Technically we also got paid $75, got a free trip to Hawaii, and $200 towards any concert we want to go to – in addition to the kayaking and fun in the alpine lake.
Now that’s what I call Ballin’ on a Budget!
Lake Tahoe…. Exhale slowly… and then breathe it all back in.
With 72 miles of shoreline this is another place you could spend weeks at and never run out of things to do. It’s another place you can’t truly appreciate in one visit because of the different seasons that bring different things to do in the area. From snow skiing in the mountains to boating out on the lake – and everything in between – this is a place you’ll never get bored. Lake Tahoe is pretty developed. There’s very little public land around the lake. Every bit of shoreline is either owned by a big resort, a state park, or a private party – so you can’t just go anywhere you want. But there is plenty to explore.
We got to Lake Tahoe at a peculiar time. Right after the snow ski season – but right before the summer season. The pro: less people. The con: some things are still closed for the winter and some things were already shut down for the summer. The main thing we wanted to do here was kayak the lake – so all of these things were in our favor.
Fun Facts:
- Lake Tahoe is the 2nd deepest lake in U.S. at 1645 feet. (The deepest lake – Crater Lake – is one state to the north in Oregon)
- If you like the sun, Lake Tahoe is covered in sun shine 75% of the year.
- The average snowfall is 600 inches a year, for all you snow ski and snowboarders.
- If you took all the water out of Lake Tahoe and poured it all across California, the water would still be 14 inches deep.
- It is one of the most pure bodies of water in the world. 99.994% of the water is pure. (Commercially distilled water is 99.998% pure.)
- There’s only one island on Lake Tahoe, Fannette Island.
- The amount of water that evaporates from the Lake each day (330 million gallons) could supply a city the size of Los Angeles for 5 years.
Must Dos
- Kayak to Emerald Bay (from either Baldwin Beach or D.L. Bliss State Park)
- Hike in Emerald Bay State Park
- D.L. Bliss State Park
- Squaw Valley – this is where the 1960 Winter Olympics were held
- Kings Beach State Recreation Area
- Sand Harbor Beach
- Cave Rock
- Secret Cove
If we had to do it all in just one day
- The Emerald Bay Area. (Emerald Bay State Park & D.L. Bliss State Park)
- Drive the entire shoreline of Lake Tahoe and stop by every overlook and vista view point your heart desires.
- Kings Beach
Tips
- If you want to kayak (or put a boat of any kind in the lake) in Lake Tahoe you’ll need to go through one of the 4 inspection stations around the lake. They don’t want any species contaminations in the waters. The inspections are free – but you will need to buy an AIS decal for both the California and Nevada sides if you plan to launch from both sides. We only launched from one side, decently close to the border so we could kayak to both sides of the border while only having to show/buy the sticker for the side we launched from.
- If you plan to put a boat (motorized boats and non-motorized like kayaks, etc) buy your AIS decal in advance online. It’ll save you time when you get to the lake.
- Lake Tahoe is another “go to” destination. To avoid the heaviest crowds go in the off season and weekdays.
- If you brought an ATV with you, Nevada has quite a few trails in the area.
Ok – but how’d we get paid to go?
Timeshare presentation!
I know what you’re thinking – those things are crazy. And you’re right – they are crazy. But we have the best excuse ever to not sign anything. We just tell them our attorneys get really mad at us whenever we sign something without them reviewing it first. We can even act like we really like what they are trying to sell us and have fun with it! This time, they wouldn’t even give us a copy of the contract to have our attorneys review it – what does that say about the contract?!
In all seriousness though, this Welks Resort timeshare presentation wasn’t all that bad. We were approached about attending this presentation at Lake Tahoe while we were at Six Flags, in route to Lake Tahoe. We were already planning on being in the area so it wasn’t even out of our way. They weren’t pushy and for a couple hours of our time we got some delicious free pizza, roundtrip airfare and hotel stay in Hawaii, $200 towards any concert we want to go to, and got paid $75 to stay at their local hotel – but we did have to pay $14 in hotel taxes. I’d give up 2 hours and $14 for that deal any day!
P.S. Our attorneys advise there’s 3 types of contracts you never sign: 1) timeshares 2) out of state moving companies and 3) anything that you have to sign today or else you lose out on something
Another tip towards timeshare presentations: Make sure to ask enough questions to know it is worth your time attending in the first place. Some timeshare companies will take up your entire day and the gifts aren’t really even worth the time.
Amenities
- Gas – Plenty of gas options but the prices range from $4.09 – $4.69 around the lake. If you have any need or desire to drive out of your way over to Carson City, NV you could get gas almost $1 cheaper per gallon. We saw prices around $3.30 in Carson City.
- Cell Service – pretty decent around the majority of the lake
- Dog Friendly [YES] Not all places allow dogs but plenty of places do such as Kiva Beach and Zephyer Cove.
- Max Vehicle Length – Some places on the west side of the lake are not recommended if over 45 feet. We were glad we left our airstream at our campsite when we were driving around the Emerald Bay Area.
- Closest Grocery Store: There are plenty all around the lake. Lake Tahoe is very developed.
- Free Camping Within 20 Miles [YES] – see www.freecampsites.net
- Activities: Snow Skiing/Snowboarding, Snowmobiling, Kayaking, Paddle Boarding, Swimming (cold!), Lake Cruises, Beaches, Camping, Mountain Biking, etc.
- Hours: 24/7
- Our Total Cost over 5 days (outside of gas and food): $36 total: $10 for a State Park entrance fee (not all are free, some entrance fees will give you access to multiple parks), $6 per kayak for AIS decals to legally put them on the lake, and $14 in hotel taxes.
