Lake Tahoe - hiking trip.
Since the cottage we rented in San Anselmo came to an end and we are still waiting for Carmen's passport to return from the British Embassy in Washington, D.C., we went to Tahoe for a week or so. The weather was perfect, maybe a little hot and we were able to complete several hikes (walks). It's also an excellent location for rock-climbing but I forgot to bring the necessary gear.
View Peter Grubb Hut in a larger map
(Map showing trail to Peter Grubb Hut)
The first walk we did was to the Peter Grubb Hut which we had tried to find many times on cross-country skis in the winter, without success. It proved to be a lot further off than we thought and it was probably just as well we never made it. The boys coped well with the 4 miles distance and about 1200 feet of elevation change. (800 there and 400 on the way back), although Ethan had a few breakdowns that were cured with the promise of food.
View Five Lakes Trail in a larger map
(Map showing Five Lakes trail)
The second walk we did was called the Five Lakes Trail in Alpine Meadows and involved about 900 feet of elevation and five miles walk in each direction. We started out late so were exposed to the hot sun during the middle and most difficult section of the walk. The water we brought soon disappeared, but luckily the opportunity to cool down with a swim in the lake drove us on. We spent enough time there that by the time we returned, the temperature had cooled considerably.
We also did some smaller walks around the PSC hut. One to the reservoir and the tiny lake with small catfish. On the way back we bumped into a Rock Crawler 4x4 competition which was a new experience and quite entertaining to watch, especially when the cars rolled, which seems to be quite often. We also walked a very small part of the Lake Tahoe Rim trail and promised to come back and complete more of it at a future date (Toby's name is written on it).
Donner Lake has an excellent playground on the west side and we spent an afternoon there, renting a cycling boat and swimming in the cold water.
I brought my mountain bike to do the Flume Trail, but my biking partner had a freak unmentionable occurrence and was unable to make it.