summit

California State Parks and the U.S. Forest Service may continue prescribed fire operations on Monday, January 26, 2015. Operations may take place near Tahoe City on Highway 28 between Rocky Ridge and Lake Forest, near Emerald Bay at Eagle Point Campground, the Boat Camp and behind Vikingsholm, Gardner Mountain near South Tahoe High School, Luther Pass near Grass Lake, Ski Run Boulevard near Heavenly, and on the East Shore near Logan Creek Drive and the north side of Spooner Summit. Operations will last through the next several weeks as conditions allow.

Lake of the Sky Outfitters kicks off the 2015 Movie Night season with the film "K2:Siren of the Himalayas". This remarkable and exciting movie explores the history and geography of K2 the second highest and most difficult to climb mountain on the planet. Located in the heart of the Karakoram mountain range it is one big, bad mountain. One out of every four who make it to the summit does not return home.

Free admission and free raffle.

Limited seating/ please RSVP to 541-1027.

Lake of the Sky Outfitters is located at 1023 Emerald Bay Road, South Lake Tahoe, CA .

Location

El Dorado County Sheriff's Office responds to calls throughout the county.
The following are calls that only pertain to the South Shore. There may be some missing calls due to sheriff's logs not being completed at press time and the story will be updated when provided.

12/27

If you have driven anywhere in South Lake Tahoe this week, you'll know that droves of visitors have decided to come to town for the holidays. With both Christmas and New Years Day on a Thursday many have made their visit a four or five-day long weekend.

Highway 50 from Meyers to Camino has seen heavy traffic in both directions. According to travelers, Sno-Parks at Strawberry and near Echo Summit caused traffic to come to a halt as far away as Kyburz as dozens of cars lining both sides of the highway.

Just in time for one of the busiest ski and snowboard weeks of the year, Kirkwood announced they will be opening the backside on Tuesday, December 23 at 9 a.m. This means that 100% of their terrain will be open for skiers and riders.

Kirkwood will now offer 2300 acres of terrain, 81 runs, 36 groomed, 1 park and 4 open bowls.

So far this year the resort just south of Lake Tahoe has received 99" of snow at the summit (9.900 ft) and 63" at their 7,800 ft base.

Tuesday's high is forecast to be 43 with a low of 31 and there will be sunny skies.

There were several reports of visible smoke Thursday in areas around recent Lake Tahoe controlled burns, and there was more concern with the high winds.

The Forest Service has crews monitoring the locations, especially those near Spooner Summit and Sawmill Road.

At this time there are no burns out of control and with the expected rain and snow Thursday night and Friday morning, concerns should ease.

Sho Kashima of South Lake Tahoe has spent the off-season recovering from injuries and is preparing for the 2015 US Freestyle Moguls team.

The team was named this week in advance of the Dec. 13 FIS Freestyle World Cup season opener in Ruka, Finland. Kashima, who skis for Heavenly, expects to be able to join the team mid-season. According to his Facebook and Instagram pages he is working hard on rehabilitation.

As we at the Nevada Department of Transportation and Q&D Construction substantially complete the Kingsbury Grade Pavement Reconstruction Project this week, we want to thank local community members and businesses for their understanding and support.

Originally scheduled to continue through next summer, the project has substantially completed this week; one season ahead of the original schedule. Completing this important project ahead of schedule could not have been accomplished without the understanding of the entire community.

Once a year the Board of Supervisors trek over the summit to South Lake Tahoe for their scheduled meeting, and if the full house of citizens is any indication, more than one of their 41 yearly meetings should be held on the eastern slope.

One agenda item brought Shingle Springs residents to town while another brought in a lot from the Meyers community.

September brought the reality of wildfires to the forefront in the Lake Tahoe Basin. The King Fire came within eight air miles of the U.S. Forest Service Lake Tahoe Basin Management Unit boundary, and as we all anxiously awaited its containment, the Cascade Fire broke out in the Desolation Wilderness.

Kingsbury Grade, which has been closed at the summit due to a $15M road construction project, is scheduled to open on Tuesday, October 7 at 6 a.m.

Construction work will continue after Tuesday's reopening for a couple of weeks. State Route 207 (Kingsbury Grade) had two construction closures, one in May and the other since Labor Day. The through traffic closure was originally slated to end in mid to late October.

“A breakdown can pave the way for a breakthrough,” California Governor Jerry Brown said at the Lake Tahoe Summit on August 19.

The governor was speaking about the challenges people face in looking beyond their differences for common ground, whether that’s working to craft the $7.5 billion water bond California voters will consider in November or working across state lines to protect and restore Lake Tahoe.

9/8/14 6:45 p.m. update: The Meadow Fire in Yosemite grew considerably overnight and has burned about 2,582 acres so far. What started as a small fire after lightning on August 16 got out of control on Sunday.

According to Yosemite's website, it is burning within the Little Yosemite Valley on both sides of the Merced River. All trails in the area are closed. Earlier Monday, approximately 100 hikers and backpackers were evacuated from the fire area in LYV. The fire is burning in Yosemite Wilderness.

Sixteen local, state and federal agencies were recognized during Tuesday's Lake Tahoe Summit.

A proclamation signed by by Senators Dianne Feinstein, Dean Heller and Harry Reid, Representatives Mark Amodei and Tom McClintock and Governors Jerry Brown and Brian Sandoval honored the release of the Multi-Jurisdiciont Fuel Reduction and Wildfire Prevention Strategy.

The original strategy, finalized in 2007, has successfully guided wildfire risk reduction projects in the Lake Tahoe Basin.

People coming into the basin to attend the annual Lake Tahoe Summit on Tuesday will find new signs on the three Nevada entrances: Kingsbury Grade (State Route 207), Spooner Summit (U.S. Highway 50) and the Mt. Rose Highway (State Route 431).

The signs read, “Entering the Lake Tahoe Watershed — Help Protect It!” They were put up to remind everyone passing by them that Lake Tahoe is a special place that needs protecting by everyone coming to visit (and those who are already here).

California Senator Diane Feinstein will host the 18th Annual Lake Tahoe Summit on Tuesday, August 19 being held on the lawn at Valhalla. The theme for the day is Drought, Wildfire and Invasive Species: Confronting the Effects of Climate Change on Lake Tahoe.

The public is invited to attend. Preregistration is over so plan on registering at Valhalla on the 19th starting at 9 a.m. The main program will start at 10 am.

The Lake Tahoe Bicycle Coalition is providing a free Bike Valet at the Kiwanis Community Fair in South Lake Tahoe at LTCC. They need volunteers to work 2-4 hour shifts on Saturday 8/30 and Sunday 8/31 between the hours of 10:00 a.m. and 6:00 .pm. This is a fun event and a great way to get involved with the Coalition.

The second volunteer opportunity is on September 7 which marks the 12th Annual TOUR DE TAHOE event produced by Bike The West. The Lake Tahoe Bicycle Coalition hosts the final rest stop on Spooner Summit, providing snacks, water, and support.

A brush fire started just after 6:45 p.m. Wednesday night in the hills above Carson City between Jacks Valley Road and Clear Creek Road. Fire officials are calling it the Clear Creek Fire and it had burned 150 acres as of 9:45 p.m. The area is not easily accessible. Hot Shots were dropped onto the hills nearby to fight the fire as well as drops from three air tankers and two helicopters. Hand crews will stay on the fire during the night.

The fire was started by lightning and the region saw dozens more lightning strikes into the evening.

Tahoe Resource Conservation District watercraft inspectors intercepted a boat on Wednesday that had quagga mussels and an unidentified snail in the boat's anchor locker.

The boat was at the inspection point on Spooner Summit after arriving from Lake Mead, a known quagga mussel infested body of water. Once detected the boat went through two decontaminations and inspections, and then was allowed into Lake Tahoe.

Over the holiday weekend most than 725 boats went through the four inspection points located around the lake which represents a 17% increase over last year's count.

The chemical treatment of invasive plants by the U.S. Forest Service in Lake Tahoe will continue through the summer at about 70 different locations totaling 12.5 acres. In South Lake Tahoe the treatment will take place at the Angora wildfire area, Baldwin Beach meadow, Burke Creek trail, Luther Pass campground, Heavenly Creek Meadow, Heavenly Ski Area, Rabe Meadow and the Spooner Summit fire station as well as at several urban lots that the Forest Service controls.

South Lake Tahoe's Sho Kashima was named to the 2015 U.S. Freestyle Skiing Team Tuesday. Kashima, who has called Heavenly Valley his home since 4 years old, made the "A" men's team.

Here is Kashima's record provided by the USSA:
WORLD CHAMPONSHIPS
Teams: 2007, 2009, 2011

6th, MO, Inawashiro, JPN, 2009

7th, DM, Madonna di Campiglio, ITA, 2007

10th, DM, Inawashiro, JPN, 2009

18th, DM, Deer Valley, UT, 2011

30th, MO, Madonna di Campiglio, ITA, 2007

WORLD CUP (highlights)
Three top-10 finishes in 2014
With only five starts in the 2013 season, earned three top-ten results

The Leadership Lake Tahoe class of 2014 graduated from the ten-month program produced by TahoeChamber this week. On June 12, 2014, twenty-two participants, as well as family and friends, celebrated at Aston Lakeland Village with a commencement ceremony and reception to honor the hard work and dedication these individuals displayed throughout the year. Members of the Leadership Lake Tahoe Task Force, Leadership Alumni and TahoeChamber board members congratulated the class on its diligent efforts, as well as its success at the Leadership Lake Tahoe Summit “Elevate Your View” this past March.

Expanding access to healthcare in rural communities requires innovation and collaboration. In remote areas like South Lake Tahoe with smaller populations, residents still expect high quality care and individual medical needs vary widely.

To increase specialty medical services available in our community, with consideration that unique medical conditions may not have the demand for a local office, Barton Health launched Telemedicine in 2009.

Dana Williams on Sustainability and small town politics at the Leadership Lake Tahoe Summit.

As mayor of Park City, Utah (home of the Sundance Film Festival and the 2002 winter Olympics) Dana Williams has faces many problems familiar to Lake Tahoe: how do you overcome the oppositional politics of a small town with a set political culture? How do you balance the need to accommodate huge numbers of tourists while keeping your locals happy? How do you make your town a world leader in sustainability when your state government fights you all the way?