absolutely ridiculous to get over a fucking bridge.
tuckee, ca
i arrived in truckee quite early, before 10 when everything would open. the first stop was coffee at dark horse coffee in an old saloon. this was a cool old place. i enjoyed walking around & bought some alien stickers.
now that it was later, the stores were opening so i perused a few. also the local historical society was closed, but they let me in as there was a scheduled school trip arriving soon. the museum is in the old train depot.
i then walked behind the main street to see the old jail. like the train depot, it was supposed to be closed, but the doors were open as the school children would also be visiting. i was able to take a quick peek.
the old jailhouse
i then backtracked a few miles to visit the donner memorial state park. if you went to public school in california, you were bound to learn about those who travelled west, crossed the treacherous sierra nevadas, & the donner party who committed cannibalism when they were stuck in a snow storm. the site includes some recreational areas, a monument, & a small museum that discussed the donner party, the history of the park, the local wildlife, & travel in the region.
no one knows the strength of kindred love until it is tried - the donner memorial monument (c. 1918)
after a quick stop at taco bell (ironically in donner plaza wich felt kind of weird - eating at a plaza named after the party who committed cannibalism) i started the drive around the lake as my campsite was in the southern tahoe area. i first stopped at tahoe city. i visited the gatekeepers museum, which has exhibits on lake tahoe, the washoe tribe, & the history of tahoe city (it was an old victorian resort city). here is where i learned that the lake scene in
a place in the sun was filmed (starring cutie montgomery clift) on lake tahoe. mark twain also spent time in the area (he ended up being a theme of this trip, more on him later). i also stopped in the sister museum, the watson cabin (built in 1908).
tahoe city, ca
gatekeeper's museum, tahoe city
tahoe dam (c. 1913)
the view from common's beach
i then drove to my campsite in ed z'berg sugar pine campground, tahoma (the name is a combo of tahoe & home). this is the first campsite i have been to that requires a bear locker. i was told if i see a bear raise my arms, & yell "go, bear, go" (apparently this is what the rangers say before they hit them with bean bags, so the bears associate the phrase with the shots). funny enough out of context, it makes us campers sound like a cheerleaders. i was pretty nervous about the bears & was told by a fellow camper there was one that stopped by the day before. there was a group of older woman who stayed at a site near mine & said they would look out for me (they were sweet). when i travel alone, older people always look out for me. spoiler alert, i never saw a bear.
my campsite & the bear locker
after checking into sugar pine point campground, i left my food & toiletries in the bear locker, and headed out. i drove down the road to the adjacent part of the park along the shoreline. i did a smaller trail that followed the shoreline & stopped through some of the older buildings on site (this was a vacation home / resort area). it felt very parent trap to me. though it was a thursday, i expected it to be busier as it was after memorial day. the entire time i was in tahoe it was not busy. the campsites were occupied at less than half capacity with no one on either side of me. it felt like a treat.
the old bathhouses
the pier. the water was pretty still this day
feels mismatched to see pinecones rolling along the waves of a sandy beach
my standard camping trader joes dinner (a can of dolomas & a can of beans in tomato sauce) with a packet of chocolate sunflower seed butter
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the next morning, i left early to my hiking trail. surprisingly, it was pretty cold at night. it was colder than it normally is in june, which i liked. it also meant my food stayed nice and cool in the bear locker. before heading to my hike, i stopped for a viewpoint of emerald bay, one of the most popular viewpoints in lake tahoe.
emerald bay
the lake tahoe recreation region is a collection of state, local, & federal land. my morning hike was in desolation wilderness, a part of eldordo national forest. as a wilderness it is least maintained. to my understanding, workers cannot travel on any vehicle & cannot use power tools. i was required to hike with a permit tag attached to my backpack. it is a bit ominous to have an identification tag in case they find my body, but also made me feel like a ty beanie baby. if you do not complete the permit & wear the tag, you can get a ticket.
not very far into the hike, you cross a river
i did the eagle lake trail, a short less than 2 mile hike. though not very far, it had a few challenges. the snow was still melting, so the rock stairs were trickling water like a waterfall. this made them slippery. there were also a couple of fallen trees that required me to either climb over or under them. the most challenging was the rock scramble. there is not much scrambling, but it always harder to go down then above, especially when slippery.
the trail takes you to, you guess it, lake eagle. it was very pretty, but i was unable to stay long as the mosquitoes were brutal & i forgot my bug wipe. luckily i had the whole lake to myself. it was not until my walk back that i started seeing people.
lake eagle
this also scared the shit out of me. at first glance, it looked like a bear (it's just part of a tree trunk).
after the hike, i continued my drive around the lake & over the border to nevada. it was like a whole other world. a log cabin casino land. not my vibe, but there was a wonderful coffee place called clyde's coffee that gave me an extra free shot of espresso in my latte (the way to my heart). i continued my way to carson city, nevada.
the first stop was stewart indian school, a native american boarding school that is now a museum. this ended up being one of the highlights of my trip. you always hear about indian schools in canada, but not in the US let alone a museum. the school was opened in 1890 & closed in the 1980s. at first, the school relocated native children from all over nevada (many washoe & paiute) as an attempt to force assimilation. in the 1930s there was a shift towards promoting native culture & language in the school. in the 1970s, the school started bringing in children from other tribes all over the west, notably the navajo. at this point, the local tribes were seen as successfully assimilated. interestingly, the reception of the boarding school is more mixed than you would think (more on that later).
the museum is free. only one of the buildings you can actually enter & it houses the museum itself. after, you can walk around the complex. there are corresponding interpretive signs throughout the grounds that allow you to use your phone to hear stories from the those who were actually students or workers. i learned that the sports field was called moccasin square garden. some of the buildings are still used today by local government agencies.
many of the building were built from local masonry
the old post office is currently a gift shop where the old students sell some of their crafts. i started my visit here & talked to the volunteer who does beading. she was a student in the 1960s, part of the washoe tribe, and told me how she really enjoyed her time at the boarding school. she told me that as she was very poor & the school provided discipline, food, & stability in her life. her opinion was that most students who were her parents' generation had bad experiences (some being kidnapped to go to the school & being abused), but many of her generation, enjoyed their time at the school. to her there was a fondness like many people do for their school years. she also said at the school, she was actually taught washoe culture & language. it was a very interesting conversation. i ended up purchasing a small duck made out of willow reeds that was braided by a local paiute woman.
the old post office & current gift shop
the church across from the old school
i made a quick stop at the nevada state history museum in town. there were cool exhibits on mining, ghost towns, & native american perspectives
i then made my way to virginia city, about a 30 minute drive away. it is kind of a ghost town, still full of businesses, but no longer the boomtown it once was. it is like a tombstone, az, but on a smaller scale. a western, cowboy town that looks like it was in the movies. some of the buildings are as old as the 1860s. at 1:30 on a friday, it was mostly full of bikers day drinking. i spent some time visiting a few of the stores & the visitor's center. as someone who does not drink, there is not too much to do. most of the buildings are bars.
in the 1850s, silver was discovered nearby (for the first time in the US) & the town was formed. mark twain appears again, as he worked at the local newspaper (i told you he would come back, and he will be brought up again later).
virginia city
the visitor center had such pretty original chandeliers
the crystal bar was moved to the visitor center from down the street & is from 1867
one of the stores had an old timey gun shooting arcade game
while i was driving back, i decided last minute to visit the fourth ward school museum, an 1800s 4-story wooden school museum that is the last of its kind in the US. i had a wonderful talk discussing history with the worker there. the old building has been restored to show how the school would have looked in the 1870s.
the fourth ward school museum (kind of looks like the bate's motel)
of course there is a dunce hat
before settling into my campground, i returned to carson city for dinner. i parked in downtown (which did not feel like a downtown). i took a stroll around and it was so pleasant. though a hot day, there were tons of trees. the stores were closed, but the grounds of the state capitol building were open. for being the downtown of a capital city, it felt like a small town. it was noticeable that even though these were public grounds in a downtown, i did not see a single homeless person. the capitol building though small, was really pretty. sorounding the building is a tree from every county in the state. i really enjoyed this stroll.
the nevada state capitol building (c. 1871)
i decided to get something to eat along the pedestrian promenade in downtown. there are a few businesses & a little fountain that tons of kids were running in & out of in the summer heat. a very family oriented place. i decided to get a veggie grilled cheese & salad, with an ice ream for dessert.
i had to get the huckleberry flavor to continue with the mark twain theme (with sprinkles because it is more fun)
for the night, i camped at washoe lake state park outside of carson city. i really enjoyed this park. the campsites were recently remodeled (with a shelter). there is a lake here, but the campsites are located elsewhere (worth not having the views as that meant away from the mosquitoes). i had a campsite that looked out to the open dessert with the sierra nevadas in the distance (where i was earlier!). such a cool way to see the journey i made that day.
the view from my campsite. a storm was up in the mountains. i enjoyed the sunset while eating some snap peas (a nostalgic favorite)
near the state park entrance i saw maybe a wild horse
