This year’s evening program series at the Lake of the Sky Amphitheater will close out Aug. 26 with “An Evening with Mark Twain.” The program, which begins at 7pm, features local favorite MacAvoy Lane recounting Twain’s significant role in the history of the Lake Tahoe Basin.

The local U.S. Forest Service’s nonprofit organization, the Tahoe Heritage Foundation, accepts a $2 per person donation to help defray costs.

Come get a chuckle and go back in time for this one-hour living history presentation at the center’s Lake of the Sky Amphitheater, located on Highway 89 toward Emerald Bay.

Reggae/HipHop/Dubstep with DJ Tim at Brothers Bar & Grill in South Lake Tahoe on Sept. 11 at 9pm.

The Great Tahoe Flume Race is sanctioned by USA Cycling and is the final race in the Nevada Cup State Championship Series, a four-race points series that will determine the Nevada State Mountain Bike Champion, which carries a $1,000 prize.

The Reno Wheelman are putting on the Sept. 12 9am event.

The race is 18 miles, with a 3,100-foot elevation gain.

Proceeds go toward the volunteer backcountry patrol in the Lake Tahoe Nevada State Park.

To register, visit bikereg.com.

Join hosts Bona Fide Books and Suzanne Roberts in celebrating the release of Janet Smith’s book “All of the Sudden Nothing Happened” on Aug. 20 at 7pm

Smith is the past recipient of a Nevada Arts Board Fellowship in poetry, and has been nominated for a Pushcart Prize. She is on faculty in the English Department at Lake Tahoe Community College.

Libations, appetizers, and cupcakes will be provided, and the work of Truckee artist Carole Sesko will be shown.

Bona Fide Books is located at 1069 Magua, No. 4 in Meyers behind the Getaway Cafe on Highway 50.

If you like “beachy/campfire” music, come and join the Tahoe Aunties Ukulele Band every Wednesday from 5:30-6:30pm at the platform at Regan Beach in South Lake Tahoe. Sing-a-long, bring your instrument, join the fun.

Volunteer for the 13th annual Tahoe Forest Stewardship Day on Sept. 11 at North Tahoe Regional Park.

Join hundreds of volunteers to help restore forest ecosystems, alpine meadows, creeks and streams, and improve water quality.

Learn about forest and fire ecology, defensible space, wildlife, invasive species, and hydrology.

Volunteers and team leaders are needed.

To sign-up, contact Flavia Sordelet at (530) 541.5388 or email events@keeptahoeblue.org.

Music, art, dance and poetry unite in the Sierra Nevada at 6,200 feet in the seventh annual inspiring art hike produced by Trails and Vistas on Sept. 11-12 at Squaw Valley.

Audience members, led by an experienced guide, hike in small groups pausing at 10 art venues, each set against the striking backdrop of towering granite rock faces. Blending art with nature, the hike has had a profound effect on participants who become integral members of this unique experience. It has sold-out the last four years.

Artists and performers will present the expected and the unexpected. This year’s theme, “If Dreams were Clouds” honors the dreamtime. Inspired by dream songs of the land and animals intertwined with the playful and powerful dance of clouds in the sky, artists play with the concept of dreamtime and clouds-floating, twisting, and holding a sculptural figurine before being carried away to another place or sculpted into a memory.

2010 Artists and Performers Capacitor headlines the 2010 Trails and Vistas art hikes throughout the weekend with poetic moving bodies in the landscape set to musical earthly sounds. San Francisco’s interdisciplinary dance company collaborates with the scientific and art community to create mind-expanding, heart-gripping live performances.

Featured artists for Sept. 12 art hikes is the Banana Slug String Band.

Trails and Vistas is also collaborating with more than 20 other artisans to cultivate a transformational experience for every participant.

Hike information and tickets

The nearly 3-mile long hike is strenuous and includes approximately 1,500 gain in elevation. Hikers must be comfortable traversing some rocky areas, including some steep pitches. Hiking groups will depart every 15 minutes with a trail leader (dogs and photography are not allowed). Tickets are $30 for adults and $15 for children. Tickets may be purchased at www.trailsandvistas.org or by calling (530) 587.2757.

Join the Lake Tahoe Water Trail for thee Fall Paddle Day on Oct. 9 at 8:30am.

Paddle from Zephyr Cove Lodge with researchers at the forefront of protecting Lake Tahoe from aquatic invasive species. A barbecue will follow.

The cost is $30/person, $50/couple includes lunch (Members $25/person, $45/couple).

Kayak rental available on site.

Advance registration is required. Online registration begins Sept. 9 at www.laketahoewatertrail.org.

Join the Tahoe Rim Trail Association on Aug. 21 for the Galena Falls Wildflower Hike/

This leisurely hike starts with a climb up and over a ridge and through the forest to a cascading waterfall. It is followed by a moderate climb to a high mountain meadow.

It may be hot. so bring lots of water (two liters), lunch, camera, and wind/rain gear depending on the weather. This hike is open to participants, 10 years old and up; no pets; maximum number of participants is 15.

Hike Time: Four-five hours

Meeting time: 10am at the Mt. Rose Summit Welcome Plaza parking lot; north side of Highway 431 at the summit.

Distance: Six mile loop hike

Difficulty: Moderate; elevation ranges from 8,900 to 9,400 feet.

Register: Contact TRTA for pre-registration as space is limited;(775) 298.0012 or email jaimes@tahoerimtrail.org.

Lake Tahoe Wellness Weekend is Sept. 24-26 at Hyatt Regency Lake Tahoe.

The weekend includes four fitness classes with top fitness experts inspiring Vinyasa Yoga classes with San Francisco instructor Ginger Layden-Braun held outdoors on Hyatt’s Cottage Green, and Balletone and Aikina Aerobics with former Russian competitive gymnast Alyona Aikina. Also included in the weekend: wellness breakfasts and snacks, a wellness seminar by top instructors and experts, spa treatment at Stillwater Spa, wine tasting, outdoor activities that allow you to make the most of the spectacular location, and a wellness-themed gift bag. It costs $449/per person single-occupancy, $649 double-occupancy; day-only rate (excluding breakfast and accommodations) is $100/per person per day.

Click here for more information.