Annual Wagon Train skips South Lake Tahoe this year

For 67 years the annual re-creation of the historic wagon train rides across the Sierra Nevada has gone through South Lake Tahoe as they made their way to Placerville, but this year they are skipping the City.

Its been a glimpse of times gone by as horses, wagons and buggies moved along Highway 50 during the first day of the event which started in 1949 as a way to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the Gold Rush. That year, a Wagon Train was formed to travel west from Lake Tahoe to Placerville (Old Hangtown) along Highway 50. This "one time" event was so popular that it resumed in 1951, and has made its annual trek each year since that time.

In the early 1850's, pioneers crossed the Sierra Nevada into California, traversing what we now know as Echo Summit and the Highway 50 corridor. This route became known as the "Roaring Road" where travel was so heavy, oftentimes wagon trains were forced to wait for days to have their turn on the road.

People can still watch them in Meyers on Monday, June 5 when the Wagon Train moves from the Amacker Ranch on Sawmill Road, over Echo Summit to the Tamarack Pines cutoff. They will spend the night near the top of the summit. They will be leaving Amacker at 9:00 a.m. Monday, head over to the Magnet School in Meyers for a presentation, then head over Echo Summit.

Wednesday and Thursday, June 7 and 8, the Wagon Train spends two days at Fresh Pond before heading to Pollock Pines (celebration for the public at the community center), and Saturday when they roll into Placerville on Main Street for a BBQ and party.

The group normally camps on the South Shore on the Saturday night prior to starting but they couldn't secure a spot this year. Organizers said they will get back to South Lake Tahoe in 2018.