California’s first maritime heritage underwater trail opens at Emerald Bay

LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - Emerald Bay was officially designated as an underwater park in 1994, and starting October 1, the public will be able to experience California’s first maritime heritage underwater trail devoted to showcasing Lake Tahoe’s historic recreational watercraft and barges, that now rest below the surface of Emerald Bay.

Scuba and snorkel diving visitors will be able to explore an underwater “trail” of historic features at several sites along the shoreline of Emerald Bay State Park, Lake Tahoe. Currently, divers have access to the Historic Barge Dive Site established by California State Parks in 1998. The department has never publicly released the location and information about three additional sites highlighted in this underwater trail until now.

Underwater interpretative panels have been placed at four dive sites in Emerald Bay. Waterproof interpretive cards created for divers will be available at the park’s visitor centers, local dive shops, online here and on the Sierra State Parks Foundation’s website. These panels and interpretive cards were made possible by the generous support of the Sierra State Parks Foundation.

Along this trail divers will see the underwater boats and barges sunken in Emerald Bay, including the boats belonging to the old Emerald Bay Resort. This is the largest American collection of sunken watercraft in their original location. There are four dive sites in the bay as part of the trail, with 12 boats and four barges to explore. The sites are labeled with waterproof historical markers.