July Trail Work
We were finally able to resume small-group, socially-distanced trail work last month on some of our major trails around the lake. Here’s a bit of what we accomplished in July, thanks to a dedicated group of volunteers and contracted trail builders:
Tyrolian Downhill Trail
We’re thrilled to announce that work is finally underway on the upper approach from Tahoe Meadows on Mount Rose Highway to the start of the Tyrolian Downhill Trail. Logging in the area finished up last year, making the timing perfect to finally build a dedicated connection all the way to the top of Mount Rose Highway.
Thank you to the Tahoe Fund for their generous grant to help bring this wonderful project to the Tahoe Basin!
We’re excited to be partnering for the first time with Cam Zink and his non-profit trail-building company R.A.D. Trails to design and build this section of trail. The first 0.75 miles from Tahoe Meadows will be a flowy singletrack trail before transitioning to a 0.75-mile section of trail featuring rollovers, tabletops, step-ups, step-downs, and triple-option jumps that will provide a unique and challenging experience for riders to practice and increase their skills. A key part of this project is to then decommission and remove old and eroded logging roads to help reduce erosion.
While the current Tyrolian Downhill Trail will remain open during construction, we ask that you stay off the new trail until it is completed to help keep the project on schedule. Please use caution when biking near the project site. The project is expected to be completed this fall. Stay tuned for volunteer opportunities later this fall.
Lily Lake
We’ve been making great strides on the Lily Lake Trail, even with all the rock work involved. We’ve had dedicated veteran and new volunteers joining us each week to make steady progress. We’ve also had a paid crew working on some of the big turns, which involves building 6-foot tall dry-stone retaining walls. If you are interested in joining us, please email Scott Brown at scott@tamba.org.
Stanford Rock
TAMBA volunteer crews have continued building on Stanford Rock Trail. At least twice a week, volunteers have been out building a fun, flowy new section of trail. We’re putting the finishing touches on another mile of hand-built singletrack.
The most time-consuming part of the trail is building the rock-armored bermed turns. Each of the large turns requires 3,000-5,000+ pounds of rock. One large turn may take 3 to 4 days to build.
If you’re interested in getting out and helping complete this project, please email the project lead, Sandor Lengyel, at sandor@tamba.org to RSVP for a Wednesday or Sunday work day.
Kingsbury to Keller (“K2K”)
The Kingsbury to Keller, K2K, reroute is underway with the Tahoe Rim Trail Association leading the effort and TAMBA assisting. The goal is to upgrade the existing trail that connects Kingsbury Grade and Keller Road by creating sustainable, non-motorized singletrack.
This summer, we are working on the section of trail in Nevada State Parks. Progress has been made on an alternative route from the current K2K-Van Sickle junction to the Lower Van Sickle trail junction, a route designed to disperse trail users and mitigate conflict. As you can see in the photos, there’s been a good amount of rock work and rigging!
For the time being, this project is only being worked on by TRTA and TAMBA Crew Leaders.
Bijou Bike Park
Basic maintenance has been ongoing at the Bijou Bike Park with our intern, Vince, getting out there early before the crowds on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday mornings from 6:30 to 8:30 a.m. If you’re interested in joining Vince, email us at trails@tamba.org to RSVP!
We’d love to have you out there and it’s a great way to start the day.
TAMBA Released its 2020-2025 Strategic Plan
In the fall of 2010, TAMBA was resurrected after several years of inactivity. The 10 years since then have been a whirlwind for us, with a long list of successes and valuable partnerships. As we look to the future, we’re excited to release TAMBA’s 2020-2025 Strategic Plan to help define our next steps and attract new leadership and supporters.
TAMBA leadership started working on this plan in the summer of 2019 and finished it in June 2020 in a vastly different, COVID-19 world. Although it won’t solve the issues of crowded trails or social equity, we feel it’s a great start to move forward into a new world where trails and respect are more important than ever.
As a kick-starter to accomplishing the goals and strategies laid out in our Strategic Plan, one of our top supporters (appropriately dressed as Superman on page 6 in the plan) will be donating up to $20,000 this year, matching your donations made in August and September. To donate, click here.
Feel free to email us at info@TAMBA.org with questions or feedback about our Strategic Plan. We hope you enjoy getting a feel for where TAMBA is headed over the next five years!
Responsible Recreation
At the writing of this email wildfires rage across California bringing smoke and unhealthy air quality while burning many acres of parks and open space, compounding already tough times. The trails in Tahoe will be a bit less crowded now as everyone stays inside to save our lungs.
In the meantime let’s look back on this summer and recognize how important trails have become to everyone. It’s amazing that we’ve been able to have multiple trail improvement projects under construction this year. It’s a testament to our trail crews, pro builders, and volunteers. Unfortunately our events have been postponed but advocacy and education is more important than ever to keep these places open for future generations.
Thank You to Recent Large Donors
While we appreciate every donation we receive, TAMBA would like to thank the following individuals in particular for their recent generous donations:
- Bernard Creegan – $1,000
- Barry Golombik – $1,000
- Flume Trail Bikes – Max Jones – $1,000
- Mars Bonfire & Kathleen Cheever Bonfire – $1,000
- Thomas McConnon – $500
- David Polivy – $500
- Jesse Ward-Karet – $500
- Jim Backhus – $1,000
- Kaplan Family Charitable Fund – $500
We appreciate their support, especially as we try to navigate these difficult times.
