Cultural Side of Lake Tahoe - Gold Country Families E-Magazine

THE CULTURAL SIDE OF LAKE TAHOE

By Pettit Gilwee

Whether you want to step back in time or immerse yourself in the Sierra Nevada art scene, North Lake Tahoe offers an abundance of opportunities to experience the cultural side of mountain life.

With 75 percent of U.S. adult travelers (109.8 million people) attending a cultural activity or event while on a trip in the past year (according to the Historic/Cultural Traveler), events such as the Lake Tahoe Shakespeare Festival continue to be a success. The Bard returns to the lake each July and August with new performances. In true Tahoe style, the performances are played out on the shores of Sand Harbor outside Incline Village.

The sounds of the Lake Tahoe Music Festival continue to reverberate through the mountains in July and August. Performances include the likes of the Reno Philharmonic Orchestra, Grammy-award-winning singers, Broadway stars, and ever-popular bands, pianists, and jazz vocalists. Homewood Mountain Resort in Homewood and Tahoe Donner and West End Beach at Donner Lake in Truckee serve as the breathtaking backdrops for the concerts.

Typically in July, Artour allows visitors to glimpse Tahoe-area artists in their element. Guests will be able to meet and mingle with dozens of Sierra Nevada artists and learn about a variety of mediums and styles, as well as buy works. The free event normally kicks off with an opening reception at the Art Center in Tahoe City. The center, located at 380 North Lake Boulevard, is open year-round and houses two galleries overlooking Lake Tahoe.

Historical places and museums are also popular attractions, with 58 percent of travelers including a historic activity or event on a trip during the past year (Historic/Cultural Traveler). On the museum front, the 5,800-square-foot Maritime Museum facility in Homewood is opened late May with interactive exhibits, children’s visiting area and community gathering area. The museum, reminiscent of an old boathouse, showcases the history of boating in Lake Tahoe. Several historical watercraft, including the Shanghai, an 1890s excursion, and Redskin, a rare 1912 Canadian-built displacement boat, are on display.

For insight into Old Tahoe, the Gatekeeper’s Museum in Tahoe City is a replica of a cabin built in the early 1900s and served as home to the resident gatekeeper who was responsible for measuring and regulating the lake’s water levels. The museum houses Native American artifacts, natural history displays, stories of Sierra-Tahoe pioneers and a 1916 Lake Tahoe Shoreline Photographic Survey, as well as the Marion Steinbach Indian Basket Collection. The collection includes 800 rare and diverse baskets, dolls and artifacts from 85 tribes from the Great Plains to Alaska, including local Washoe and Paiute tribes.
The annual Native American Basketweaver’s Market (typically in September) features demonstrations and exhibits of basketry by California and Nevada weavers.

To get a feel for North Lake Tahoe’s more opulent early years, visitors can head to the Ehrman Mansion

and Vikingsholm, two “rustic retreats” on the West Shore. Ehrman Mansion, also known as Pine Lodge, was built as a summer home in 1903. One of the lake’s original vacation homes, the lodge featured extravagant facilities for guests of the Ehrman Family, as well as more than 30 servants. The mansion is located in Sugar Pine Point State Park. Sitting majestically at the head of Emerald Bay is Vikingsholm. Completed in 1929, the estate is considered to be one of the finest examples of Scandinavian architecture in the U.S. Both homes are open daily for tours throughout the summer.

An even grander home not to be missed, is the Thunderbird Lodge on the East Shore, outside Incline Village. Considered a summer cottage by owner George Whittell, the home represents a high level of expertise in building crafts, stone masonry, ironwork and woodwork. In addition to the main house, the estate encompasses a card house, caretaker’s cottage, butler’s house, elephant garage, admiral’s house, gatehouse and boathouse with 600-foot adjoining tunnel. The boathouse houses the renowned Thunderbird, a sleek 55-foot wooden speedboat.

Tahoe wouldn’t be Tahoe if a little skiing and snow sport didn’t weave itself into the area’s cultural fabric. Regardless of the weather outside, The Olympic Museum, located at Squaw Valley U.S.A.’s High Camp in Olympic Valley features information about the 1960 Winter Olympics with a unique collection of memorabilia, news articles and video presentations. Guests will probably be surprised to learn that at the time the Olympic Committee selected Squaw as home of the winter games, it was merely a ski resort with one chairlift, two rope tows and a 50-room lodge.

North Lake Tahoe is a 45-minute drive from the Reno Tahoe International Airport, two hours from Sacramento International Airport and just over three hours from San Francisco International Airport. For lodging reservations, recreation and event details, call North Lake Tahoe at 1-877-949-3296 or visit http://www.GoTahoeNorth.com.

Visitor information centers are located at 380 North Lake Boulevard in Tahoe City and 969 Tahoe Boulevard in Incline Village. The North Lake Tahoe Visitors Bureaus, Incline Village Crystal Bay Visitors Bureau and the North Lake Tahoe Resort Association, work together to promote North Lake Tahoe as a premier, year-round destination.