Enjoying North Lake Tahoe at a Safe Social Distance

The look of kids who really need an outing. . .

Shelter in place has meant different things to different people. For my family, it’s meant staying at home 99.9% percent of the time for over three months. Even grocery shopping is a rare outing, with my husband or I venturing out every two weeks or so, masked at an off hour, with a careful shopping list designed to feed our family of four for as long as possible. My colleagues and I have shared our work tasks to minimize the time we have to be physically present in court rather than lawyering from home, GoToMeeting or Zoom. I put on my suit, heels, and mask once or twice a week at most, carefully distancing myself from clients and colleagues in jail and at the courthouse, and then sterilizing myself and everything I’ve touched before returning to my family. We’ve been careful.

This past weekend, my family and I venture out to North Lake Tahoe and Happy Cabin for a maintenance trip. I feel like I’m slinking out of my cave after a long winter of hibernation.  We bring all the food and supplies we’ll need to hunker down in the cabin. At this point, we all look slightly feral. My hair is too long and off-color. My husband has a mustache he’s never had before. The kids are wide-eyed and intrigued at the idea that life is going on out here, in San Jose, Sacramento, and Roseville, as we drive through, trying to get as far as possible without stopping. There are plenty of cars on the road, shopping, and industry. Even IKEA is bustling. It feels a little bit like we made up the whole shelter in place. I have to keep reminding myself that Covid-19 is still a thing, despite the reality that Stage 3 is happening out here, and life is going on.

Kite flying at Moon Dunes Beach

Life is also going on in North Lake Tahoe.  We arrive just before a summer weekend that also happens to be the first weekend that hotels, vacation rentals and other “hospitality” industries are allowed to open for business.  The joy is palpable. Everywhere you look, there are people walking their dogs, children biking and scootering through the streets, and college kids playing spikeball and beer pong on the beach. We discuss the possibilities with each other. Should we order take-out pizza rather than cook and clean after our long drive? Is it safe to go for a hike or play on the beach? We decide “yes” on the take-out pizza, but “maybe” on the hike and beach. It depends on how crowded things are. With that in mind, we go in search of the best places to socially distance while still enjoying the magic of North Lake Tahoe.  Our quest is hit or miss.

Sand Harbor Beach

HIT. Sand Harbor Beach, with coolish temperatures and a rain storm marching in. About 15 minutes from Happy Cabin, Sand Harbor Beach in Lake Tahoe Nevada State Park is a thing of beauty, with soft, wide beaches, and a big, calm harbor for swimming and playing in the water. We get an early start to avoid the crowds and the rain storm that’s coming. We find a place to throw out our towels that’s easily 15 feet from our nearest neighbor. We wear wetsuits to brave the frigid lake and cool air. We picnic to avoid the crowds at the snack bar. And it’s great. It’s so nice to feel “normal” for a minute, to be out in the world doing something besides shopping for essential groceries or working. I imagine this would have been a very different experience on a warmer day.  We get lucky.

Moon Dunes Beach

MISS. Monkey Rock. On a weekend afternoon, we decide to hike to Monkey Rock, a rock formation overlooking Crystal Bay in Nevada. The formation lies up Tunnel Creak Road inside the boundaries of Spooner Backcountry-Lake Tahoe Nevada State Park.  The draw is a relatively short hike followed by stunning lake views. Unfortunately, everyone seems to have had the same idea. The parking lot at the trailhead to Tunnel Creek Road is full and the trail looks crowded, with little to no social distancing happening between the groups of hikers and no masks in sight.  We drive on by.

HIT. Historic Stateline Fire Lookout Trail.  After giving Monkey Rock a pass, we are craving panoramic lake views. On our way back to the cabin, we decide to scope out the trailhead to the Historic Stateline Fire Lookout Trail. The trail is an old fire road, so it’s wide and accommodates larger crowds. After easily finding a parking spot, we decide to go for it, carrying masks just in case we feel crowded. Luckily, we never do.  The groups we encounter are respectful and careful to keep their distance. The views are majestic.

MISS. Eating out. Restaurants are open for business, with both indoor and outdoor dining. From what we can see, there are a lot of people trying to take advantage of that—too many for us to feel comfortable.  I long for the salad bar at Jason’s Beachside Grill, roasted brussels sprouts and beets at Whitecap’s Pizza, and avocado rolls at Hiro Sushi.  But this doesn’t feel like the right time.

HIT. Our local trail. There’s a trailhead near the cabin that goes through Tahoe Conservancy land to Moon Dunes Beach in one direction and North Tahoe Regional Park in the other. The trail is nearly empty, with a few walkers who are mindful to stay in their lane and give us a wide berth as we pass each other.  Moon Dunes Beach on a Saturday is fairly crowded, but we are still able to find a safe place to perch, higher up on the dune.  Out in the water, we have the lake practically to ourselves, with plenty of room for floating, swimming and splashing around.

HIT. North Tahoe Regional Park. This vast park near the cabin is nearly empty, with small groups of mountain bikers, hikers, and frisbee golf players taking care to give each other space. The Tahoe Vista Treetop Adventure Park ropes/zipline course is open for business. Our kids want to get up into the trees, but between the line of people waiting for information and the many others handling the shared equipment, ziplining feels a little too risky today.  Hopefully soon.

Our local trail

HIT. Hanging out at Happy Cabin. Shelter in place is the perfect excuse to take advantage of yard games, meals on the deck, and movie nights. In-between our forays into the world outside our shelter-in-place bubble, we spend a lot of time at the cabin, making food and spending time together.  Of course, we’ve been doing that for months, but at least here, in a new place, our time together feels more like a happy vacation than a sullen quarantine.

To visit Happy Cabin during your trip to North Lake Tahoe / Tahoe Vista / Kings Beach, click here.