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Featuring some of the biggest names in skiing and snowboarding, the inaugural Tahoe Backcountry Awareness Week will culminate with the Athlete Summit on Thursday, December 17. The free virtual event, designed to encourage those planning to venture into the backcountry to educate themselves before doing so, will take place from 7:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. with a live Q&A period with Michelle Parker, Jeremy Jones, Elyse Saugstad, Cody Townsend and Amie Engerbretson.

With California off to a dry start for the water year, the California Department of Water Resources (DWR) announced Tuesday an initial State Water Project (SWP) allocation of 10 percent of requested supplies for the 2021 water year.

Initial allocations are based on conservative assumptions regarding hydrology and factors such as reservoir storage. Allocations are reviewed monthly and may change based on snowpack and runoff information. They are typically finalized by May.


LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - Local Vail resorts took advantage of the season's first cold spell and turned on their snowmaking machines at both Heavenly and Northstar at Lake Tahoe.

They will be working on a solid base for the upcoming 2020-21 winter season as long as the dry, old air continues.

Both of these resorts will be opening on November 20 while Kirkwood is aiming to open on December 4. Kirkwood's systems are set to kick in later this week, conditions permitting.

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - A new Forestry Education and Job Placement program is heading to Lake Tahoe Community College (LTCC) in South Lake Tahoe.

To get things started, the California Tahoe Conservancy Board awarded the college a $351,000 grant and $480,000 was received from CAL Fire’s Forest Health Grant Program. LTCC has hired Kim Carr as their contracted consultant on the project and she helped write the grants and secure funding for the new avenue of education in South Lake Tahoe. She is bringing 30 years of forestry and environmental experience to the college.

South Tahoe Now reached out to all nine candidates for South Lake Tahoe City Council and provided the same list of questions to each one of them. Once a day their answers will be published in the order received.

Today's candidate is John Friedrich

Profession: Founder and Director, Tahoe Green Jobs Initiative

How many years in SLT: 15

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - The community is invited to a webinar to review the City of South Lake Tahoe's draft Climate Action Plan (CAP) on Wednesday, September 9 from 5:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m.

The City has completed its draft CAP and is in the midst of the public review period. This CAP is critical for reducing emissions in the region and will also provide benefits to the community through supporting local economic development, improving wildfire resilience, reducing air pollution, improving traffic conditions, and improving public health and quality of life.

LAKE TAHOE, Calif./Nev. - The resiliency of Lake Tahoe was the focus of the 24th annual Lake Tahoe Summit Tuesday, held virtually instead of on the shores of the pristine lake in the Sierra Nevada many call home and even thousands more visit.

By motor or by paddle, the experience of boating on Lake Tahoe is like none other. Hovering over its crystal clear shallows and unfathomable depths inspires awe, and the surrounding mountains and forests combine for a breathtaking experience. Given this, it is understandable that boating is both a major part of Tahoe’s culture and its regional economy.

If the 4th of July weekend is any indication, Tahoe is under pressure. As coronavirus cases grow nearly everywhere, people naturally look to the mountains, fresh air, and clear water of Tahoe as a respite. Now residents and visitors alike are struggling to adjust to the confusion around re-opening, and visitation that is normally our lifeblood is suddenly a health risk.

South Lake Tahoe artist Gina Stowell will be leading a watercolor series for the Sierra Nevada Alliance that will explore how to draw and watercolor paint the beautiful landscapes, migrating songbirds, and wildflowers of the Sierra Nevada.

This will be done virtually so open to anyone who signs up.

This will be a series of three 90-minute classes held once a week. Participants can either sign up for one class or the series of three classes. Each class costs $20 and the series of three classes is $50.

All proceeds will support the Sierra Nevada Alliance’s work.

LAKE TAHOE, Calif./Nev. - Tahoe Douglas Fire Protection District (TDFPD) and California State Parks will conduct understory burns at Lake Tahoe in the coming days.

TDFPD is planning on burning in Glenbrook on May 12 and in Zephyr Cove on May 20, 2020. State Paks is planning on burning at Sugar Pine Point State Park on the West Shore on May 11 and May 18. Both are weather permitting and smoke be visible.

Glenbrook - Burn Type: Hand Piles, Total Acreage: 3.00
Zephyr Cove - Warrior Way, Burn Type: Understory, Total Acreage: 2.00

LAKE TAHOE, Calif./Nev. – The Tahoe Fire and Fuels Team (TFFT) has resumed prescribed fire operations in the Tahoe Basin. California State Parks is currently conducting operations at Burton Creek State Park on Tahoe’s northwest shore and will continue over the next three weeks, weather permitting. Smoke may be visible. View map with project locations/details at https://www.tahoelivingwithfire.com/get-informed/ and sign-up for prescribed fire notifications by sending an email to pa_ltbmu@fs.fed.us.

Operation information:

What is being burned - Seven acres of hand piles

LAKE TAHOE, Calif./Nev. - There will be no Earth Day Celebration festivals around the lake this year, but Lake Tahoe and Truckee event organizers have created a virtual version with daily activities for the whole family.

Despite the current global situation, everyone can still celebrate the 50th Anniversary of Earth Day thanks to the team at The Tahoe Fund spearheaded a group via their Take Care program that has provided daily activities and challenges for students and parents to participate in over the course of the week.

Many residents of South Lake Tahoe felt it, did you? At 7:37 a.m. Saturday, April 11, a 5.2 magnitude earthquake hit 15 miles east of Mono Lake near the California/Nevada border.

Mono Lake is 108 miles SSE of Lake Tahoe.

Since that time there have been at least 20 aftershocks, including two that measured 3.6 and a 4.7.

There are seismically active faults in that area including the Sierra Nevada Fault, and the Owens Valley and Lone Pine faults.

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - A Winter Storm Warning is in place for the Lake Tahoe Basin until noon on Monday, April 6. At 10:00 a.m. Sunday, the National Weather Service (NWS) in Reno said to expect heavy snow with additional snow accumulations of 8 to 16 inches, except 1 to 3 feet above 7000 feet. Winds could gust as high as 45 mph in the lower elevations and up to 90 mph over Sierra ridges.

LAKE TAHOE, Calif./Nev. - The Tahoe Fire and Fuels Team (TFFT), which includes local, state and federal land management agencies, will continue prescribed fire operations in the Tahoe Basin over the next several weeks, weather permitting. Smoke may be visible.

Aspen 1011 - USDA Forest Service - Location: Off Pioneer and Marshall trails near South Lake Tahoe. Burn Type: Hand Piles. Total Acreage: 10.00. Planned Ignition: 02/28/2020

Twin Peaks 1091 - USDA Forest Service - Location: Near corner of Pawnee Drive and Iroquois Circle, Meyers, CA. Burn Type: Hand Piles. Total Acreage: 30.00.

LAKE TAHOE, Calif. – The monthly manual survey of the snowpack at Phillips Station, just west of Lake Tahoe, revealed data that won't catch many by surprise. There is 29 inches of snow with a snow water equivalent (SWE) of 11.5 inches at the location near US50 and Sierra-at-Tahoe Road. This is 47 percent of the March average at this spot.

The SWE measures the amount of water contained in the snowpack, which provides a more accurate forecast of spring runoff.

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - It isn't news to those who live in or frequent the Lake Tahoe region, the area has been experiencing very dry conditions this winter. Even though dry, it is not bad enough yet to put Tahoe into a drought category. The Drought Monitor released this week by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) places 45 percent of the country in the D0-D4 categories, or abnormally dry to exceptional drought. This is a big change from 2018-19. At that time Lake Tahoe had well above average snow, but 62.6 percent of the U.S. fell into the Do-D4 categories.

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - Vail Resorts EpicPromise has selected 76 local nonprofits in the Lake Tahoe area to receive one of their 2019-20 community grants, totaling $2.8 million in grant support.

Heavenly Mountain Resort and Kirkwood recently held a breakfast to honor the recipients. The followed with a similar celebration at Northstar, the third area Vail resort.

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - The California Department of Water Resources (DWR) conducted the second manual snow survey of the season at Phillips Station Thursday, and they found 40.5 inches of snow depth and snow water equivalent (SWE) of 14.5 inches. The snowpack at this location is 79 percent of the February average, with the rest of the state measuring in at 73 percent of average.

The Phillips Station total is 58 percent of the seasonal average.

"It's decent but below average," said Sean de Guzman, chief of DWR’s Snow Surveys and Water Supply Forecasting Section.

Book Launch. Tahoe author Jennifer Quashnick returns to introduce us to the fourth novel from her Mountaingirl Mysteries series, "Sierra Nevada Burning Revenge", which continues the adventures of Tahoe local Rachel Winters and her two dogs, Bella and Avi. In this adventure, Rachel's life is in danger. After a well-timed visitor interrupts a brutal attack, Rachel and her dogs are forced into hiding.

Location

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - The California Department of Water Resources (DWR) conducted the first manual snow survey of the season at Phillips Station Thursday, and they found 33.5 inches of snow depth and a snow water equivalent of 11 inches. The snowpack at this location is 97 percent of average, with the Sierra as a whole at 90 percent of average.

The UC Davis Tahoe Environmental Research Center (TERC), together with support from community partners, will host the 4th annual Science of Cocktails with proceeds directly supporting the UC Davis Tahoe Science Center and innovative science education programs.

Shake things up at the UC Davis Tahoe Science Center on Friday, January 31, 2020, from 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. when they hold "The Science of Cocktails," a unique evening event where mixology and science meet.

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - This year's Turkey Trot and Gobble Wobble were once again successful, this time raising almost $4,000 for the Tahoe Coalition for the Homeless (TCH).

The City of South Lake Tahoe and TCH were cosponsors of the event and are thanking the community for their support.

“This event just keeps getting better and better and that is thanks in large part to the community support,” said Recreation Superintendent Lauren Thomaselli. “This year's Turkey Trot was one of the best we’ve had and all raised money and donations for some very worthy causes.”