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Al Tahoe Tour
TheTahoeWeekly.com
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Al Tahoe Historic Tour
At South Lake Tahoe, most visitors and even many locals, xate on the Stateline district with its massive casinos and 24-hour lifestyle. But tucked away, not too far from the bustling crowds and ashing lights is a quiet historic neighborhood known as Al Tahoe. is compact residential community is bound by the Upper Truckee Marsh ecosystem on the west, Lake Tahoe to the north and Highway 50 on the south and east as the road curves around the sprawling Upper Truckee River wetlands.
STORY & PHOTOS BY MARK M c LAUGHLIN
Download the Al Tahoe History Hunt map at TheTahoeWeekly.com
is area is the site of Lake Tahoe’s rst lakeshore hotel, built in 1859, initially named the Lake Bigler House. e owners were counting on wagon and stage tra c from the nearby Johnson Pass emigrant road. ey also erroneously believed that the route of the upcoming transcontinental railroad (constructed between 1863 and 1869) would go through Lake Valley. Instead, Central Paci c Railroad laid track over Donner Pass, far to the north. South Shore’s hostelry business for travelers and teamsters would become well-established over the next few decades. In the mid1860s, when the bulk of trans-Sierra tra c switched to either the railroad or the Dutch Flat Donner Lake Wagon
Al Tahoe Pioneer Cemetery.
Road to reach the prosperous Comstock mines of Virginia City, Nev., the hotels and lodging houses at South Lake began to rely more on loggers, cattlemen, commercial shermen and the ever-increasing summer in ux of tourism.
In 1907, Almerin (Al) Sprague built the Al Tahoe Hotel and thereafter the name was applied to that location. Lumber for construction was barged in by boat and the Al Tahoe post o ce was opened the following year. e facility expanded over time to include a three-story modern hotel with cottages, cabins and housekeeping tents all adjacent to a nice stretch of sandy beach. Free activities and amenities included trout shing excursions, horseback riding and sightseeing tours by car or boat. Tennis courts, billiard tables and even a swimming pool were also available for guests. Sprague fed his visitors well with
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ABOVE: Regan Beach. LEFT: Upper Truckee River wetlands.
The original building of the Al Tahoe Hotel.
fresh vegetables, meat and poultry from the manager’s ranch and dairy.
Frank and Esther Globin purchased the property and operations in 1924. It was the restless and energetic Roaring Twenties so the Globin’s installed a large dance pavilion over the water and called it Globin’s Chalet. During the warm summer months, popular bands of the era played music into the wee hours of the night. e Globin’s ran the hotel until 1965 when it was torn down — as were other historic South Tahoe resorts, due to the expense of installing newly required sewage systems.
Like most of Lake Tahoe’s pre-war architecture, virtually all of the large historic buildings located in the Al Tahoe area are gone, victims of neglect, vandalism, re, costs of modernization or heavy snow loads. But that doesn’t mean that residents and visitors today can’t experience Tahoe’s exciting and colorful past. Lake Tahoe Photo Credit | Photographer? Historical Society is in the process of creating historic walking or auto tours in the region. e Al Tahoe History Hunt is the rst product to come out of this worthwhile e ort by the devoted sta at the society. Strategically placed about the Al Tahoe neighborhood are 10 blue, turquoise and white signs that represent an important historic site. To facilitate the learning process, each sign is labeled with a QR code than can be scanned with a smart phone to learn the signi cance of that location. A Washoe Indian campsite, traces of old wagon roads, the original locations of popular hotels and gravestones in a pioneer cemetery are all part of the hunt for history. On the society website is a map of the Al Tahoe district that can be viewed by phone or printed out in advance. Paper maps and exhibits are available at the society’s museum located at 3058 Lake Tahoe Boulevard.
For my exploration on the Al Tahoe History Hunt, I brought my bicycle to cover more ground in a timely manner while during the same afternoon pedaling the extensive trail system throughout the Truckee River Marsh area with its quiet paths, hidden beaches and spectacular views of Mount Tallac and the Sierra crest. ese wetlands are home to rich native sh and bird habitats. e Upper Truckee Marsh is currently being restored by the California Tahoe Conservancy to stabilize and improve the complex and unique ecology of this important environment that lters and cleans river water entering Lake Tahoe. e restoration of 250 acres of oodplain will also make it more resilient to drought, ood, and impacts from climate change. | laketahoemuseum.org
Bike racks installed
The nonprofi t Lake Tahoe Bicycle Coalition has installed another 100 bike racks in high-priority spots near town centers and one public bike-repair station offering parking for 200 bikes. In total, the coalition and Tahoe Fund have teamed up to provide access to 450 bike racks since 2018.
The bike racks were installed at 31 locations in South Lake Tahoe, Kings Beach, Tahoe City and Incline Village, Nev. Each of the two styles of racks provided can park two bicycles.
This year, a fi x-it station and bike rack was installed in memory of the late Pam Emmerich, a long-time resident, community advocate and champion of bicycling. An interactive map of existing rack locations can be found online. | tahoebike.org
Christmas tree permits on sale
Christmas tree permits for National Forest lands will be available for purchase online this year. Details about designated cutting areas, dates and types of trees that may be cut can be found on the recreation.gov website.
The Forest Service decided to offer permit sales online as an added convenience for visitors, as well as provide an alternative to in-person transactions at offi ces that may remain closed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Permits cost $10 each, plus a $2.50 online processing fee with a limit of one per family. Cutting under these permits is allowed until Dec. 31. Permit holders should follow permit guidelines for responsible collection, including not trespassing onto private property when entering or leaving National Forest cutting areas. Observe seasonal road closures and be prepared to hike to the cutting area to fi nd a tree. No off-road travel is allowed. Weather permitting, some National Forest roads will remain open to improve access to cutting areas. | recreation.gov
