In Truckee and Lake Tahoe, spring is a special time of year. The spirit of locals and visitors alike is filled with excitement as we close the door on winter and spring into the next season with fresh adventure and imagination. The landscape changes overnight, days are longer, daytime temperatures warmer, and the forests start becoming drastically green. In the high alpine, snow holds yet slowly melts into local tributaries. During the day, the warm temperatures cause the snow to soften as it melts, then it freezes overnight. The next morning after this freeze, the snow melts into a deep-slushy “corn” like consistency; thus, making for amazing skiing and snowboarding conditions. This is known as a “melt-freeze snow cycle.” The particular snow cycle allows for “dual-days,” where one skis or snowboards at one of the local resorts on classic corn snow—wearing a T-shirt and sunglasses, followed by a bike ride, beach day, or round of golf during late afternoon hours.
For more information over Hidden Beach, Sand Harbor, and Kings Beach, please see our Summer Beach page or contact the front desk.
Most of the mountain bike trails aren’t melted out during spring. However, one can still take a cruiser-bike ride along the East Shore Trail to take in the pristine clear waters of Lake Tahoe, or along the Truckee River via the Legacy Trail. The river during spring months is laden with rapids and white water, which along with the numerous wildflowers and awakening forests, create quite the tranquil environment. Those wanting more of a wilderness setting that requires some sort of a mountain bike can check out the Martis Creek Wildlife Area; The trails are flat yet very scenic.
For more information over the East Shore Trail, Legacy Trail, and Martis Creek Wildlife Area, please contact the front desk or check out our Summer Long Hike and Short Hike pages.