Spooner Junction to Carson City or Return to Reno
From Spooner Junction, it is 14 miles to Carson City and the junction with U.S. 395 if you stay on U.S. 50. Turn left onto 28 to continue 12 miles along the lakeshore to Incline Village. You will be back on a two lane road that winds through the woods and has limited places to stop. Just after getting on 28, look for a right turn into Lake Tahoe Nevada State Park (more information below) if you'd like to rest and perhaps take an easy stroll around Spooner Lake. There is also a trailhead for the more vigorous hike to Marlette Lake and access to the famous Flume Trail for mountain bikers. A bit further on is Sand Harbor, part of the state park and site of the Lake Tahoe Shakespeare Festival. Next stop is Incline Village and the return trip to Reno on the Mt. Rose Highway.
Of course, my tour barely touches on all there is to see and do in the Lake Tahoe Basin. Use this as a start and you will discover numerous wonders in this unique Sierra Nevada environment.
Lake Tahoe by the Numbers
- Depth: 1,645 ft. (second deepest in U.S. after Oregon's Crater Lake)
- Maximum Width: 22 mi.
- Surface Area: 191 sq. mi.
- Maximum Surface Elevation Above Sea Level: 6,229 ft.
- Shoreline: 72 mi.
- Volume: 122 million acre ft., 39 trillion gal.
- Lake bottom is 4,580 ft. above sea level, lower than Carson City.
- Water Clarity: 67.7 ft. in 2006, measured by the Secchi depth reading method (down from 100 ft. since readings began in the late 1960s).
- Numerous streams flow into Lake Tahoe, but its only outlet is the Truckee River.
- Lake Tahoe never freezes.
CD for a Lake Tahoe Tour
Around Tahoe is a self-guided tour CD you can use to accompany a visit to the Lake Tahoe Basin. It is narrated by local singer/songwriter Darin Talbot, a Tahoe resident since 1977. The CD features an interactive map, histories and legends of Lake Tahoe, GPS coordinates, cool spots to visit, museums, dog-friendly beaches, 20 songs about Lake Tahoe, and more. You can purchase the double CD online, either as CDs to be mailed or as an MP3 download with accompanying booklet in .pdf format. It's also available at the North Lake Tahoe Visitors Center in Incline Village and in some stores around the Lake.
Lake Tahoe Nevada State Park
Perhaps the best and most diverse park in our Nevada system is Lake Tahoe Nevada State Park. Two distinct units within this park offer visitors a choice of what to do, see, and enjoy. Check these out and you will find something for everyone in Lake Tahoe Nevada State Park... Sand Harbor and Marlette-Hobart Backcountry.
Sources: USGS Lake Tahoe Data Clearinghouse and VirtualTahoe.com.
