Lake Tahoe Facts of Interest
Altitude: 6,225 feet
Length: 22 miles
Width: 12 miles
Shoreline Length: 72 miles
Maximum Known Depth: 1,645 feet
Lake Tahoe is the second largest body of water on Earth at the elevation of
6,255 feet or higher.
Its water is so pure that the bottom is clearly visible at depths of 150 feet.
It is fed by seven different creeks, streams, and rivers. The only
outlet for the water is the Truckee River.
Lake Tahoe has a water capacity of 122,160,280 acre feet or roughly 39 trillion
gallons! That is enough water to cover the entire state of
California with water to a depth of 14 inches!
Lake Tahoe is split between California and Nevada. One third of Lake Tahoe
is in Nevada, while two thirds are in California.
Seven counties touch it’s shore.
Average Rainfall: 8.3 Inches
Average Snowfall: 300 Inches
Yet there are an average of 250 clear and sunny days every year.
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Lake Tahoe History
South Lake Tahoe
The South Shore of Lake Tahoe is a land of many uses and stretches from Emerald
Bay to Spooner Lake.
Lake Tahoe has the largest number of Alpine ski resorts in any one area of North
America, a total of 15, and 3 of those resorts are on the South Shore; Heavenly,
Kirkwood and Sierra-at-Tahoe. There are also several outstanding
cross-country ski areas, including Camp Richardson, where skiers can stride
along the shore of Lake Tahoe. You can also enjoy snowmobiling from
the crest of Hwy 50 at Sooner Lake, offering spectacular panoramas.
Some of the finest mountain hiking trails in the Sierra, such as Horseshoe
Falls, are just over the Western Slope where the trail takes you up to the
magnificent Desolation Wilderness. Biking on mountain trails offer
easy pedaling or demanding pumping. Also, year-round horseback
riding will take you to back country where trails are historic and challenging.
Historically, the South Shore was home to the Washoe Indian Tribe, who came to
the South Shore in the summer to enjoy the cool weather, the excellent fishing
and to gather flowers and plants that were used as medicine. The
Washoe called the lake "Da ow a ga" or Lake of the Sky. Faulty
translation resulted in "Tahoe". The Washoe would camp in a meadow bordering the
edge of what is now Stateline, across from the Lakeside Inn where Tahoe's first
airport was built. The meadow is still there, preserved by a gift to
the National Forest Service as the Lam Watah Trail, which leads from Hwy 50 to
the Nevada Beach through open land, across creeks and between rising hillocks of
giant boulders.
The discovery of the Comstock Lode some 25 miles away at Virginia City and the
clear-cutting of the basin's forests resulted in the Washoe giving up their
annual visits to the lake. The Comstock Lode discovery and the
urgent need of timber to shore up the mines denuded much of the Basin, but some
of the South Shore forests were left intact simply because it was to difficult
to get the timber out of the Basin and on to Virginia City. Although
the Washoe no longer visit the lake on an annual basis, a summit meeting in the
summer of 1997 with President Clinton, Vice President Gore and local officials
resulted in the return of land around the lake to the Washoe for future
settlement and construction of an Indian visitor center.
The modern era at Lake Tahoe's South Shore began when explorer John Fremont
climbed a ridge trail from the Carson Valley and became the first European to
see Lake Tahoe. That ridge and the Fremont camp site is now part of a
hiking trail that starts at the top of the Tram at Heavenly Ski Resort and is
probably one of the most popular short hikes around the Tahoe Basin.
By 1895, most of the timber was gone and the Comstock was beginning to run thin.
The South Shore slipped out of view for a few years until lumber tycoons Duane
L. Bliss built a narrow-gauge railroad from Truckee near the Donner Pass to
shore side Tahoe City. The rail line suddenly made visits to the
lake easier, and soon many luxury steamships were taking visitors around the
lake in comfort. That tradition today is carried on by the Tahoe
Queen and MS Dixie II, which offer lake tours. In 1931, engineers
blasted two tunnels through Cave Rock near the eastern extremity of the South
Shore, completing the road around the lake and ending the era of the luxury
excursions and the narrow gauge railway.
Today, South Lake Tahoe is the home to approximately 24,000 hard-working,
outdoor-loving citizens, who enjoy all the usual pleasures of small-town
ambience while having the Sierra as their backyard.
South Lake Tahoe is also home to five major casinos offering gaming and
entertainment: Harvey's, Harrah's, the Horizon, Caesars and the
Lakeside Inn. The showrooms present major entertainment and dining in sky
top restaurants that offer spectacular views and outstanding international
cuisine.
Whether you like the summer activities of hiking, biking, and sailing, or the
winter activities of skiing, cross-country, and snowmobiling, or perhaps a
combination of both, there is something here in Tahoe for everyone.
Information provided in part by Katy Spivy