Get lost in Tahoe’s rich history & legends

Immerse Yourself

Immerse yourself in Lake Tahoe’s past. Read inspiring words from Mark Twain. Take a close look at how the wealthy from the roaring twenties summered in Tahoe. That’s just a small taste at the deep history that exists in South Lake Tahoe.

Vikingsholm Castle in Emerald Bay State Park

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Dip Your Toes In Tahoe’s History

The Washoe, gold rush fever, and an eccentric millionaire. The quilted patchwork of Tahoe’s past is one that must be read to be believed. Before Europeans set eyes on the lake, the Washoe considered it beautiful and sacred. The Comstock Lode brought the first European settlers into the Lake Tahoe Basin. And it wasn’t until after the mining boom was over that Tahoe began to experience its true boom: tourism. In fact, the first tourist destination in the region was built in 1864 and can still be seen today!

As it lay there with the shadows of the mountains brilliantly photographed upon its still surface, I thought it must surely be the fairest picture the whole earth affords.
Mark Twain on Lake Tahoe

History of Tahoe & Its People

The lake was the center of the Washoe world for centuries providing a bounty of different foods to last the winter, and of course we can see why they chose this beautiful place. The Washoe camped, hunted, fished, and cherished Lake Tahoe, which they considered sacred life-sustaining water.

The Cool. The Unusual. And The Hidden

Just because it’s from the past doesn’t mean you can’t see it today. Dive into history literally by touring the 1^st underwater state park in California home to shipwrecks more than a century old. Find out why it’s called Ski Run Boulevard. Visit Lake Tahoe’s hidden architectural beauty known as St. Francis of the Mountains.

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The Glen Alpine waterfall is near one of Tahoe’s original resorts

Twain’s Imprint On Tahoe

There isn’t a single person that’s left a bigger impression on the world about Tahoe than Mark Twain. Just like many before him and those after, the crystal clear water surrounded by massive peaks sparked something within his soul to write about it.

“The air up there in the clouds is very pure and fine. Bracing and delicious. And why shouldn’t it be? It is the same the angels breathe.”
Mark Twain on Lake Tahoe

We’ve got snowflakes. ❄️
The temperature is 33°F.
Ready to shred the steeps?

See It With Your Own Eyes