spring

EL DORADO COUNTY, Calif. - As most in the South Lake Tahoe and Meyers area already know, getting out of town over US50 and Echo Summit on Sundays and holidays can be slow moving during summer, but during the winter it can be a miserable time both for visitors and locals.

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - The 18th annual South Lake Tahoe Moose Lodge Kids’ Fishing Derby has been canceled due to the pandemic. The Lodge has sponsored the tournament at Lake Baron inside Tahoe Paradise Park for 17 years and said they feel it important to follow state and county guidelines to avoid group gatherings and the safety and protection of children is paramount.

The Lodge had been planning on having the Optimists Club as co-sponsors this September after the Optimists had to cancel their fishing derby at Sawmill Pond earlier this summer.

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - The planned full closure of US50 over Echo Summit for the Sidehill Viaduct Replacement Project will take place September 18 to October 2, 2020. The week prior to that will be one-way controlled traffic as crews prepare for replacement of the existing bridge.

Originally set for completion in 2019, the seven precast bridge girders needed were not completed in time. That pushed the completion date to Spring 2020. There were one-way controlled traffic controls then but a full closure wouldn't have been until the end of June.

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - The California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) is working on area highways. The following is their current project list at Lake Tahoe and in the Sierra.

LONG-TERM PROJECTS

7:00 a.m. Thursday Update: #TallacFire is contained. Lake Tahoe Basin Management Unit firefighters made good progress last night with assistance from Cal Fire. Accurate mapping has fire at 2.2 acres. Hwy 89 travelers urged to use caution as firefighters continue to mop-up

9:50 p.m. Update: Firefighters are making good progress on the #TallacFire. Hose-lay is completed on left and right flanks. For the safety of firefighters, Highway 89 travelers asked to use caution in the area between Camp Richardson and Emerald Bay as multiple resources are parked on the highway.

LAKE TAHOE, Calif./Nev. - Scientists and researchers have been watching the clarity of Lake Tahoe for decades, rejoicing when one can see almost 100 feet down into the iconic body of water, sadness when clarity drops to record levels.

The clarity of the lake is an important indicator of the changing conditions of Lake Tahoe.

In 2019, Lake Tahoe's clarity decreased nearly eight feet from the previous year's dramatic 10-foot improvement. The average clarity in 2019 was 62.7 feet, the second-lowest on record. In 2017, the recorded clarity was 60 feet. In 1968, it was 102 feet.

LAKE TAHOE, Calif./Nev. – Spring is in full swing in the Tahoe Basin and Tahoe black bears are searching for food. Intentional or unintentional feeding of bears results in unwanted bear behaviors, increased human-bear conflicts, and public safety issues as well as fines and possible jail time for violators. Each year, local law enforcement and state wildlife officers respond to hundreds of calls in which bears may pose a public safety threat or are damaging property. In some cases, the bear must be euthanized.

NORTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - If you've been on SR89 near Tahoe City lately you've noticed the new roundabout that was installed south of the Fanny Bridge near the transit station. A new bridge over the Truckee River was also created during the first stage of the SR89/Fanny Bridge Revitalization Project which included another roundabout on the west end of Tahoe City on SR89.

The Tahoe Chamber has canceled its 2020 GO Local Business EXPO. They had rescheduled their spring event and moved to May 29 but with current closures and COVID-19 related restrictions, it won't be held.

The popular event will return in the spring of 2021.

"Due to the COVID-19 pandemic restrictions placed on our community by California Governor Newsom and Nevada Governor Sisolak, the Chamber believes that this cancellation is a precautionary decision that will protect the health of our community, businesses, and staff members," the Chamber said in a statement.

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - It still isn't too late to prevent pesky yellow jacket interruptions of July and August picnics and outside dinners in Lake Tahoe. Now is the time to prepare by placing traps for the queens as they start to emerge from their winter hibernation.

The queens are the only bee colony member to hibernate in the winter. She emerges in spring and begins to look for a suitable place to build a nest and begin her new colony. By the end of summer one colony can have 4,000 to 5,000 yellow jackets.

MEYERS, Calif. - An old campground at the base of Echo Summit in Meyers is undergoing a major transformation that will not only create new wetlands and restore habitat along the Upper Truckee River, it will also create public access.

Work gets underway this week at the old Tahoe Pines Campground on a $1.63M project that will include new accessible-to-all trails, bridge and parking lot, and other features along the river which is Lake Tahoe's largest tributary.

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - The California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) has resumed work on area highways. The following is their current project list at Lake Tahoe and in the Sierra.

LONG-TERM PROJECTS

U.S. Highway 50 (El Dorado County): Work continues on a $5.2 million project to upgrade metal beam guardrail and construct concrete barriers at 89 locations from the Red Hawk Undercrossing to 1.9 miles west of the junction with State Route 89 in Meyers. Completion is expected in late spring 2020. No traffic-interfering work is scheduled.

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. – Barton Memorial Hospital received news of another ‘A’ grade for patient safety from the Leapfrog Group. Assessment data from 28 quality measurements demonstrated better patient outcomes at the Lake Tahoe hospital; the result of collaborative, team-driven systems in place at Barton Health that protect patients from harm.

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - The California Department of Transportation (CalTrans) will work on projects through the Sierra, as weather permits this winter. There are no major projects going on in the Lake Tahoe Basin until the building season begins in May. The following is their weekly schedule:

Please remember to stay home except for essential needs.
California is under a Stay-at-Home Order and only essential travel is permitted.
~ Avoid travel ~ Stay-at-Home ~ Beat COVID-19 ~
Learn more at covid19.ca.gov
#StayHomeSaveLives

LONG-TERM PROJECTS

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - A potent spring storm will continue to impact the Sierra tonight into Monday morning with periods of heavy snowfall and hazardous
travel. Cool and snowy/rainy conditions persist through Tuesday but chances will diminish as the low exits the region. High pressure then builds for the second half of the week with a drying and warming pattern expected heading into the weekend.

The weekly forecast from the National Weather Service in Reno:

SACRAMENTO, Calif. – The precipitation of March did not do enough to boost the snowpack in the Sierra to high figures, but it did give surveyors better figures than the 47 percent of average one month ago. The manual measurement of the snowpack at Phillips Station near Sierra-at-Tahoe showed the snow depth was 43.5 inches with a snow water equivalent (SWE) of 16.5 inches. This is 66 percent of the April 1 average at that location southwest of Lake Tahoe.

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - The California Department of Transportation (CalTrans) will work on projects through the Sierra, as weather permits this winter. There are no major projects going on in the Lake Tahoe Basin until the building season begins in May. The following is their weekly schedule:

Please remember to stay home except for essential needs.
California is under a Stay-at-Home Order and only essential travel is permitted.
~ Avoid travel ~ Stay-at-Home ~ Beat COVID-19 ~
Learn more at covid19.ca.gov
#StayHomeSaveLives

LONG-TERM PROJECTS

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - The California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) has scheduled work on El Dorado County and other Sierra roads.

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. -Sierra-at-Tahoe has announced they will be continuing to suspend their operations for the 2019/20 season indefinitely due to the COVID-19 health issue.

"The health and safety of our guests and employees is our primary concern. During this time of uncertainty, we will do our part to help stop the spread of this virus," the resort spokesperson Sarah Sherman said in a statement.

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - With students in the Lake Tahoe Unified School District (LTUSD) not attending school for at least three weeks, District officials have coordinated a plan to get breakfast and lunch to them. These two meals were offered by LTUSD at each school.

Bread & Broth 4 Kids has also created a plan to distribute bags of food to youth on their program.

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - There is a Winter Storm Warning in place for the Lake Tahoe Basin through Tuesday, March 17 at 11:00 a.m. Expect heavy snow with additional snow accumulations through Tuesday of 4 to 10 inches and 12 to 18 inches above 7000 feet. Winds gusting as high as 50 mph.

Chilly and unsettled weather is expected to persist into the first half of next week with a stormer weather pattern possibly continuing through the end of March according to the National Weather Service (NWS) in Reno.

Aas the current storm moves on, expect occasional rain/snow showers Thursday and

SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - All schools in Lake Tahoe Unified School District and the rest of El Dorado County will be closing for at least a week, starting Monday, March 16, 2020.

The decision was made for the safety and wellness of students, families, and school personnel due to the current threat of the world-wide coronavirus COVID-19. There are currently no confirmed cases of the virus in El Dorado County.

Lake Tahoe Community College (LTCC) is committed to helping mitigate the spread of the Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) and to take measures to keep staff and students safe. With that in mind, effective immediately LTCC is canceling all community events and outside group meetings planned for on campus to help reduce the chance of exposure and spread. Furthermore, LTCC is canceling all non-essential travel for LTCC employees. These are measures designed to reduce (but not eliminate) the risk of exponential community spread of COVID-19. These measures will be in effect until further notice.

Dead and downed firewood cutting permits will be available starting April 1, on the Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest’s Carson Ranger District. Forest officials stress that it is extremely important for firewood cutters to pay special attention to the terms and conditions of their permit.