The Meyers Community Foundation has started a Fish Fund for the stocking of fish in Baron Lake.

The fund was started with donations from locals including Dick Mullinix, Pete Nelligan, Eric Mohr, Mel Smothers and a $1,000 grant from the MCF. This money was used for two stockings of trout this summer.

The goal is to stock Baron Lake four or five times a season with enough trout to make for a great fishing opportunity for kids and families so they don’t have have to drive long distances to go trout fishing.

MCF is a nonprofit, so donations are tax deductible. To donate to the Fish Fund, contact Victor Babbitt at 530.545.0193 or info@tahoeflyfishing.com.

By Buck Wargo, Law Vegas Review-Journal

A new concept that allows businesses to place wagers on behalf of passive investors is failing to gain much traction with Nevada’s sports books.

Since the so-called sports-entity betting took effect in November, the only sports book participating is CG Technology, the company that lobbied the Nevada Legislature for its adoption in the 2015 session. Seven business entities have registered with CG Technology’s sports books to make bets, but no other sports books appear willing to join in and accept the betting.

That lack of participation makes it more difficult for the entities to be successful long term because they’re limited to one line on games and limited in how much of their funds they can bet.

Read the whole story

Reflections in one of the pools of water along the route. Photo/Kathryn Reed

By Kathryn Reed

ECHO SUMMIT – Casually walking along the Pony Express Trail we wonder how pioneers had the gumption to push on through the Sierra.

Hiking with ample water and modern clothing is a breeze. And we had a map. To have done so with wagons, cumbersome clothing and at times with inadequate supplies on roads, that well, weren’t roads, is a bit mindboggling.

These thoughts crossed our minds as the three of us hiked a stretch of land none of us had been on before. We did a 7.5-mile out-and-back from Echo Summit to the road that goes to Sierra-at-Tahoe.  This stretch is part of the Pony Express Trail, Pacific Crest Trail and links to the Tahoe Rim Trail. The trail is to the south of Highway 50.

A wall of granite is visible at the start of the trail. Photo/Kathryn Reed

And while it is part of wildly popular trails, on the Sunday of Labor Day weekend we only saw a handful of people.

Besides being relatively secluded, what made this hike a bit unique was the changing terrain. Staring out we were treated to a wall of granite. The grandeur made us pause.

At times we were on a road, other times single-track dirt. Signs posted for a trail run that is now over kept us going in the correct direction. But even without them I know we would not have gotten lost.

It didn’t take long for Lake Audrain to come into view. It looked like quite a descent – which meant an even more strenuous climb out. We opted to forego that side trip and headed forward.

This was the most unusual vegetation on the hike. Photo/Kathryn Reed

Much of the trail is up and down, with nothing too extreme either way.

Bushes with spiky berries were something new for each of us to see. Ferns filled several sections. With this lushness, meant there were a couple spots where AJ could get running water. Massive sugar pines covered part of the landscape.

We were treated to a couple eagles soaring overhead. Their screech is what first got our attention.

Once we got to the road at Sierra we thought we’d walk up to the resort to have lunch. Then we realized that road is longer than we had remembered. Bees kept us from sitting for lunch, so we ate and walked back to our starting point. We could have gone farther; the trail picks up on the other side of Sierra’s road.

Rosemary, Sue and I agreed this would be a great snowshoe trek this winter – starting from either location. Parking that time of year will be different because the sledding operation charges and none of us could remember if no parking signs are posted on Sierra’s road in the winter.

At times views are expansive, other times it’s closed in with trees. Photo/Kathryn Reed

—–

   Getting there:

From South Lake Tahoe, take Highway 50 west to the top of Echo Summit. Park at Adventure Mountain, which is on the left. The trail is to the right, almost immediately as you turn in.

Truckee’s High Fives Foundation is awarding empower grants to two people who have suffered spinal cord injuries to help them have more active lives.

Taylor Fiddyment, 22, was injured in 2011 in an ATV accident that left her paralyzed. She has worked with the High Fives Foundation, receiving prior grants that have brought her skiing, rock climbing, personal training and physical therapy.

The grant is for a freewheel modification for her wheelchair that will allow her access to terrain normally difficult for standard wheelchairs. The freewheel is attached to the front portion of the chair near her feet.

Truckee resident Jeff Andrews’ grant is for massage therapy with Karen Stubbs at the CR Johnson Healing Center.

In March 2014, Andrews suffered a spinal cord injury that resulted in limited use of his hands an legs in a snowboarding accident that occurred at Sugar Bowl.

A new policy allows local athletes with life-altering injuries to workout in the CR Johnson Healing Center for free with trainer Jack Powell. The High Fives Foundation is a Tahoe-based nonprofit that supports the dreams of mountain action sports athletes by raising injury prevention awareness while providing resources and inspiration to those who suffer life-altering injuries.
 

Starting in October boat inspections will move to select launch ramps and winter hours will begin.

Tahoe Resource Conservation District inspectors will be stationed at Cave Rock and Lake Forest boat launches from 6am-4pm seven days a week, weather and construction permitting. All boats without an intact Tahoe inspection seal are required to get an inspection during daylight hours.

Decontaminations are available at Cave Rock and Lake Forest throughout October as long as weather permits. Decontamination fees will apply for watercraft that are not clean, drained and dry. Watercraft that have been in a known infested waterbody will also require a precautionary decontamination at no cost.

Boats with intact inspection seals are permitted to launch at all open launch facilities; however, inspections are only available at Cave Rock and Lake Forest.

Boaters are encouraged to confirm hours and inspection locations online or call 888.824.6267.

During the 2016 boating season, Tahoe RCD watercraft inspectors performed more than 7,500 inspections.  In total, more than 15,000 vessels launched at Lake Tahoe, including both newly inspected vessels and those with intact Tahoe-issued inspection seals.

Off-highway vehicle enthusiasts and interested members of the public may give input regarding  sign content for the McKinney Rubicon kiosk at a meeting Sept. 22.

It will be from 1-4pm at the U.S. Forest Service office in South Lake Tahoe, 35 College Drive.

For more information about the meeting, contact Mike Gabor 530.543.2642 or emailmgabor@fs.fed.us.

Crews will be on working around the clock on Sept. 21 and Sept. 26-Oct. 7 on the bike path-stormwater project on Highway 28 in Incline Village.

Motorists should anticipate delays of up to 30 minutes with one-lane flagger controlled closures near Hidden Beach, one mile south of Incline Village.

Work will include relocation of a sewer pipe near Sand Harbor as well as an undercrossing tunnel for the shared-use bike path.

In addition, rolling road closures will occur from 7am-9am on Sept. 28 and Oct. 2 for wide load trucks to deliver the precast concrete tunnel. Motorists should expect delays between 30-60 minutes. Northbound traffic will be held at certain locations on Highway 28 from the intersection of Highway 50 to Memorial Point, just north of Sand Harbor..

The roadside parking lot at Memorial Point will be closed from Sept. 27 at 5pm to Sept. 29, and from Oct. 1 at 5pm to the morning of Oct. 3.

After Oct. 7, access will revert to the original road configuration with construction hours returning to Monday-Friday, 7am-6pm through Oct. 20. All lanes will be open during non-working hours.

The project will be constructed over the next two to three years. When done there will be a 3-plus mile shared-use path from the south end of Incline Village to Sand Harbor State Park. An underpass will be constructed beneath the highway to bring the path from the east to west side of the road near the Flume Trail. Three new parking areas will be constructed near the Ponderosa Ranch and Tunnel Creek Café.

While Boreal usually is the first Tahoe area ski resort to open, Squaw Valley is on a quest to be close behind.

Following the region’s first snow fall this week, the resort has bumped up opening day from Nov. 23 to the week of Nov. 11, weather and conditions permitting.

Following the earliest opening in more than a decade in the 2015-16 season largely thanks to early season snowmaking efforts, Squaw Valley has invested more than $1 million in snowmaking enhancements for 2016-17, adding to a total of $9 million over six years. The resort now boasts a total of 317 snowmaking guns with a fully automated system at Squaw Valley and upgraded infrastructure as well as two new state-of-the-art grooming cats at Alpine Meadows.

Once the snowmaking system is fired up crews will operate around the clock to prepare to open between Nov. 11 and Nov. 18.

By Tony Berendsen

In the beginning there were five planets. Our ancestors watched them for millennia knowing they differed from the stationary stars in the heavens; they wandered. They were given names and mythologies to share from generation to generation and ruled the night sky as gods. Then a man with a telescope discovered another one in 1781.

Uranus had been in the night sky all along, but no one noticed until Sir William Herschel, scanning the area of Taurus with his 6.2-inch reflecting telescope for double stars, ran across a fuzzy looking object. He first thought it might be a comet, but then later he was convinced it was a planet. The planet became the sixth planet known to exist in the solar system and was eventually named Uranus, the father of Saturn. And it was bright enough to be seen with the naked eye, but just went unnoticed.

Celestial objects are rated by a brightness system. The star Vega is the standard rated at 0.0 magnitude. Objects brighter than Vega have lower numbers, and dimmer objects have higher numbers. As an example, the brightest object in the sky is the Sun at -26.74 mag. and Neptune the dimmest planet at 8.0 mag. The dimmest objects we can see with the naked eye are about 6.0 mag.

Uranus was overlooked for years, but is visible with the naked eye. Photo/NASA/Hubble

The brightness of Uranus ranges slightly depending on how close it is to the Earth, and is brightest when the Earth passes between it and the sun during opposition, but even at its brightest it’s barely visible to the naked eye observer. Currently, the planet is about 5.7 magnitude in the constellation Pisces. Uranus wasn’t noticed until telescopes were used to study the starry sky because it was so dim, and moved very slowly amongst the stars.

Uranus is the next planet out beyond Saturn and the third largest planet in the solar system. It wanders amongst the night sky repeating its path every 84 years as it orbits around the sun. Comprised of water, helium, hydrogen, ammonia, and methane, its an ice giant just slightly larger than its neighbor Neptune. Inside Uranus the pressures are extreme, possibly creating a diamond mantle surrounding a small rocky core. Also, Uranus spins on its side relative to the plane of the Solar System, and sports a very defuse ring.

Even knowing the exact position of Uranus in the night sky you would need very keen eyesight and extremely dark skies to spot it with the naked eye. Complicating the task, darker skies reveal more stars making it very difficult to identify dim Uranus from the multitude.

A computerized telescope is a great way to see Uranus. Even a modest sized scope will show the disk of the planet and reveal its bluish color, but there is a fun and somewhat challenging way to see Uranus. If you have a pair of binoculars, some patience, and a place away from bright lights give a try finding the planet with a little help from an astronomy app.

Load up the astronomy app Sky Safari on your pad or smart phone. Set the magnitude limit of the app to 8.0 and the time to 11pm. Find the planet Uranus on your smart device screen, zoom into the area around planet and notice there is a line of three stars just below (south) the planet, all of them about 6.0 to 8.0 mag., and at the top of the line the planet Uranus.

Then go outside to start hunting. Use the constellations Aries and Pieces to guide you to the correct part of the sky and use the star patterns shown in Sky Safari to guide you to the little line of dim stars with Uranus at the top. By the way, this method of finding an object in the night sky is called “Star Hopping”. It’s a method amateur astronomers use to search for celestial objects.

So happy planet hunting the naked eye planet Uranus. And while you are out underneath the stars take some time to explore the rest of the sky. There is a lot to see, even with binoculars.

Tony Berendsen runs Tahoe Star Tours. He may be reached at 775. 232.0844 or tony@tahoestartours.com.

Permits for the Nevada Division of State Park’s annual wood sale will be available beginning Sept. 17 at 8am at the Sand Harbor main office.

Permits are $65 per cord, with a limit of one cord per address/family and available on a first-come, first-served basis. The wood is a mixture of pine and fir, some seasoned and some green, and is mostly stove length, although some odd sized and large rounds are possible.

Wood is limited; 60 permits are available, with a waiting list for any additional material. Wood may be picked up from the North Canyon area of Spooner Lake beginning Sept. 24. Pick-up days are flexible and will be coordinated at the time of permit purchase.

Access into North Canyon requires navigation through areas of loose, sandy soils. Four-wheel drive or heavy duty two-wheel drive vehicles are strongly recommended. Trailers may be permitted at the discretion of State Parks personnel.

For more info, call 775.831.0494 or email tahoesp@hughes.net.