Looking Up

Having spent the better part of the summer here in South Lake Tahoe, I tend to forget to really look up.  The rocky grandeur  of Mount Tallac and the shimmering lake are always there, magnificent and amazing. People come here from all over the world to hike, swim, and  to just admire the views.  It is really a place that has any experience you want.  It has clubs, casinos, restaurants and shows for those who love the crowds and the excitement.

But, for me, the best part is that I can be alone in nature, literally  all alone, with no sounds other than the wind rustling the trees and the occasional call of a bird.  And, that solitude is there for the taking, within a short distance of the house, whenever I want it.  And I often want it.

Had I not retired, this would have been my first full day of the new school year.  Classroom, or these views?  No contest!

View of Emerald Bay from the Eagle Falls Trail

Nevada Beach

Mount Tallac from an overflow of the Truckee River

Eagle Lake

Along the Eagle Falls trail.

Mokelumne Wilderness Trail in Desolation Wilderness

Looking Down

I realized something about myself recently.  I like to think I always, 'stop and smell the roses,' and that I take time to watch the clouds pass overhead.  However, most of the time, I just look straight ahead.  (At least I don’t trip too often, or have near misses with cars.) When I walk my dog in the neighborhood, I don’t often notice the yellow patch of wildflowers growing along someone’s front fence, or the mushroom that sprouted up overnight on the north side of a tall pine tree.  I just look forward.  SO, I decided I need to look down more. 

The melting winter snow has caused tiny creeks here in South Lake Tahoe to turn into swift streams, the local meadow to flood, (and thankfully to fill up Lake Tahoe!) 

Only now in mid August, has the water seeped into the ground enough to allow people to walk in the meadow again. I’m glad I started looking down.  The wildflowers are amazing!

Notice the bee!

Member of the Board

It is probably a rookie mistake. But only time will tell. Rob was sworn in recently as the newest board member of the Al Tahoe Forest Homes Association.  They either saw his immense talent, or they just needed a warm body.  I’d like to think it was his talent.  He does have the ability to keep a cool head when others are losing theirs.  (And, yeah I am kind of talking about myself.)

 This little neighborhood here in Tahoe, consisting of 116 lots/homes, has a decades old homeowners association. There are many unique things about this neighborhood, and preserving the integrity and character of it, is the purpose of this organization.  For a whopping $30 in annual dues, (yes, a year,) this group works to protect an area with many old cabins dating from the 20s and 30s, towering pine trees, and home lots that are very large.  

Here, it is common for cabins to be passed down through generations of the same family.  Many of the people we meet while walking the dog tell us that they have been coming up here, to the same cabin since they were children.  And, some of these people are pretty darn old.

To the credit of this organization, they have stopped people from sub-dividing their lots and preventing more homes from being built closer together, had roads built around large pine trees rather than having them cut down, and they took care of snow plow damage to the many gigantic trees that line the streets.

The board consists of many interesting people:  an interior designer, two police officers- one active and one retired, (Rob,) an accountant, a landscape architect, just to name a few.  The parliamentary procedures they follow during meetings seem overly formal while sitting around a cozy kitchen table in a 1938 cabin.

With the hot real estate market in South Lake Tahoe, the board realizes that there aren’t enough specific stipulations in the CC and R’s (Covenants, Conditions and Restrictions,) about how large of a house could potentially be build in this historic neighborhood.  It has become common for the city to allow developers to come in and build 6,000+ square feet, multiple bedroom homes that are, in reality used as income rental properties.  The year-round neighbors then contend with 25 or more people having parties in these huge houses, especially during ski season, and of course all summer long. The Tahoe Regional Planning Association stipulates that you can only cover 30% of your lot, for 'environmental reasons.'  This all sounds well and good for an area that prides itself on Keeping Tahoe Blue and being environmentally aware of preserving Tahoe, except when you find out that you can BUY extra coverage.  Rather hypocritical, I'd say.  That explains why they allowed the house below to be built.  It literally covers almost the entire lot. 

Look at the poor little cozy house on the right, that now has this towering house right on top of it.  This is what we DON'T want to happen in the Al Tahoe Forest Homes Association neighborhood.

So, the board wants to put a stipulation into the by-laws that limits the size a house can be to 3,000 feet, and form a review committee so that houses in this neighborhood retain the rustic Tahoe look.

With Rob as a board member, we are getting to know more neighbors here, than we know at home.  I think that’s a good thing!