By Elizabeth Larson, Lake County News

LAKEPORT -– Lake County Water Resources will seek the support of the Board of Supervisors this week in sending letters to the state to ask for changes in Fish and Game code that addresses the threat of invasive species.

County Water Resources Director Scott De Leon’s report to the board states that he and his staff believe that, in order to strengthen the county’s quagga mussel prevention program, State Fish and Game Code 2300 needs to be modified, and he’s asking for the county to send state representatives letters to that effect.

That particular section of code governs aquatic invasive species and is up for reauthorization in January 2012, De Leon reported.

De Leon is proposing the addition of a requirement that all out-of-state boats or boats that have launched in infested areas have a “dirty boat sticker” that could only be countered by a “clean sticker” given by a Fish and Game or other authorized inspector.

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Mix of rain and snow at lake level, and snow at the 8,000-foot level this morning.

Mt. Rose is closed today because of high winds.

Here is the ski report from Curtis Fong, the Guy from Tahoe.

The U.S. Forest Service is looking for volunteers who love working outdoors, enjoy talking to people, and are dedicated to preserving one of our nation’s most popular wilderness areas, Desolation Wilderness.

Desolation Wilderness is approximately 63,960 acres of sub-alpine and alpine forest, granite peaks, and glacially-formed valleys and lakes located west of Lake Tahoe and north of Highway 50 in El Dorado County and jointly managed by the Eldorado National Forest and Lake Tahoe Basin Management Unit.

The public is invited to attend the volunteer orientation to learn about the different opportunities, what is required and how your help is important to the preservation of Desolation Wilderness.

The meeting is May 4 at 7pm, LTBMU office, 35 College Drive, South Lake Tahoe.

The Lake Tahoe Nevada State Park Backcountry Patrol organization is recruiting patrollers to serve in the 2011 season.

The volunteer patrollers offer a valuable service to all trail users as ambassadors to the sport of mountain biking and the Tahoe area.

Currently in its 10th year of operation, and recently incorporated as a nonprofit organization, the patrol is part of the International Mountain Bicycling Association’s National Mountain Bike Patrol program. The 20 or so active patrollers are responsible for approximately 2,000 contacts during the summer season. These are usually questions about the park history, trail recommendations, or riding etiquette; but the patrollers are also ready to fix a flat tire, bandage a wound, or assist with an emergency evacuation.

The patrol operates primarily out of Lake Tahoe Nevada State Park on the East Shore, including the world famous Flume Trail. The patrol also partners with the Tahoe Rim Trail Association to cover other areas of the Tahoe Rim Trail around the lake.

Training for new patrollers has been scheduled for orientation on April 30 and field training on June 18. There will also be first aid/CPR training available for those who need it.

The organization relies on donations, grants, and special events such as the TRT Ultra Marathon and the Great Tahoe Flume Race for funding. For more information on becoming a patroller or supporting the patrol, go online or email info@tahoebikepatrol.org.

The Tahoe Rim Trail Association and U.S. Forest Service’s third annual regional guide training is May 13-15 at Granlibakken Conference Center in Tahoe City.

In order to meet the needs of the public and to provide the best possible experience on the trail for all types of users, the TRTA and USFS aim to continue developing and hosting a high-quality, regional guide training each spring. This training provides volunteers and professional guides the skills they need to be competent, responsible wilderness guides who know how to lead a group, whether in an urban or a remote setting. This comprehensive training, offered to the general public gives eager outdoors people the skills to not only be successful in their outdoor pursuits, but also to be knowledgeable and excellent volunteer or paid guides.

New this year, being offered to organizations is the chance to market their opportunities on Saturday afternoon. New guides are encouraged to sign up for Foundations of Guiding (Track A) led by experienced TRTA guides and partner organizations. Interpretation (Track B) is aimed toward those that specifically want to learn interpretive skills. This track will be instructed by USFS staff from the Lake Tahoe Basin Management Unit that specialize in interpretation and education.

If you are interested in being a guide for the Tahoe Rim Trail Association or another organization, this is the training for you.

All participants over 18 years of age are welcome to attend, regardless of background or level of ability.

Dates: May 13 at noon to May 15 at 1:30pm.

Cost: $165 per person for all three days of training.

The cost includes all meals from Friday dinner to Sunday lunch and dormitory style lodging.

Registration: The deadline for registration is April 30. To register, go online. For more information, please call the TRTA office at (775) 298-0012.

Oh, what a difference five years makes. Fourteen inches of snow fell on April 17, 2006, in Tahoe City.

It’s sunny this morning, but rain could come later today. High is supposed to be 58 degrees in South Lake Tahoe.

Here is the ski report from Curtis Fong, the Guy from Tahoe.

Combine an Easter egg hunt with an avalanche beacon search practice session, and the result is the 5th annual Beacon & Eggs beacon search contest at Alpine Meadows Ski Resort.

Beacon & Eggs is a fun, free beacon hunt out on the mountain on April 24.

Avalanche beacons will be buried in a 1-acre area at Alpine Meadows. The hidden beacons are wrapped in a protective pad and placed below the snow surface, which are then groomed over via snowcat to hide any “hints” as to their whereabouts.

Competitors will start en masse and will race on foot in search the buried backpacks using their beacons in “search” mode. Competitors work individually or in teams (up to four people), sharing the prizes for recovering the beacon. Competitors redeem a found beacon, which corresponds to an incredible prize pack, including outdoor and adventure gear from local sporting goods stores.

Free registration is at the Beacon & Eggs event tent near the top of Subway Chair Lift (next to the base lodge) from 9-11:45am. The start is at noon near the top of the Subway beginner lift, adjacent to the base lodge.

Competitors must provide their own beacons, probes, and shovels.

For additional information and details, call (530) 583.4232.

Blue skies, plenty of snow — and the calendar says mid-April. Enjoy the slopes while they’re still open.

Here is the ski report from Curtis Fong, the Guy from Tahoe.

By John Schumacher, Sacramento Bee

Imagine having eight days to showcase California to friends or relatives who come visiting every year.

Where do you take them? Which places are left out? How is the itinerary changed each year to keep the visits fresh and interesting?

Heading into its sixth year, the Amgen Tour of California pro bicycling race keeps trying to answer those questions, with officials eager to tweak the route to keep riders challenged and interested.

San Jose is the only city to host a race stage all six years. Sacramento has served as a host city for the past five.

With the route constantly changing, though, and with dozens of cities applying to host stages each year, no one takes for granted they’ll remain in the Amgen lineup.

Fifty communities sought host spots in this year’s race, set for May 15-22.

Santa Rosa, hometown of three-time Amgen winner Levi Leipheimer, was left out this year but will host the overall start of the race in 2012, committing a reported $580,000 to secure that role.

That effort makes folks elsewhere nervous. Starting the race in Santa Rosa could cause Sacramento to be bypassed. Lake Tahoe officials also are concerned, after working long and hard to land the 2011 overall start only to discover that honor for 2012 already is locked up.

“Everywhere I go, I tell people, ‘Don’t expect this is an automatic every year,’ ” said John McCasey, executive director of the Sacramento Sports Commission. ” ‘Don’t get smug about great concessions and great crowds. Don’t get smug we’re the state capital. But don’t doubt for a second those things don’t matter.’ ”

McCasey said tour officials told him early in the race’s existence they would change venues and routes, mixing it up and making it unpredictable.

Sacramento has ample hotel space, a major gateway airport to the region and proximity to Lake Tahoe. But with Santa Rosa, San Francisco and San Diego among communities not in the 2011 race, McCasey and others are bracing for the year they’re left out.

“It’s going to come, just like it came with Santa Rosa this year,” McCasey said. “I think we would be disappointed, but I think we want this race to be successful on a long-term basis.

“The win-it-all-every-time mentality doesn’t work on this tour.”

Carol Chaplin, executive director of the Lake Tahoe Visitors Authority, said she’s not sure how her area fits into Amgen’s future plans after landing a spot in the race for the first time.

The tour’s growing international prestige has ratcheted up competition to participate, she said, and continuing to change stage routes has made the race more interesting.

“What we thought we brought to the table is the Alpine environment that was similar to the Alpine environment of European races so well-established,” Chaplin said. “It is a little stressful to think this could be a one-time shot.”

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The public is being asked to weigh-in on the nine-mile Martis Valley Trail that would link Truckee and Lake Tahoe.

The April 20 meeting from 5:30-7:30pm will be at the Truckee Town Hall.

Two options are under review for the 5.4-mile section from Truckee to Northstar-at-Tahoe. One is visible from Highway 267, the other is not.