When visiting Lake Tahoe you will likely hear locals speaking about the Tahoe Rim Trail but you might be asking what is it? where is it? and what can I do on it?
The Tahoe Rim Trail Association describes it as a “Trail like No Other” which we are so lucky to have in our backyard at Lake Tahoe. A few cool facts about The Tahoe Rim Trail: 165 miles of single-track multiuser trail, circumvents Lake Tahoe peak by peak, passes through both California and Nevada, six counties, one state park, three National Forests and three Wilderness areas. If you have ever hiked in Lake Tahoe, you likely set foot on the Tahoe Rim Trail whether you knew it or not. Even better, the Tahoe Rim Trail isn’t limited to hiking, it offers something for all outdoor enthusiasts including horseback riding on all portions of the trail, backpacking for overnight adventurers as well as mountain biking access on more than 50% of the trail. One of the best features of the Tahoe Rim Trail is that it connects to so many other trails in Lake Tahoe including the famous Flume Trail on the East Shore and Pacific Crest National Scenic Trails along the West Shore just to name a few.
I love hiking and it’s so hard to pick my favorite portions of the Tahoe Rim trail! For shorter, 1/2 day hikes that are closeby, I enjoy hiking along the portions that loop Mt. Rose and the nearby Tahoe Meadows which can also be great snowshoeing trails in the wintertime. For longer day trips and overnight backpacking, I head towards Echo Lake in South Lake Tahoe to explore the trails that leads deep into Desolation Wilderness. I enjoy the trails that traverse though granite meadows and High Sierra alpine lakes that I visited as a child with my family during backpacking trips. Here is a map of the complete Tahoe Rim Trail.
Can’t choose? Wanna do it all? Join the 165 mile club and become the 1423rd member! That’s right, do as the locals do and set the goal to complete the entire Tahoe Rim Trail. I am proud to say that I have two local friends who accomplished this amazing feat a few summers ago. You can tackle this challenge in different ways and strategies. My friends completed it in one summer by dividing up sections of the trail, conquerining it one weekend at a time and enjoyed seeing so much of Lake Tahoe’s backcountry while doing it. If you are interested in joining the 165 mile club check out more details and a list of current members on their website.
The Trail Rim Trail is managed by the Tahoe Rim Trail Association, a nonprofit organization formed in 1981. They began constructing the trail in 1984, later completed in September of 2001. The Tahoe Rim Trail Association is continuously maintaining, restoring and reconstructing sections of the trail. Each season they offer volunteer programs to locals and visitors to work on repairing a section of the trail. If you love Lake Tahoe, especially hiking and biking, volunteering on the Tahoe Rim Trail is a great way to support Lake Tahoe and meet some of the locals who are dedicated to keeping Lake Tahoe the best lake! The Tahoe Rim Trail Association also offers educational seminars and special events for members, groups and visitors. To learn more about the Tahoe Rim Trail’s volunteering programs and schedule of events visit their website.
Have you hiked the Tahoe Rim Trail and if so do you have a favorite section? Share it in the comments below!
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Keeping Lake Tahoe...The Best Lake 
Ugh – I really miss Tahoe after reading your posts. My family and I lived in Lodi, CA for a few years and during the summer, went to our friend’s place on North Shore to hang out . . . . our friends came up mainly in the winter to ski and enjoy the winter activities so we’d go up two or three times every summer. Since we’ve moved to UT and it’s a 10 hr versus a 3 hr drive, we’ve only gone once . . . . think I may need to plan a trip this summer. 🙂
Thx for the post! Awesome stuff!
Thank you so much homesicklocal! Can’t tell you how much I appreciate your kind comment. Although I am sorry it makes you missing Tahoe! It is such an easy place to miss. I too am lucky to be on the North Shore. I definitely recommend a summer trip and look forward to sharing more and more summer tips in the coming month!
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