50 minute read
Tahoe’s Tourism Tipping Point
CONTINUED ON PAGE 9
“I think that we are definitely more impacted. Trash and traffic have been more of an issue,” says Carol Chaplin, president and CEO of Lake Tahoe Visitors Authority, which markets tourism for the South Shore. “We are finding that everybody wants to get close to the water. We see the same on the hiking and biking trails. We are all a little bit overwhelmed by the day traffic. We don’t know how to measure it. We know the parking lots are full, the trails are packed, and we are seeing a lot of visitors who want to be outdoors.”
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Dan Canfield of California State Parks says that local state parks are also seeing increased visitation.
“Public lands are pretty much the only recreation outlet currently available. Amusement parks, zoos, movie theaters, air travel to Hawaii/Mexico, dining out, are all closed or severely restricted to slow the spread. Visitation increases in our day-use areas are substantial, perhaps approaching a 50 percent increase over last year,” says Canfield.
While Placer County is also seeing an increase in the use of its recreation facilities, 5 th District Supervisor Cindy Gustafson says they don’t know where the
CONNECT
Clean Up the Lake | cleanupthelake.org Keep Tahoe Blue | keeptahoeblue.org Keep Truckee Green | keeptruckeegreen.org Tahoe In Balance on Facebook Tahoe Truckee Litter Group on Facebook
VOLUNTEER
Kings Beach clean up | Mondays 8-10 a.m. Tahoe Truckee Litter Group Kings Beach clean up | Sunday 8:15 p.m. Lady Luck Skate Shop on Facebook MOOP the Lake | Sept. 8-10 moopthelake.org Truckee Litter Corps | 1 st Saturday of month, 8 a.m. keeptruckeegreen.org Truckee River Cleanup Day | Sept. 8, 8 a.m.-4 p.m. Truckee River Cleanup on Facebook
Short-term Rental COMPLAINTS
City of South Lake Tahoe | (530) 542-7474 Douglas County | (775) 782-5126 Eldorado County | (530) 573-3300 Placer County | (530) 581-6234 or str@placer.ca.gov Truckee | (530) 448-8003 Washoe County | (775) 328-6106
increase is coming from. Her district represents a broad geographic area that stretches from Auburn to Donner Summit and includes large portions of the North and West shores of Lake Tahoe, as well as Northstar and Olympic Valley.
“It certainly appears that in recreation locations, beaches and trails, we’re seeing increased use and I am hearing from a lot of constituents that they absolutely feel inundated,” says Gustafson. “Swimming pools that are closed, some beaches are limiting people and taking reservations for guests to use the beaches. Is that pushing more people onto some of the public spaces?
“I don’t know if there are more visitors versus second homeowners versus locals. It’s hard to judge,” Gustafson says. “I know everybody says they’re all visitors. But occupancy numbers and TOT tracking isn’t showing more. It’s showing less. Now, are those people illegally renting, are they using a friend’s home, are they coming for more than 30 days? Are they second homeowners that have stayed all summer or invited friends up and others?
“One of the things I’ve been saying to everybody is we need more data. People are making a lot of assumptions,” says Gustafson. “I will tell you that our traffic counts are down based on numbers [Tahoe Regional Planning Agency] collected on Highways 89 and 267. It’s down 8 percent on 267 and 6 percent on Highway 89 and that was for a two-week window the last two weeks in July, which was kind of our peak.”
Gustafson says Placer County is working with a firm called StreetLight Data to monitor traffic using cell phone data in and out of the Tahoe Basin. She says she has been researching TOT data, occupancy data and talking to vacation property managers and hotels and all of those are trending down.
LOCALS ARE FED UP
People are on edge and being in the midst of a global pandemic hasn’t helped matters. Garbage, graffiti, parking, traffic, wildfire danger, evacuation concerns, the impact of litter and tourism on wildlife, microplastics in Lake Tahoe and human waste are all underlying symptoms of one problem: too many visitors in a region that community members say doesn’t have enough regulation or enforcement.
Community members are rising up and begging officials, agencies and municipalities to take responsibility for garbage, graffiti, traffic and noise. Many residents are upset by the impact of tourists and the region’s inability to maintain and deal with overburdened services. Local advocates are calling for more funding from local governments to mitigate the issues arising from so many visitors coming to the area.
Truckee resident Court Leve started Truckee Tahoe Litter Group a few years ago when he became frustrated by the amount of garbage in the area. He’s been an activist and lightning rod for both the town and Tahoe at large to take action on the issues of trash and short-term rental regulations. Leve notes that the community feels there is a lack of leadership on the part of local officials to manage garbage, visitors and short-term rentals.
“Government officials say it’s not so bad. Not so bad is not a standard I want to live with,” says Leve, who is not interested in shutting down tourism but finding solutions.
Along with the garbage flooding local beaches and neighborhoods, Leve notes the need for more regula
Overcrowded beaches in Kings Beach. | Courtesy Tahoe in Balance
tions on short-term rentals in the region since many locals are citing noise issues, frequent parties late into the night and parking as major problems.
“We need better use of TOT dollars for garbage, and I’d like to see more stringent regulations on short-term rentals,” says Leve. “Just talk to someone living next door to someone who rents out their home. They are fed up.”
Each county and city sets its own regulations on shortterm rentals, which can vary widely. The Town of Truckee does not currently have any regulations on short-term rentals, but the town is working to develop them and looking to adopt them as early as Sept. 8, according to Polivy.
“We have a pretty strict vacation rental ordinance,” says South Lake Tahoe’s Collin. “We enforce against noise, occupancy, parking and haven’t seen the numbers increase in the number of complaints or the number of violations. We’re seeing a lot of people coming up and hunkering down for the most part. They are spending more time in their second homes. We are definitely concerned. We need to be as vigilant as possible. We need to adapt. People do have rights to travel about. And we have no way of closing down.”
Kings Beach resident and community advocate Cheri Sugal says the underlying problem is that the local economy relies too much on tourism. She wants to see officials work to move away from tourism, especially due to the pandemic as more workers move to permanent remote working.
“The dependence on tourism is changing. It’s a false narrative. More people are living up here that have no connection with the tourism industry at all. They work from home or have jobs that are not connected with tourism,” says Sugal. “Let’s remember we are in the middle of a global pandemic. And it’s not just a question of is it too much tourism in general, is it too much tourism right now? Given the added health concerns that we’re all dealing with, the answer is so clearly yes, a resounding yes. I’m at the point where I see the need for very strong action to be taken to get the county to do things that will reduce the number of people coming here. We could clean up their garbage until we’re blue in the face.”
Sugal also feels that the influx of visitors to the area this summer was predictable and somewhat preventable. She and other local advocates want officials to shut down shortterm rentals.
“The rest of the state is closed. We have to fight to have more garbage dumpsters and get more trash cleanup. It is time put more regulations in place, although I would argue none of that has worked in Placer County,” she says. “So as far as enforcement goes, it just hasn’t worked. You’re still up all night when there’s a house party two doors down from you. And so, for me, it comes down to the question of what tools do we have in the toolbox to reduce the number of people coming here and there’s really only one tool and it’s through accommodations. I think it’s about getting rid of the short-term rentals.”
Tahoe City resident and journalist Laura Read is also fed up. She felt putting her anger into action was the only way for her to make a difference and started the Tahoe in Balance Facebook page.
“I thought, ‘Can I take my energy my efforts, raise awareness and pull together facts in such a way to perhaps help people make decisions more quickly and take action more quickly?’ ” says Read, who also wants to see more code enforcement on short-term rentals and to reallocate TOT taxes to address tourism impacts.
Josh Lease of Meyers says he didn’t realize that his anger and frustration would spur a protest but once people
responded, he went with it. His posts on social media led to a lot of press, along with a weekend event he coined, Roundabout Rallies. There were five protests in mid-August with the intention to bring awareness to the issues facing Tahoe.
“This is not about locals versus tourists. It’s about the onslaught of people we are getting up here. The infrastructure can’t deal with it,” says Lease, who was stuck in bumper-to-bumper traffic at the time. “If we cannot save Lake Tahoe, we are in trouble.
“Many residents feel like they are no longer able to enjoy the beaches and trails on the weekends. Social distancing on beaches is not happening. There is nowhere to go. Everywhere you go is packed,” says Lease. “I am not saying don’t come here. But if you want to come here, be respectful. Treat servers with respect. And pack it in and pack it out. Don’t come here and trash Tahoe.”
FINDING A BALANCE
The towns, cities and counties in the Tahoe Sierra collect tax dollars from a myriad of sources including sales tax, lodging tax — or TOT — and property tax from homeowners. Tax dollars are used by local governments and agencies to fund infrastructure and provide services.
“Transient Occupancy Tax are taxes brought in from hotels and short-term rentals. In South Lake, they go into the general fund,” says Collin, noting that revenue was down significantly in the first couple of months of the pandemic. “Once we reopened, the preliminary numbers from July look back up as we have been busy. But it’s not just about the money. It’s really important that we are trying to find the balance between protecting the health of everybody whether they’re full-time residents, second homeowners or visitors to protect this community, keep the economy rolling and support our businesses.”
“I’ll be most interested in seeing our sales tax revenues of this region and our lodging tax,” says Jeffrey Hentz, the executive director of North Lake Resort Association. “Those numbers lag behind several months, so unfortunately, we won’t be able to see those numbers in real time. Typically, it takes three to six months. Those are two key metrics that can tell us about overnight and day visitors. We are one of the few destinations in the state that’s open. Many of the communities, leisure activities, public areas and places people typically go are closed. It’s pushing people to areas that are open. It’s a huge contributing factor.”
“Our mission is to drive overnight stays in South Lake Tahoe. All of our lodging partners are saying that they’re doing good and pleased with the results,” says Chaplin of the South Shore. “We have approximately 10,000 rooms on the South Shore. Overall, we’re reaching 90 percent occupancy on the weekends. Our larger and more developed properties are at 100 percent over the weekends. We estimated that 100,000 people were on the beaches for July 4.”
She acknowledges that since COVID, more people are driving to the South Shore.
“More customers are willing to drive over 800 miles to get to their destination right now,” says Chapin, who sees people from Stockton, Fresno, the Bay Area, Sacramento and Reno, Nev., and driving farther distances even for a short stay in Tahoe.
“I don’t think it’s too much tourism. I think that our infrastructure is not as supportive as we need,” says Chapin. “I think that there are definitely impacts to some of our iconic locations like Emerald Bay — just too many people there in one day. And Sand Harbor. You can’t get in after 9:30 in the morning and parking is crazy from Zephyr Cove to Skyland. I think disbursement is something that we need to talk about. How do we properly disperse tourism, for sustainability reasons? I don’t think any of us have figured it out. It’s something that is starting to take priority in a lot of our conversations.
“The good news is that all of us are talking with all of the municipalities, agencies and organizations like North Lake Tahoe Resort Association, TRPA, the Forest Service, the City of South Lake Tahoe and Placer County Board of Supervisors,” says Chapin. “We are all on a collaborative track, talking across agencies on a weekly basis. Never before have we all sat down at the same table and looked at the same problems.”
LOOKING FOR SOLUTIONS
Local officials say that they are looking toward some level of sustainable tourism, saying that there needs to be responsibility and stewardship, along with visitor education.
“We are doing everything we can to mitigate the trash and traffic and doing the best we can,” says Hentz. “People want to get out for their mental health and physical health and we’re this logical place because many other places are closed. I do think it has created an additional level of sense of urgency for all of us to understand and recognize the challenges. I think people are still going to come up here and our numbers are going to go up naturally. I think it forces us to get a more comprehensive plan in place that addresses the issues facing us. We need to communicate what it means to travel to North Lake Tahoe and how to be responsible.”
Mayor Collin says the City of South Lake Tahoe is working diligently to deal with the issues of tourism and the impact of overcrowding.
“The city manager is working with the South Tahoe Refuse and our public works department to manage garbage. We are trying to educate people,” he says. “We have a new volunteer ambassador task force that is primarily for COVID compliance. They talk to people that aren’t wearing masks and give them information about why it’s important. We are looking to educate and ask that they are respectful and good stewards of the environment and not just from the possibility of transmitting COVID but with trash, as well. We are trying to be as adaptable as possible because we don’t know what’s going to happen. We are going to continue to be as vigilant as possible from the city side as to how we manage things and ask all of the residents and visitors to do the same.”
The City of South Lake Tahoe has put more garbage receptables at local beaches and parks and increased trash services to those areas. Placer County also recently added more garbage cans and increased trash services in the downtown areas of Tahoe City and Kings Beach.
“I agree that it was a delayed response,” Gustafson says. “It’s definitely took time for us to understand it is an ongoing issue.”
Many locals, however, say the actions taken recently by the counties and cities that are supposed to protect their community is too little too late.
“Are you kidding me? You guys are basically patting yourself on your back publicly and you haven’t dealt with the garbage issue in years,” Leve says. “It literary took a pandemic for them to respond.” n
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Ketsia Maya
CHANNELING HER OBSESSION FOR WIRE WRAPPING
STORY BY KAYLA ANDERSON | PHOTOS COURTESY KETSIA MAYA
t my favorite Mexican restaurant in South Lake Tahoe, Maya’s Mexican A South Lake Tahoe, Maya’s Mexican Grill where they make housemade tortillas, a display next to the cash register shows o intricately wire-wrapped jewelry. Stones and copper wire are shaped into tree pendants, half opalite moon earrings are secured in silver-plated wire and delicately beaded dreamcatcher earrings appear as though a lot of love and time have been put into them. All of this is the work of South Lake Tahoe resident Ketsia Maya, who has been making WiredWithin jewelry since late 2017.
–Ketsia Maya
“I’ve always been into jewelry. I’ve been more into beadwork, but then one day I bought a box of beads o Facebook and it came with di erent 20-gauge wire coils. I wrapped three pendants with them and became obsessed,” she says. e surprise box of coils was fun to practice with and she began looking up tutorials on YouTube, teaching herself how to hold stones in wire, she says.
“Wrapping a bead is a lot easier than wrapping a stone without a hole,” says Maya.
Explore Tahoe’s vibrant arts scene at TheTahoeWeekly.com
She explains that her rst designs were made by wrapping beads with wire and once she got the hang of that she moved to wrapping cabochons. Maya got so into it that she was making one to two pendants a day throughout the winter, building up her collection. In the beginning she wanted to get pendants down rst, but three months into her new wire-wrapped jewelry hobby she began making earrings — and now she makes rings, anklets, keychains and bookmarks, as well.
“I would get o work [at Wells Fargo] and just make jewelry. I wasn’t going out that much and just got good at it,” she says.
12
When spring 2018 rolled around, she put in an application to set up a booth at Live at Lakeview and began selling her jewelry called WiredWithin and also participated in the Ski Run Farmers’ Market.
“People loved it,” she says. “I recognized a lot of customers from Wells Fargo and met a lot of visitors. People thought they made great gifts.”
She spent months thinking about an appropriate name. She asked her coworkers at Wells Fargo for suggestions and her manager just blurted it out: “Wired Within.” Maya loved the name and soon after launched her website, Twitter, Instagram and Etsy accounts. Before the pandemic hit she planned on opening a storefront by Ski Run Marina and continue participating in crafts fairs, but all of that has been put on hold.
“Everything started getting canceled so I had to shift the direction that the business will go. I’m just hanging tight right now, taking things as they come and going with the ow,” she says.
Currently, WiredWithin jewelry is sold at Maya’s Mexican Grill in South Lake Tahoe and at Mountain Freak Boutique in Truckee, as well as online at her website and on Etsy. Her most popular item is the opalite moon necklace wrapped in silverplated copper.
CLOCKWISE FROM TOP LEFT: Ketsia Maya; WiredWithin owl pendent; Black Lives Matter tree of life bookmark; Rainbow moonstone and blue aventurine earrings.
“People love the color. It’s almost like they glow when they’re on you. ey’re exceptionally beautiful,” she says, adding that the wire she uses is solid copper with .125 sterling-silver casing that can be easily be polished.
Maya released a Black Lives Matter collection on Etsy where all the money from products sold is funneled into ActBlue charity and BLM.org.
“I have new bookmarks with the BLM charm and opalite moons; a lot of the collection is set in sterling silver. After everything that happened with George Floyd and having all my shows canceled, I was feeling sad and helpless. I had bought all these crystals and wires to get ready for the show season. I have all this material, so I decided to start this collection and donate the proceeds from the sales,” she says. | wir3dwithin.com, etsy.com
East Shore mural unveiled
The community mural art in the tunnel on the Tahoe East Shore Trail was unveiled on Aug. 21. The mural, painted by local husband and wife art and design duo Tyler Rivenbark and Frida Ticehurst-Rivenbark, was completed with help from students at Lake Tahoe School in Incline Village, Nev.
The mural features both day and night scenes. The night scene includes snow lines on the mountains, giving the mountains depth and light. The daytime scene on the opposite wall depicts the refl ection of the mountains in Lake Tahoe’s crystal clear waters. The ceiling uses a multitude of colors to seamlessly blend the designs of the day and night scenes.
“The ceiling helps expose how all colors of the rainbow appear in Lake Tahoe’s landscape as day turns to night, and the sun and the moon refract with the water, the snow and the clouds,” said artist Frida Ticehurst-Rivenbark in a press release. “For us, this mural is one of the most exciting visual experiences, leading people into and through the tunnel and from day to night, brightening the space with the colors of natural phenomena.”
Students from Lake Tahoe School contributed wrote in their own words, and within certain lines of the mural, what makes Lake Tahoe special to them. Some of the ideas the students shared include: “beautiful all year around,” “a symphony of water” and “the moments with family and friends.” | tahoefund.org
the arts
The Art of Kevin Jamieson
South Lake Tahoe Library | Aug. 26-31 12 p.m. | talart.org
Call for Artist Submissions
Glass Garage Collective Stateline | Aug. 26-March 6 1 p.m. | glassgaragecollective.com
Virtual Writing Session
Word After Word Books | Truckee | Aug. 26 6:30-8 p.m. | (530) 536-5099, wordafterwordbooks.com
“Black, white, and a hint of...” art show
Tahoe Art League Art Center South Lake Tahoe | Aug. 28-Sept. 4 11 a.m.-4 p.m. | (530) 544-2313, talart.org
The plot to bomb Harvey’s Resort Hotel
PART II
STORY BY MARK M cLAUGHLIN
n late August 1980, an angry gambler attemptI ed to extort millions of dollars from Harvey’s Hotel Resort by threatening to blow up its hotel casino at South Lake Tahoe. John Birges Sr. was bitter that he had lost $800,000 playing blackjack and he wanted it all back — plus more. So, he built a powerful bomb with nearly 1,000 pounds of dynamite to pull o the $3-million shakedown.
On the morning of Aug. 25, Birges and two accomplices, Willis Brown and Terry Lee Hall, checked into Balahoe Motel near Lake Tahoe Airport. As the owner of a motel, Nancy De Minico had a sixth sense for sketchy guests, so she wrote down the license number of the white van in which the men drove up. at information would become an important clue for law enforcement to track the vehicle registration to the house of Birges’ son, John Jr. Yet it would still take a year to capture the mastermind behind the crime.
After a few hours of tful sleep in the motel, in the early morning hours of Aug. 26 Birges walked to a public pay phone near the airport. In fact, he was hiding instructions for the ransom drop-o . He told Brown and Hall to carefully clean the room, remove any ngerprints and then drive to the airport to pick him up. Birges waited, but the transport never arrived. He walked back to the motel where his co-conspirators were unsuccessfully trying to start the van. e battery was dead so they called a tow truck to jump-start the vehicle. During all this time, a bomb with eight sensitive detonators connected to nearly 1,000 pounds of high-explosive dynamite, was sitting in the back of the van.
In pre-dawn darkness, the men drove to the casino district and parked across the street from Harvey’s where they unloaded what they called the machine onto a customized wheeled cart. e cart carrying the bomb was rolled across the street to Harvey’s front lobby entrance. Birges concealed it with cloth displaying an IBM logo. To the casual eye, it looked like a standard paper-copying machine.
Read Part I of Mark’s three-part series at TheTahoeWeekly.com
Birges had welded caster wheels to the bomb’s base so at the street curb Hall and Brown were able to push it ush onto the sidewalk and roll it into the casino. From there, Hall muscled it into a service elevator and took it to the second oor.
Birges showed up and the men positioned the bomb in a quiet corridor near the casino’s business o ces. Birges used toothpicks and glue to disable the locks of the doors at either end of the hallway so no one might accidently set o the
deadly device. After leaving an extortion note next to the machine, Birges, Hall and Brown drove back to Fresno County where Birges contacted his sons John Jr. and James. Birges’s girlfriend, Ella Joan Williams, was in on the caper, as well. Birges told them he needed their help at Lake Tahoe to collect the ransom money.
According to plan, that afternoon the six co-conspirators headed out on a mission to get the money.
Birges’s ransom note was discovered at 6 a.m. on Aug. 26 by a Harvey’s slot manager, who noticed the sealed doors and tampered locks. Security was called and once they opened the hallway doors and read the contents of the envelope, they learned of Birges’s threat. e extortion note warned of the extreme sensitivity of the detonators in the bomb stating that it would go o at the slightest vibration or movement. e anonymous creator of the apparatus cautioned: “Do not move or tilt this bomb, because the mechanism controlling the detonators in it will set it o at a movement of less than .01 of the open end Ricter (sic) scale. Don’t try to ood or gas the bomb. ere is a oat switch and an atmospheric pressure switch. Both are attached to detonators.” e ominous warnings indicated the complexity of this massive bomb. It could not be taken apart without triggering the weapon. e letter forewarned that even turning the athead screws in the metal
Newspaper headlines. | Courtesy South Lake Tahoe Historical Society
boxes would cause it to blow. Authorities were in a tough spot and they knew it. Without guidance from the evil genius who built the device, there was no way to render it safe.
For the critical information needed to defuse the bomb, the ransom letter demanded $3 million in “unmarked, unbugged and chemically untreated $100 bills.” e untraceable cash was to be delivered to a speci ed site by helicopter that night — not much time. Directives would be hidden at public phone booths or delivered by an unaware taxi driver or individual — but not by the bombmaker.
Harvey’s chief of security was called as was Douglas County Sheri ’s O ce and Tahoe-Douglas Fire Protection District. On discovery and con rmation that the bomb was real by using a specialized X-ray machine, police immediately evacuated an estimated 600 employees and patrons from the hotel casino. Several blocks of streets and businesses were closed and cordoned o . Scores of explosive specialists arrived from the military, FBI and other federal agencies, but all were stumped on how to disarm the expertly constructed bomb. It was the most sophisticated apparatus that they had ever seen.
At this point, what had begun as a calculated and technically impressive criminal operation worthy of a James Bond movie script, quickly took on the farcical incompetence of a Keystone Kops comedy. e delivery of the ransom money via helicopter was botched due to sloppy instructions and an overly elaborate plan concocted by Birges. He dispatched his girlfriend to drive to an airport near Placerville and wait for the helicopter to land there. Birges planned to be in the chopper because he intended to hijack it that night when it showed up to deliver the ransom money near Lake Tahoe. Meanwhile Birges and his two sons drove up Highway 50 to Ice House Road, the planned rendezvous point for
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the money hando . ey intended to signal the helicopter with a strobe light, but neglected to bring the battery for it. ey tried to steal a battery from a Volkswagen parked outside a closed service station at Kyburz, but were chased away by the owner of the garage. e Birges family then drove west, down the mountain to Placerville where they purchased a car battery from a Shell gasoline station, before returning to the Ice House Road location. Armed with three loaded guns, Birges and his sons split up to wait for the helicopter. e trap was set — or so they thought.
Stay tuned for the conclusion in the next edition and at eTahoeWeekly.com.
Tahoe historian Mark McLaughlin is a nationally published author and professional speaker. His award-winning books are available at local stores or at thestormking.com. You may reach him at mark@thestormking.com.
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Virgo (Aug 23-Sep 22)
Working behind the scenes continues, yet you are also in the mood to take some new leads. Your focus remains centered on your career, public life, and social status in general, and some rather deep changes are indicated. These probably began many months ago but not the implementation process has begun.
Libra (Sep 22-Oct 22)
The spotlight is on friendships. These may include love interests as well. Either way, you can expect some action in this area.As eager and excited as you may feel to dive in, you are probably wise to take your time before you draw conclusions or make any big commitments. Yet, for now, at least, meeting new people could prove quite exciting.
Scorpio (Oct 22-Nov 21)
Some big changes are being activated in your life. These represent new beginnings. In some respects, these could amount to dreams coming true. However, especially regarding long-term commitments, you are wise to pay extra close attention to the fine print. Be willing to talk things through thoroughly and clarify.
Sagittarius (Nov 21-Dec 21)
This Leo fire New Moon will prove extra stimulating and exciting. It will have the effect of inspiring you to take new leads. These may especially include creative projects. It is likely that you have been waiting for a green light in this regard and it is likely that the light has finally turned signaling you to advance. Be open to receiving from others, especially from family.
Capricorn (Dec 21-Jan 19)
Some deep changes are brewing in you. These will become more apparent over the coming weeks. They are probably directly associated with some of the more significant relationships in your life. This process includes aspiring to realize ideals and are not all about practical realities alone. In other words, the emphasis is on relationships and increasing love and harmony. Michael O’Connor, Life Coach Astrologer SunStarAstrology.com
Aquarius (Jan 19-Feb 19)
Your relationship life is undergoing some important activation. These will unfold over the coming weeks. Positively, your ability to communicate more clearly with others will increase. This could prove to be an excellent time to engage in creative cooperatives.
Pisces (Feb 19-Mar 20)
Balancing a rhythmic theme of work and play is strongly emphasized and will remain so over the coming weeks and months even. Exploring new territory is featured and is true on both fronts. It is generally important that you set major new projects into motion as well prior to December.
Aries (Mar 21-Apr 20)
A playful and passionate mood shifts now to a more practical focus. You will still want to get in what leisurely pleasures you can, but attending to more pressing matters will probably prove necessary and satisfying. Meanwhile, much of your focus probably remains on the home front and/or with family.
Taurus (Apr 20-May 21)
Some powerful new beginnings close to home will become apparent over the next few weeks. These will bring improvements, especially. A creative adjustment process will be activated and you will pay extra close attention to the details. It could be the perfect time to do renovations. Yet, these may occur as much within your own mind and attitude as externally.
Gemini (May 21-Jun 21)
Some cycles are super creative and this stands to be one of them. Your focus will, however, include practical concerns. As well, the creative focus may be directed to clearing the clutter, at least initially. Alternately, you could find yourself at the drawing board drafting a design or outlining a plan.
Cancer (Jun 21-Jul 22)
You are in the mood to make a few investments. These could be as much time related as money, perhaps more. Either way, directing your energy to bring in the new may well include the need to clear the old first.
Leo (Jul 22-Aug 23)
The New moon impulse is extra strong for you because it is occurring in your sign. This usually activates the urge to take new leads and strides and to initiate new activities. Your focus is extra oriented towards practical interests and requirements. Attending to the details and getting your affairs in order is extra important.
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Ava Swanson’s AWELESS INDIE IRONY
ow does an artist capture and criticize the day in an age without perpetuating H the stereotypes that de ne it? Just ask AVA.
Ava Swanson was born and raised in Bozeman, Mont., in a musical family.
“In my house as a kid, everything was a song,” she says. “Getting up, getting dressed, going poop. We’d always sing as a family.”
After high school, she moved to Squamish, British Columbia, where she specialized in political performance art at Quest University Canada and formed an indie R&B group, buckwheat.
STORY BY SEAN M cALINDIN
When she graduated last year, Swanson moved to Stanley, Idaho, for the summer where she worked at bakery while recording her latest album “VABA ESTE” under the stage name AVA. en she embarked on a cross-country solo tour in a Subaru Forester, which took her to many a legendary music city. Little did she know she made the trip just in time.
“I found I loved playing places where a few friends or mutual connections could come see me,” she says. “ e shows in Memphis and Nashville where I didn’t know anyone were actually kind of sad. Music is so much more meaningful for me when I feel connected.”
When the Coronavirus pandemic ramped up in March, Swanson realized she could be caught in Canada without health insurance. So she and her boyfriend made a mad dash for the United States arriving at a friend’s house in Tahoma days before the border shut down. After laying low for three months, she found a job waitressing at Fire Sign Cafe while trying to gure out how to further her music career in a world where touring is no longer an option.
“All of my music goals shattered,” she says. “I’m a very futuristic person. I love to daydream and have things to work toward. I didn’t know who I was without the ability to identify goals and tread toward them. It was heartbreaking.”
INDIE POP
After falling into a deep depression, Swanson joined local singing collective Tahoe Sisters in Harmony to safely connect with community and reinspire her love of music.
“It’s been the perfect time for lessons. I had to learn about stepping back from the momentum I had before the pandemic,” she says. “I had to really re ect on what I am expecting from this music career. Is it healthy and reasonable or am I setting myself up to be disappointed? is is what it’s going to look like in this era so I have to be ready for that.”
SATIRICAL INDIE POP BLISS
e enchanting “VABA ESTE” is an eclectic mix of social commentary and re ective poetry cloaked in lo- indie pop. e title comes from the name of her parent’s boat; it mingles Estonian and Latin to signify “free this.”
On the opening track “Boring,” Swanson muses about politics, religion, fame and love over the hushed tones of a Washburn electric guitar on delay.
“I’m so very boring, but I gained a dozen followers this year,” she croons with a understated irony and sideways criticism of her clamoring need to be special.
“I grew up in a generation that is highly individualistic and meritocratic,” she says. “If you’re not exceptional and you’re not specialized, it’s your fault and you’re a failure. I see people with serious mental health issues growing up under a value that you have to be unique.”
With an uncanny lyricism about nothing that evokes the dry wit of Courtney Barnett of Australia, Swanson examines how image, desire and mortality shape modern times.
“My age is always at the co ee shop,” she warbles on the pseudo-innocence of “Pawn Shop.” “We like our brands and we like to be seen. A generation made of icons. e generation of our parent’s dreams. But we don’t bother with our fathers.”
“U.S. values taken to extreme lead to such toxic ways of living,” says Swanson. “ at comes down to me and my people having such crises of selfhood and understanding or place and role in the world. ese are things I like to poke at in my music.”
“Magnolia” is a stripped-down acoustic lullaby reminiscent of cosmic 1960s antiprotest melodies by Melanie and Joni Mitchell.
“Saturday, sleeping for hours,” she sings. “Let out your neurons. Oh, let ‘em play. Play like magnolia owers in acid rain.”
“I’m kind of going for this observer eye,” says Swanson. “I think when it’s too on the nose it doesn’t work. How can I speak candidly and observe the world, but not in a way that’s so obvious?” | ava-music.net
Sean McAlindin is a writer and musician living in Truckee, who loves a secret powder stash just as much as a good jam. You can reach him at entertainment@tahoethisweek.com. Other writings and original music are available at seanmcalindin.com. AUGUST 26 | WEDNESDAY
Live Music
Heavenly Village,
South Lake Tahoe, 12-9 p.m.
AUGUST 27 | THURSDAY
Live Music
Heavenly Village,
South Lake Tahoe, 12-9 p.m. David Beck & Colombe Tresan
Alibi Ale Works - Truckee Public House,
Truckee, 5-7 p.m.
AUGUST 28 | FRIDAY
Live Music
Heavenly Village,
South Lake Tahoe, 12-9 p.m.
Music on the Beach; Virtual Vibes
online, Kings Beach, 6 p.m.
Rustler’s Moon
Gar Woods Lake Tahoe,
Carnelian Bay, 8 p.m. Live Music under the Tent
Bar of America, Truckee, 9 p.m.
AUGUST 29 | SATURDAY
Live Music
Heavenly Village,
South Lake Tahoe, 12-9 p.m.
Live Music under the Tent
Bar of America, Truckee, 9 p.m.
Watch “AVA” sing “Pawn Shop” at TheTahoeWeekly.com
AUGUST 30 | SUNDAY
Live Music
Heavenly Village,
South Lake Tahoe, 12-9 p.m.
Backyard Boogie series (on radio)
KTKE 101.5 – Truckee, Tahoe City, 4-7 p.m.
AUGUST 31 | MONDAY
Live Music
Heavenly Village,
South Lake Tahoe, 12-9 p.m.
Major Motion Pictures · Independent Films Live Music · Dance PerformancesLive Music · Dance Performances
Our pop-up drive-in runs Thursdays-Sundays for the summer.
Drive-In | 8:45 pm The Wedding Singer Aug 27-30 The Blues Brothers Sept. 3-6
EAT&drink
food & libations recipes | delicious events
tasty tidbits
Tahoe City Farmers Market
Commons Beach | Tahoe City | Aug. 27
The Tahoe City Farmers Market is every Thursday from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. until Oct. 8. 8 a.m.-1 p.m. | tahoecityfarmersmarket.com
Incline Village Farmers Market Incline Village Library | Aug. 27
The Incline Village Farmers Market is every Thursday until Sept. 3. 3-6 p.m. | (775) 832-4130, laketahoemarkets.com
Romano’s Certifi ed Farmers Market
Sierra Valley Farms | Beckwourth | Aug. 28
The Farmers Market is every Friday until Sept. 11. 9 a.m.-2 p.m. | sierravalleyfarms.com
Truckee Certifi ed Farmers Market
Truckee River Regional Park | Sept. 1
The Truckee Certifi ed Farmers Market is every Tuesday until Oct. 15. 8 a.m.-1 p.m. | truckeecertifi edfa.wixsite.com
Enjoy the tastes of Tahoe at TheTahoeWeekly.com
El Dorado County Certifi ed Farmer’s Market
American Legion Parking Lot South Lake Tahoe | Sept. 1
Certifi ed Farmer’s Market is held at the American Legion parking lot, on Tuesdays through Oct. 13. There are new procedures due to the coronavirus that line up with the state and county guidelines for outdoor events serving prepared and fresh food. 8 a.m.-1 p.m. Free | eldoradofarmersmarket.com
Frozen summer treats TO BEAT THE HEAT
STORY & PHOTOS BY PRIYA HUTNER
The August sun in the mountains can be extreme, skin glistens from the heat and after an afternoon of playing in the sun, it’s time to cool the body down. Reaching for a frozen cooling treat might help. Ice cream comes to mind, but there are numerous other frozen desserts to consider. e di erences come in the ingredients. Ice cream is made with cream. Gelato, an Italian variation of ice cream, is made with more whole milk and less cream. Sorbet is made with frozen pureed fruit. Sherbet is a fruit-based dessert containing milk, shaved ice and fruit juice poured over crushed ice. Frozen yogurt is made with yogurt.
Making ice cream can be fun, creative and relatively easy. e hardest thing is waiting for it to freeze. e base ingredients include cream, sugar and sometimes sweetened condensed milk. e avor pro les are endless. ere are several ways to make ice cream with or without an ice cream maker. If you don’t have an ice cream maker, the easiest method requires a hand beater or whisk and a shallow glass freezer-safe bowl or pan. No-churn ice cream is easy to make with only three ingredients: whipped cream, sweetened condensed milk and vanilla extract.
Fresh fruit sorbet is even simpler to make. All that is needed are the ingredients, a bit of time and patience. Sorbet is basically a frozen fruit. Many recipes use sugar, but sweet fruit will su ce if you want a lowcalorie healthy version. To make sorbet, use your favorite fruit or combination of fruits and herbs such as raspberry mint or blackberry mango and freeze the fruit in a freezer bag. Once the fruit is frozen, add it to a blender with a dash of lemon juice – sugar, maple syrup or agave is optional — add to a blender and freeze it.
EPIC DESSERT CREATIONS
Having ice cream on hand is an excellent base for an epic dessert creation. My top frozen treats this summer include berry sorbet, ice cream sandwiches, mud pie and frozen peanut butter cups.
Ice cream sandwiches are delicious and easy to make. You can bake cookies or purchase store-bought cookies, large oatmeal or chocolate chip are excellent choices. Layer your favorite ice cream avor between two cookies and freeze until ready to enjoy.
Mud pie is one of my favorite ice cream desserts. It’s smooth, creamy and crunchy and it’s sweet and salty all at the same time. It is not for the faint of heart. It is pure sugar and fat, an outrageous summer treat — and easy to create.
Begin by crushing Oreo cookies or graham crackers with a bit of butter to hold it all together for the crust and press it into a pan. Layer softened vanilla ice cream and co ee ice cream on top of the crust. Drizzle chocolate syrup and/or Nutella and add a few dollops of peanut butter. Add some crushed Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups and broken pretzel bits. Top with another layer of ice cream and swirl on chocolate syrup, Nutella or caramel on top. If you have extra Oreo cookies tuck them around the edges. Everything and anything goes in this creation. Additions and variations are part of the creative process. Consider potato chips, malt balls, frozen cherries or butterscotch.
Once you have layered your dessert, set it in the freezer to harden. is is a family hit. Popsicles, parfaits with whipped cream and berries, chocolate-covered bananas, homemade peanut butter cups and frozen yogurt (a tangy treat) are all delicious and cooling treats to help beat the heat. Almost anything can be frozen, including tiramisu
ICE CREAM FUN & EASY
LEFT: Ice cream sandwiches; RIGHT: Priya Hutner’s Mud Pie.
FRUIT SORBET
and chocolate mousse.
Mud pie is one of my favorite ice cream desserts.
It’s smooth, creamy and crunchy and it’s sweet and salty all at the same time.
It is not for the faint of heart.
It is pure sugar and fat, an outrageous summer treat — and easy to create.
Priya Hutner is a writer, personal chef and workshop facilitator. She is the owner of the Seasoned Sage, which prepares organic artisan meals for dinner parties and events. She also offers in-home cooking classes, parties and local pop up dinners. As a breath meditation teacher and long-time yogi, she facilitates workshops and classes that focus on gaining a deeper awareness of self. Send story ideas to priya@tahoethisweek.com. | (772) 913-0008, pria78@gmail.com, seasonedsage.com
SIMPLE VANILLA ICE CREAM
WITHOUT AN ICE CREAM MAKER From the kitchen of Priya Hutner
2 C heavy whipping cream 1 14 oz. can sweetened condensed milk 1 tsp. pure vanilla extract
Beat whipping cream with a mixer until stiff peaks form.
In a small bowl, mix together the sweetened condensed milk and vanilla extract.
Pour into a freezer proof glass container and freeze 4 to 6 hours.
EASY RASPBERRY MINT SORBET
From the kitchen of Priya Hutner
1 C raspberries, washed & frozen ¼ C sugar A dash of lemon juice ¼ C fresh mint
A TOUR OF South Africa wines
STORY BY LOU PHILLIPS
ith all that is going on in these most unique days, what better time for W a mental vacation. Since we all have unlimited travel points in the world of the imagination, we can go as far as we want. Being a wine fanatic, I’m thinking we head o to lesser-known wine regions the world over.
So jump on your magic carpet and buckle up for the ride. First stop: South Africa where like California the best wine regions are near the coast — in this case near the Southern Cape.
Interestingly when wine curriculum is taught, South Africa is included in the New-World category, in spite of the fact wine production there began in the 1600s. is is pertinent not just for historical accuracy, but also because the producers here focus on classic varietals and the wines are usually more restrained and earthy than what we nd in New-World o erings. South African values: Bloem and Secateurs wines. e main wine regions by the Southern Cape region have a variety of topographies, geologies and climates. Climate is greatly in uenced by a cool-water current from Antarctica that winemakers call the Cape Doctor. In addition, the long history of the industry here has allowed producers to match the correct grapes with the best area in which to grow them.
A good place to start is with South Africa’s signature grape, Pinotage, which is a cross between Pinot Noir and Cinsault. ese unique reds have not caught on elsewhere; maybe deservedly they are an acquired taste, but for the adventurous, they are worth a shot.
On the white-wine front, Chenin Blanc is a South African favorite, and most are zippy and energetic, although richer versions are also available. Whites from Rhone grapes are also a strength and feature blends of Viognier, Marsanne and Roussanne. ese are typically a little lighter on their feet than their French counterparts. Sauvignon Blancs are another strong suit and are stylistically similar to Kiwi versions. All of these bene t from the cooling in uence of the Cape Doctor and are good food matches.
Bordeaux Blends South Africa’s Strength (2015 Rupert & Rothschild)
Reds made from Cabernet and Merlot are the closest thing I know to a cross between quality Bordeaux and Napa versions. ey are structured and earthy with some generous fruit. More mountainous coastal areas make for wonderful Rhonestyle reds; a varietal that does especially well is Cinsault, as well as Syrah and Grenache. Value versions are ripe and full of dark fruits and the higher end of this type are more in the vein of actual Rhone wines with game and minerality notes
and are meant to age.
A good place to start is with South Africa’s signature grape, Pinotage, which is a cross between Pinot Noir and Cinsault.
As with any new region you are exploring, ask your local purveyor for suggestions.
Explore more wines with Lou at TheTahoeWeekly.com
Lou Phillips is a Level 3 Advanced Sommelier in Tahoe and his consulting business wineprowest.com assists in the selling, buying and managing wine collections. He may be reached at (775) 544-3435 or wineguru123@gmail.com.
Kings Beach
Full Service on Patio & Takeout orders 12:00pm-8:00pm Full Bar
(530) 546-4539 8345 North Lake Blvd. - Across from the State Beach in Kings Beach
FOR TAKE OUT OR DINE IN, SEE MENUS BELOW
BRUNCH & LUNCH WINE LIST DINNER
Plenty of Outdoor Seating
Spindleshankstahoe.com | 400 Brassie Ave, Suite B · Kings Beach | (530) 546.2191
Famous for our Mexican Dinners
(530) 587-3557 10186 Donner Pass Rd - Truckee
Feed Your Neighbor Giving Boxes
Tahoe Food Hub announces the expansion of its Feed Your Neighbor program. Giving Boxes fi lled with local, seasonal, sustainably grown fruits and vegetables are available to those affected by Covid-19, those experiencing fi nancial hardships and/ or those participating in Tahoe Truckee Unifi ed School District’s food pantry and Placer County’s Head Start programs. For a free weekly box, visit Tahoe Food Hub’s website and click on the Giving Box sign-up link. For questions or more information on how to sign-up, email Marissa Yakaitis at marrisa@ tahoefoodhub.org. F R O M C H E F S M I T T Y ’ S K I T C H E N Honey-Ginger Glazed Ribs
BY CHEF DAVID “SMITTY” SMITH
Sierra Community House Food Distribution
We’re delivering perishable food bags weekly
in Truckee & North Lake Tahoe. Local businesses, organizations or individuals can donate or learn more also by visiting the website. In addition, supporters of Tahoe Food Hub’s online farmers market, Harvest to Order, can donate to the Giving Box fund when placing an order.
Delivery staff and volunteers are following best practices and wearing masks. Please follow social distancing and NOT interact.
To sign-up or cancel, e-mail food@sierracommunityhouse.org or call 775-545-4083; Provide full name, address, phone number, birthdate and number of people in the household.
Fine Italian Food & Spirits
Locals Love Lanza’s!
The Feed Your Neighbor program was designed to provide equal access to fresh, seasonal, sustainably grown food for community members facing food insecurity. Since April 1, more than 2,500 Giving Boxes have been distributed and $60,000 raised by the community for the Feed Your Neighbor program. | tahoefoodhub.com
Brewforia closes
The popular Incline Village, Nev., restaurant and brew pub Brewforia closed earlier this month.
“We were not able to come to agreeable terms on a new lease at Brewforia so at the end of August we will be closing,” it was announced on its Facebook page on July 31. “ … Our hope is we fi nd a new location and can continue with our mission of bringing great food and drink to the people we call our neighbors. Currently, no other spaces are available, but we continue to look.” eekend cookouts can range from hot dogs and hamburgers, to chickW en, grilled veggies, steaks or ribs. e possibilities are endless. Now when I was a kid, it was pretty much always burgers and dogs. I honestly don’t remember ever having ribs — I mean, ever. I think I might have had my rst ribs sometime in my 20s.
Try Smitty’s tips for cooking ribs at TheTahoeWeekly.com
is was probably because ribs can take a lot of cooking time, especially if you use only the grill. My parents were always too busy to spend that kind of time on dinner. is method of cooking the ribs will shorten the grilling time and still give you a great end result. You also can do the entire cooking process in the oven if you don’t have a grill, but still want the barbecue menu. Have a great weekend cookout and enjoy some ribs. This method of cooking the ribs will shorten the grilling time and still give you a great end result.
David “Smitty” Smith is a personal chef specializing in dinner parties, cooking classes and special events. Trained under Master Chef Anton Flory at Top Notch Resort in Stowe, Vt., Smitty is known for his creative use of fresh ingredients. Contact him at (530) 412-3598 or tmmsmitty@gmail.com.
(530) 546-2434 Sister restaurant Bertie’s Hot Chicken
BAR - 4:30 p.m. DINNER - 5 p.m. in Incline Village is still open. | Brewforia HONEY-GINGER GLAZED RIBS 7739 N Lake Blvd - Kings Beach on Facebook From the kitchen of: Chef David “Smitty” Smith LanzasTahoe.com Sunday through Thursday not valid with any other offer | Expires May 22, 2019 6 lbs. baby-back pork ribs, cut into two-rib portions (3-4 racks) 2 C water Lakeview Deck and Patio ½ C orange juice ¾ C brown sugar 2 T cornstarch Open for Dining 2 cloves garlic, minced 1 T ground ginger 1 t Dijon ½ C honey ¼ C soy sauce Salt and pepper
Season the ribs with a salt and pepper and place bone-side down in a roasting pan with 1 cup of water. Cover tightly and bake at 350 degrees F for an hour and half to two hours. Mix the other cup of water with the rest of the ingredients in a bowl while the ribs are cooking. Remove the ribs and drain the pan. Bring the glaze to a boil so it will thicken. Grill the ribs over indirect heat or low heat for about 45 minutes to an hour; pour glaze over them every 10 to 15 minutes.
If you are going to use the oven and not a grill, return the ribs bone-side down to the pan and pour half the liquid mix over the ribs; put back in the oven uncovered. Bring the other half of the glaze to a boil to allow it to thicken; pour some over the ribs every 10 to 15 minutes. Cook for about an hour.
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SEAN MCALINDIN NEARS THE SUMMIT WHILE SEARCHING FOR THE ELUSIVE EMERALD CHUTE.
Sean McAlindin
TEACHER, MUSICIAN AND TAHOE WEEKLY ENTERTAINMENT EDITOR & FEATURE WRITER TRUCKEE RESIDENT
“ Writing for Tahoe Weekly means sharing with our readers all this amazing region has to offer in terms of community, outdoors, music, arts and culture. As Entertainment Editor, I get to shine a spotlight on both brilliant local artists and national touring acts who visit our excellent venues. Our Get Outside section has led me on many a memorable adventure I otherwise would’ve never have experienced. Tahoe Weekly is everything that makes the Tahoe Sierra special in one place and I’m honored to be a part of this dedicated, caring and talented team.”
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