Seeing some of that fine photographic footage on the Rose to Toads epic from this last weekend got me thinking about our own 40 mile Rose to Heavenly epic this weekend up there as well. I am just irritated coming off the TRT and dropping all the way down to Spooner on a fireroad. Let me know what you think about this letter to the nevada state parks. If you know anybody to whom this could be specifically directed that would be great.
"I just wanted to forward a couple questions and comments from my biking experience in your outstanding park this weekend.
First of all, I want to thank you for opening the southern edge of the Spooner Lake trail to cyclists. This is the fourth time in seven years that I have ridden through from Mount Rose on the Tahoe Rim Trail on the way to Kingsbury Grade and beyond. This is the first time I have not had to ride out on the very busy Hwy 28 at the Spooner Park entrance and skirt along the very narrow shoulder and jersey barrier trying to get up to the Spooner pass. That was a very welcome discovery. Last time we did it, we hiked our bikes along the lake edge until we could climb up and over to the highway 50, just to avoid that scary piece of busy Hwy 28 down below.
Is there any public place that the Nevada Parks keeps statistics on it's user mix for specific recreation areas? I would like to know what is the justification to close the Tahoe Rim from Hobart Road to Spooner Summit? I understand it is NOT wilderness area. When coming from the Tahoe Meadows south we cyclists have to bypass that TRT entrance and instead drop all the way down to Marlette and then drop even further all the way to Spooner. Not only are we dropping several thousand feet of elevation that we have to partially regain to get back to Spooner Summit , but we are doing it on the fireroad access that is a tedious experience at best. Then we through travelers are treated with a one mile ride up HWY 50 to the TRT trail head south with cars, RVs, and Semis charging past at 65 MPH.
Coming down from Marlette to Spooner, only a fool would not have speed control considering the amount of foot and cycle traffic coming up that nontechnical steep hill from Spooner to ride the Flume. That hill (hobart road?) is not a gratifying experience in an otherwise sentinel day of cycling. I would frankly prefer to stay up on the TRT and make my way over to the climb up the Kingsbury bench without the extra crowded drop down to Spooner lake.
The exception to this would be if there was a singletrack that one could ride all the way down to Spooner. I am wondering about the route between Spooner Lake and Marlette Lake. I see that the parks has kindly built a nice hiking trail that climbs up to Marlette paralleling the road. Considering how many cyclists access Marlette and the flume, it seems a good idea to let the hikers be separated over there. At the same time, we dirt cyclists much prefer the narrow granite bejeweled single track that is the hallmark of the east rim of the Tahoe Rim trail. If a hiking only trail can be put in why not a biker trail as well. I would bet there are many many more cyclists getting up to Marlette and beyond than hikers.
I see that there is a shuttle service offered at the Spooner Lake to take riders up to Tahoe Meadows. I am not sure I agree with a Park sponsored shuttle service as it could create too much traffic up in the Tahoe Meadows, but nonetheless, these cyclists would be much more gratified if the last bit of the ride in to Spooner and their car was more challenging, shaded, speed controlled. If the shuttle service is intended to actually return a profit, I think it would have much more business if the last part of the trail was what mountain bikers look for; tight twisty swoopy singletrack all the way back to their cars, whether at Spooner or at Ponderosa.
Despite the incredible beauty from the famous Flume trail, it is a limited trail in all other areas. Flume flat, nontechnical, just with the occasional exposure. I think the Flume would be much more enjoyable to ride if there was some other payoff beside the Tunnel Creek or Spooner Road descent. We were able to ride the new TRT Kingsbury north trail extension. About 2.5 miles of descending trail, bypasses several miles of (paved) road, and is a stellar example for what the management group up at Spooner should be considering between Spooner and Marlette.
I come to Tahoe from the Chico area about eight times per summer. I bring family and friends who mountain bike. We spend money on dining and lodging. We concentrate our entertainment on biking. We frequent the many outdoor shops around the lake. We don't care for casinos and we don't enter the lake either. We have warmer lakes were we live. We just mountain bike. And we responsibly mountain bike. We wish there were more opportunities for singletrack for the mountain biker in the beautiful hills around Spooner Lake. We participate in bringing an economic benefit of very low environmental cost to your recreational region. There are many people like us, considering the number of happy cyclists we saw dotted up and down the entire east tahoe rim this past fine Saturday. All these people add money to your quiet mountain economy.
Until more east rim singletrack trail opportunities becomes the case, we will spend the bulk of our energy and money in the areas on the North and South of the great Lake Tahoe that are better developed with the holy grail of mountain biking, which is singletrack.
I specifically ask that the Tahoe Rim Trail be opened through to Spooner summit and that a new trail for mountain bikers be made from Spooner Lake up to Marlette Lake. Just to know that these kinds of ideas could be on the table for the Tahoe state parks would be very hopeful.
Thanks for considering these thoughts"
"I just wanted to forward a couple questions and comments from my biking experience in your outstanding park this weekend.
First of all, I want to thank you for opening the southern edge of the Spooner Lake trail to cyclists. This is the fourth time in seven years that I have ridden through from Mount Rose on the Tahoe Rim Trail on the way to Kingsbury Grade and beyond. This is the first time I have not had to ride out on the very busy Hwy 28 at the Spooner Park entrance and skirt along the very narrow shoulder and jersey barrier trying to get up to the Spooner pass. That was a very welcome discovery. Last time we did it, we hiked our bikes along the lake edge until we could climb up and over to the highway 50, just to avoid that scary piece of busy Hwy 28 down below.
Is there any public place that the Nevada Parks keeps statistics on it's user mix for specific recreation areas? I would like to know what is the justification to close the Tahoe Rim from Hobart Road to Spooner Summit? I understand it is NOT wilderness area. When coming from the Tahoe Meadows south we cyclists have to bypass that TRT entrance and instead drop all the way down to Marlette and then drop even further all the way to Spooner. Not only are we dropping several thousand feet of elevation that we have to partially regain to get back to Spooner Summit , but we are doing it on the fireroad access that is a tedious experience at best. Then we through travelers are treated with a one mile ride up HWY 50 to the TRT trail head south with cars, RVs, and Semis charging past at 65 MPH.
Coming down from Marlette to Spooner, only a fool would not have speed control considering the amount of foot and cycle traffic coming up that nontechnical steep hill from Spooner to ride the Flume. That hill (hobart road?) is not a gratifying experience in an otherwise sentinel day of cycling. I would frankly prefer to stay up on the TRT and make my way over to the climb up the Kingsbury bench without the extra crowded drop down to Spooner lake.
The exception to this would be if there was a singletrack that one could ride all the way down to Spooner. I am wondering about the route between Spooner Lake and Marlette Lake. I see that the parks has kindly built a nice hiking trail that climbs up to Marlette paralleling the road. Considering how many cyclists access Marlette and the flume, it seems a good idea to let the hikers be separated over there. At the same time, we dirt cyclists much prefer the narrow granite bejeweled single track that is the hallmark of the east rim of the Tahoe Rim trail. If a hiking only trail can be put in why not a biker trail as well. I would bet there are many many more cyclists getting up to Marlette and beyond than hikers.
I see that there is a shuttle service offered at the Spooner Lake to take riders up to Tahoe Meadows. I am not sure I agree with a Park sponsored shuttle service as it could create too much traffic up in the Tahoe Meadows, but nonetheless, these cyclists would be much more gratified if the last bit of the ride in to Spooner and their car was more challenging, shaded, speed controlled. If the shuttle service is intended to actually return a profit, I think it would have much more business if the last part of the trail was what mountain bikers look for; tight twisty swoopy singletrack all the way back to their cars, whether at Spooner or at Ponderosa.
Despite the incredible beauty from the famous Flume trail, it is a limited trail in all other areas. Flume flat, nontechnical, just with the occasional exposure. I think the Flume would be much more enjoyable to ride if there was some other payoff beside the Tunnel Creek or Spooner Road descent. We were able to ride the new TRT Kingsbury north trail extension. About 2.5 miles of descending trail, bypasses several miles of (paved) road, and is a stellar example for what the management group up at Spooner should be considering between Spooner and Marlette.
I come to Tahoe from the Chico area about eight times per summer. I bring family and friends who mountain bike. We spend money on dining and lodging. We concentrate our entertainment on biking. We frequent the many outdoor shops around the lake. We don't care for casinos and we don't enter the lake either. We have warmer lakes were we live. We just mountain bike. And we responsibly mountain bike. We wish there were more opportunities for singletrack for the mountain biker in the beautiful hills around Spooner Lake. We participate in bringing an economic benefit of very low environmental cost to your recreational region. There are many people like us, considering the number of happy cyclists we saw dotted up and down the entire east tahoe rim this past fine Saturday. All these people add money to your quiet mountain economy.
Until more east rim singletrack trail opportunities becomes the case, we will spend the bulk of our energy and money in the areas on the North and South of the great Lake Tahoe that are better developed with the holy grail of mountain biking, which is singletrack.
I specifically ask that the Tahoe Rim Trail be opened through to Spooner summit and that a new trail for mountain bikers be made from Spooner Lake up to Marlette Lake. Just to know that these kinds of ideas could be on the table for the Tahoe state parks would be very hopeful.
Thanks for considering these thoughts"