May 22 – Unity at the Lake OneHeart Drum Ministry at South Lake Tahoe Senior Center, 3050 Lake Tahoe Blvd. at 11:30am.

Some drums and shakers available or bring your own. No experience necessary.

Love offering.

For more info, call (530) 544. 2266 or visit www.unityatthelake.org.

By Lenita Powers, Reno Gazette-Journal

Kirk Lippold, the former commander of the USS Cole and a Carson City resident, said he is “absolutely thrilled” that almost 11 years after the terrorist attack on his ship in which 17 crewmen died, Osama bin Laden finally has been killed.

“I think it was a definite strike for freedom and demonstrates that the United States will be resolute and unwavering in our pursuit of those who seek to do our nation harm and kill our citizens,” Lippold said Monday.

The details of that attack, organized and directed by Osama bin Laden’s al-Qaida members, are etched in Lippold’s memory.

“We had pulled into Aden, Yemen, that morning at 11:18 on Oct. 12, 2000, for a refueling stop,” he said.

“We had been there about 45 minutes when there was a thunderous explosion. We could feel the ship being almost lifted out of the water when lights went out and the ship began to sink,” he said.

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Award winning bronze artist June Towill Brown of J.T. Brown Sculptures will present an educational tour of her sculpting career that “started over a glass of wine” during the North Tahoe Women’s Club monthly meeting on May 16.

Women who live in the Reno/Lake Tahoe region are welcome to attend this luncheon at the Incline Village Community Hospital’s Community Meeting Room.

Tickets are $17 and the price includes a catered lunch and presentation.

The event starts at noon and generally concludes about 1:30pm. Seating is limited and advance reservations are suggested by May 12; contact Florine Kubel at (775) 831.9235.

Ever think of the Sierra as a medicine cabinet? In fact, these mountains are chock-full of surprisingly healthful plants and flowers. Join Kimball Chatfield, a medicinal plants expert, on an easy walk in the High Sierra.

When: July 3, 10am–2pm

Cost: $35 guests/$50 non-guests (Sorensen’s bag lunch extra, or bring your own)

For more information, call Sorensen’s Resort at 800.423.9949.

Blankets of bright yellow mule’s ears, bowing columbine, elegant lupine, and countless other wildflowers brighten a 4-mile hike with botanist Karen Wiese, author of “Sierra Nevada Wildflowers”.

When: July 15, 9am–3pm

Cost: $50 guests/$75 non-guests

For more information, call Sorensen’s Resort at 800.423.9949.

Join the legendary Dust Bowl Troubadour, “Woody Guthrie” and his “road buddy Pete” as they drop by Sorensen’s for a lively, fireside performance.

David Fenimore recreates Woody’s signature charm, singing traditional songs of hard times and original blues and ballads, still timely and touching today.

When: July 22, 7pm

Cost: $10 donation (Proceeds matched by Sorensen’s to benefit the Northern Nevada Food Bank).

For more information, call Sorensen’s Resort at 800.423.9949.

Join astronomer Adrienne Cool and Ron Marzke of San Francisco State University for a fascinating nighttime event, peering through telescopes to spy planets, stars, and nebulae.

All ages are welcome.

When: May 7 at sunset (approximately 8pm)

Cost: $10 adults/$5 kids, all proceeds (matched by Sorensen’s) will go to support school science programs in Alpine County.

For more information, call Sorensen’s Resort at 800.423.9949.

Toccata presents Trio Brio in “Chamber Music Charmers” June 12-19.

Featured performers are David Brock, piano; Pat Crane, violin and viola; and Darrell Moore, clarinet performing works by classical, romantic, and 20th century jazz/impressionist composers including Mozart, Schumann, Bruch, Milhaud and Villiers Stanford.

Performances are:

June 12, 6pm at Squaw Valley Chapel, Olympic Valley.

June 18, 4pm at the Steinway Piano Gallery of Reno.

June 19, 7:30pm at the Valhalla Boathouse in South Lake Tahoe.

Tickets are $20 adults and $35 preferred, and are available at the door or at www.ToccataTahoe.com. For the Valhalla Boathouse, tickets are available online. Preferred seating includes a wine and cheese gathering one hour prior to the concert.

For further information or questions call (775) 313.9697, (775) 781.4702 or go online.

By Kathryn Reed

PHILLIPS STATION – Snow was literally melting as the last water survey of the season was taken.

Although the numbers are good for this time of year – 209 percent of average with 33.7 inches of water content and a snow depth of 66 inches – under warm sunny skies Monday, it was a bit mushy in the snow field.

Frank Gehrke barely has room to take the seventh water content reading May 2. Photo/Kathryn Reed

But there are years when May 2 has more dirt than snow covering this field at the entrance of Sierra-at-Tahoe on Highway 50.

“This is a good year, but this is not record setting,” said Frank Gehrke, who takes the measurements for the Department of Water Resources. In 1995, the water content was 44.7 inches.

He attributed the below average temperatures of April and some of overcast days for keeping the snowpack as solid as it is.

However, the stream on the far side of the meadow that has been evident most of the previous four snow surveys this season is even larger now. Gehrke was barely able to get in a seventh reading.

Gehrke said with the amount of snow still in the Sierra, a high stream flow should last into late spring.

Water content in the snow throughout the state is what determines how much people downstream get. Users of the State Water Project are scheduled to receive 80 percent of the water they have requested. The intricate canal system delivers water to 25 million Californians and irrigates about 1 million acres of farmland.

The abundance of snow this winter belied the fact that forecasters had called this a La Nina year – which by definition means much less snow than what actually fell.

Gehrke said this proves there is not definitive way of predicting what California’s weather will be like.

“There are so many variables – how the ocean and other things influence California winters,” Gehrke said.

By Kathryn Reed

Caltrans is not backing away from its May 11 start date to close Highway 50 over Echo Summit.

A conference call the afternoon of May 2 between state highway officials, state Sen. Ted Gaines, reps from the two South Shore chambers of commerce, Lake Tahoe Visitors Authority’s Carol Chaplin, Steve Teshara of South Shore Transportation Management Association, South Lake Tahoe staff, a California Tourism and Travel Commission official and Andrew Strain from Heavenly ended with Caltrans not backing down from its schedule.

This was the second conference call of the day.

Highway 50 over Echo Summit will be closed May 11 for 10 solid days. Photos/Kathryn Reed

Caltrans promised the highway would be open by noon on the Friday of Memorial Day weekend. Of course, as has been the caveat all along, everything is weather dependent.

The closure for 10 days is so the rock barrier that is crumbling can be replaced for safety reasons.

What had South Shore officials in distress is that it means people coming to the May 15 Amgen Tour de California bike race will need to do a bit of touring themselves to reach the area.

“When all of the factors as we understand them today were weighed, the May 11th start date was considered by all to be the wisest course of action. This, despite the fact that all recognized that a detour during Amgen is undesirable and that we must all work to ensure that visitors know that South Lake Tahoe is open for business and a great place to watch the race,” B Gorman, CEO of Lake Tahoe South Shore Chamber of Commerce, told Lake Tahoe News.

A series of letters between Caltrans and South Shore officials dating to last fall indicate officials should not have been surprised by the start date.

Plus, a series of meetings between the city, Caltrans and chambers took place two years ago. The South Tahoe Chamber of Commerce was making presentations to the City Council as early as August 2009. Caltrans made a presentation to the council the month before.

What does have some surprised is why the tourism agency that represents the South Shore would ever go after the country’s most prestigious professional bike ride for 2011 knowing the main artery to get to the South Shore could be off-limits. Chaplin did not return phone calls.

The summit should be closed for 10 straight days and then opened to controlled traffic for about six weeks.

According to Gorman, Caltrans is updating the reader boards with the actual dates. What the ones at the base of Echo Summit heading west and the one at Johnson Pass Road heading east said the morning of May 2 was “Closed Early May.”

This has some people confused since it is early May.

Although Johnson Pass Road is clear, heavy machinery prevents people from using it right now.

Orange signs saying “road closed” are up – with the words covered until the work begins.

More information on the schedule and alternative routes to the area are in this story.

ngg_shortcode_0_placeholder (Click on photos to enlarge.)