parks

The following is the ski, snowboard and weather report for Wednesday, January 6, 2016 for South Lake Tahoe brought to you by Lake Tahoe SkiBum. Due to the new storm, winds may affect lift operations today. This report is as of 8:00 a.m. so follow the links on each resort recap to check current lift status.

The following is the ski, snowboard and weather report for Monay, January 4, 2016 for South Lake Tahoe brought to you by Lake Tahoe SkiBum.

The following is the ski, snowboard and weather report for Saturday, January 2, 2016 for South Lake Tahoe brought to you by Lake Tahoe SkiBum.

Weather - South Lake Tahoe will have a high of 33 and a low tonight of 22. Today: Isolated snow showers. Partly sunny, with a high near 33. Southwest wind around 5 mph becoming calm. Chance of precipitation is 20%. Tonight: Mostly cloudy, with a low around 22. Southeast wind around 5 mph.

To make way for "Star Wars," Disneyland is about to launch its largest expansion ever, which means shutting down a significant chunk of the Anaheim theme park.

In January, 10 attractions and eateries will close — some temporarily, some permanently — only a few months after the resort hiked the price of annual passes as much as 31%. This spring, Disneyland's biggest rival, Universal Studios Hollywood, plans to unveil a widely anticipated Harry Potter attraction.

The South Tahoe High Sober Grad Night Task Force would like to thank the following businesses and individuals who helped make our annual event for the graduating seniors such a success! The kids loved the evening and it couldn't have been made possible if you weren't a part of it.

Sometime in the future, one will be able to hop on a bike at Van Sickle Bi-State Park and travel on Class 1 trails to Sierra Tract, and hopefully beyond.

The concept for the trail where people would walk and bike safely off the main roads actually began in 1985. Caltrans owned land through the middle of neighborhoods where a highway was proposed, but when it was apparent that would never be built, the California Tahoe Conservancy (CTC) joined Caltrans in discussions to obtain the land.

Smoke from prescribed burns moved into the Lake Tahoe basin on Monday, worrying many that there was a nearby out of control fire. Two huge plumes of smoke over the Sierras could be seen from Placerville during the afternoon.

Approximately 5,100 acres of National Forest land are slated to be burned this fall, winter and spring according to the U.S. Forest Service (USFS).

The lack of fields for soccer, baseball, football, softball and other sports has long been a point of contention in South Lake Tahoe.

Recognizing the value of recreation in South Lake Tahoe, along with the need for trails, fields and parks, Measure S passed by voters in 2000. It brought in $6,500,000 to be used to maintain new bike trails, acquire, construct, and equip athletic fields, upgrade of Paradise Park facilities and construction of an ice rink. The measure promised three new fields in South Lake Tahoe, they got one.

The California Transportation Commission announced this week that it will award nearly $9 million in Active Transportation Program (ATP) grant funding to help complete three major bike and pedestrian projects in the City of South Lake Tahoe and Tahoe City.

Members of the Lake Tahoe Bikeway Partnership applied for the grants. The partnership formed several years ago to secure funding for critical trail segments to improve bicyclist and pedestrian safety and complete the Lake Tahoe Bikeway, a comprehensive multi-use trail network for the Lake Tahoe Region.

It's been almost 100 years since Antoine de Saint-Exupery wrote, "A goal without a plan, is just a wish." This is still true today, and the City of South Lake Tahoe has been busy getting area plans completed so current and future goals could be planned.

They have joined forces with El Dorado County to come up with a Parks, Trails and Recreation Master Plan for the Lake Tahoe South Shore, and not only is it ready to look over, the public is invited to participate in its review during an upcoming meeting.

The final portion of the Class 1 bike trail network between Meyers and South Lake Tahoe was formally opened Wednesday with a ribbon cutting ceremony.

Members of the El Dorado County project team were on hand along with current Area 5 Supervisor Sue Novasel and former Supervisor Norma Santiago. Partner agency staff were also there to celebrate the completion.

California State Parks will begin prescribed fire operations this week on the North Shore of Lake Tahoe near Tahoe City. Operations will take place on 103 acres in Burton Creek State Park beginning Thursday, October 15, 2015, and will continue over the next several weeks as conditions allow.

The newest multi-use trail connecting Lake Tahoe Blvd and Highway 50 will officially open with a dedication ceremony at 3 p.m. on October 14.

District Five County Supervisor Sue Novasel, the communities of South Lake Tahoe and Meyers and the Transportation Division of the County of El Dorado's Community Development Agency invite all interested parties to a ribbon cutting ceremony celebrating the opening of the final connection of the Class 1 bicycle and multi-use path network connecting the communities of Meyers and South Lake Tahoe.

22 years in the making, GM of Sierra at Tahoe John Rice, has been living the dream. Rice contributed to the “snowboarding energy” in Tahoe, and specifically at Sierra at Tahoe, in the early 90’s. At a time when snowboarding was barely allowed at the resort and had a non-existent park scene, Rice made a mark.

We were making snowcats do things they weren’t made to do at a time when [snowboard terrain] parks weren’t even allowed [at Sierra at Tahoe].

Are some bears just born to be bad? Or do they learn from other bears that raid garbage cans, break into cars and homes and eventually have to be killed because they’ve lost their fear of humans?

Scientists have researched this classic debate over “nature” and “nurture” among black bears for decades, from Yosemite National Park in the Sierra to central Florida and the Adirondacks in upstate New York.

Residents go to the City for a number of requests, and in order to make sure procedures are followed on those requests, new policies were created Tuesday during the South Lake Tahoe City Council meeting.

A Champions Plaza Recognition Policy was created in order to know how to handle the expected requests for names to be placed at the new venue at the corner of Highway 50 and Lakeview Avenue. The sculpture was selected earlier this summer.

Top experts in the Western United States’ fight against aquatic invasive species are gathering at Lake Tahoe this week as the Tahoe Regional Planning Agency hosts the annual conference of the Western Regional Panel on Aquatic Nuisance Species September 2-4.

The Western Regional Panel on Aquatic Nuisance Species includes representatives from state, federal, and tribal agencies as well as from many academic and nonprofit entities. It was formed by a provision in the National Invasive Species Act of 1996.

Each year the Tahoe Douglas Rotary Club holds their signature fundraiser, the St. Patrick's Day Celebration, and because of this they are able to give away tens of thousands of dollars in scholarships, grants and gifts to members of the community.

On Friday, local non-profits were handed the fruits of the Rotarian's labor at their annual community donation day.

This year, the following groups received a donation either at the meeting or during the school year:
Zephyr Cove Elementary School
Boy Scouts Troop 468
Boy Scouts Troop 594
WHittell High Boosters

Design Workshop, the company behind several recent South Lake Tahoe projects, won two awards from the Washoe County Open Space and Regional Park Commission.

The company, who has an office on the South Shore, has completed projects in 30 countries over the last 45 years. They received the Elmer H. Anderson Parks Excellence Award for the work they have done to make the Ballardini Ranch Trailhead project a success. The project team also included Wood Rodgers, Spanish Springs Construction and Angie Persigehl.

There is nothing quite like rich mahogany reflecting off the pure blue waters of Lake Tahoe, and there will be plenty of it to see as over 85 of the world's rarest wooden boats come to the Tahoe Keys Marina as part of the 8th Annual Wooden Boat Classic this weekend.

Each year, over 3,000 people walk through the boat slips, checking out the rare boats. There will be music, wine, food and vendors to enjoy as well. The Wooden Boat Classic brings together the fascinating and priceless history behind these elegant machines.

Douglas County was awarded $106,000 for the construction of a trailhead on Buckeye Road to serve the proposed Martin Slough Bike Path. The Douglas County project was one of twelve selected out of twenty two applicants to receive grants from the Nevada State Parks Recreational Trail Program. When complete, the Martin Slough Bike Path will connect Jakes Wetland in Minden to the Gilman Ponds in Gardnerville. The path will be 2.61 miles long and consist of a 10-foot wide paved section. Funding for the path is from the Nevada Department of Transportation’s Local Technical Assistance Program.

Cycling in South Lake Tahoe was the focus of the second Annual Cycle Celebration on Saturday. Kids both young and old were at the Heavenly Village to participate in a Bike Parade, Bike Rodeo, Bike Tune-Up station and informational booths.

The celebration wrapped up the two-week long Tahoe Bike Challenge where hundreds of people got out of their cars and biked to school, work and for play.

During Saturday's activities, the Lake Tahoe Bicycle Coalition honored the Town of Truckee and Karen & Pete Fink for their contributions to cycling in the region.

Those of us living in the Sierra Nevada are well aware of the drought and of the growing threat of wildfires caused by dry conditions. Due to the threat of catastrophic wildfires in the West, three major players at the government level have called for reforms in the way the federal government funds wildfire suppression efforts.

Off-road enthusiasts will be flocking to the Rubicon Trail once again this summer, and the El Dorado County Sheriff’s Office Off-Highway Vehicle (OHV) team will be there to keep it safe.

The mission of the team is to provide education to the public, maintain the family friendly atmosphere and when necessary, use enforcement to support that education. In its fifteenth year on the Rubicon Trail, the OHV team is again helmed by Sergeant Bryan Brown and staffed with one full-time seasonal deputy and eight part-time deputies who work the OHV team, in addition to their usual duties.