Lake Tahoe F’Sho!

I’ve found my new vacation spot.

A few weeks ago, my buddy Chance was showing me a video of his recent trip to Lake Tahoe, and I thought he had accidentally opened up a video from a trip to the Caribbean.

I can’t believe I’ve never seen/been to this place before. A crystal-clear body of water surrounded by sandy beaches…in Northern California?? I think this place qualifies to be one of the wonders of the world.

I got in town Friday afternoon and met up with Jay Reilly, who I’d be shooting a wedding with today. The wedding was awesome (will post pictures soon) and this town has made me want to make it one of my annual vacation spots – if not in the summer, the winter should do ‘just fine’ too.

As soon as I stepped out of my little powerhouse of a rental car, the smell of the trees reminded me of the crisp air of Colorado. The feeling was so serene, and the air so fresh it was like my lungs felt like they were getting cleansed every time I took a breath.

Jay and I grabbed a bit at a local cabin-styled pizza restaurant, and the food was so good we accidentally overloaded on slices & didn’t have room for sushi later on when we met up with coordinator Merrily Rocco. A few locals tried to convince us the party was raging over near King’s beach (I wouldn’t doubt it with a name like that), but we were planning on getting an early start in the morning so we crashed out pretty early on.

In the morning, we headed out to an area called Sand Harbor which was known as the “beach” of Lake Tahoe. I have to say – it was amazing. The water was clear as glass and the beaches were scattered with pine-cones. I’ve never really seen that combination before, so it was pretty cool to see that kind of beach/forest mixture going on.

I went kayaking and couldn’t believe how far down I was able to see. Apparently the lake was formed from a melted glacier, which gives it the clear appearance. It’s 1600 ft deep with 75ft visability on good days. The only downside is…

THE WATER IS FREEZING COLD.

I heard that the warmest the water gets is in the low 60’s, which is a cold day in San Diego terms. My friend Chance told me I had to do the “Tahoe plunge” while I was there – which entailed running off a dock and jumping into the lake as soon as you get up in the morning.

While I was eating breakfast, I overheard the news saying the water was a nice 40 degrees this morning…don’t think that’s happening!

Made for some great kayaking though. Check out the pics!