I recently shared a bunch of Truckee summer outdoor adventures that I love, and I’m back to share more fun things to do! While not all of these activities take place outdoors, they still take advantage of the nice summer weather and beautiful environment of Truckee!
Food & Drink
Beer: It’s no secret that I love beer, and our beer options in Truckee have been getting better and better! My #1 local brewery is still Alibi Ale Works, but the newer Truckee Brewing Company is quickly becoming a favorite. Mellow Fellow is a tap house in downtown Truckee with dozens of beers on tap (they recently had Pliny the Elder!). They’re also the northern California’s tasting room for Modern Times Beer, so they always have those beers on draft as well.
Wine: The best place to buy a bottle of wine is The Pour House on Jibboom Street in downtown Truckee. The owners put a lot of thought and effort into their wine choices and they have a huge selection. They’re always tasting something interesting and they have an excellent cheese selection as well. Though it’s not located on the river, Truckee River Winery is worth stopping by. They not only have good wine, I love hanging out in their outdoor space. Get snacks and a bottle of wine and play some bocce in the sun.
Happy Hour: There are some great happy hour deals in downtown Truckee, and my favorite is at Pianeta, an excellent Italian restaurant. Happy hour is only at the bar and it’s best to get there a little before 5. They have $6 house wine, $5 beers, $7 for certain cocktails and a great price on appetizers. I love the Bruschetta Two Ways and the Mozzarella Fresca. Best Pies has happy hour every day from 2-6 pm. It’s $5 for a big slice of pizza and a beer!
Outdoor Dining: When the weather is nice, I want to eat outside. My favorite restaurant patio is hands down Cottonwood Restaurant & Bar. It’s location on a hill, looking down at the Truckee River and downtown, means it has the best view. The food and drinks are great too, though on the higher end price-wise. For a cheaper option downtown, I like El Toro Bravo. Their patio is covered, so it’s a great option for really sunny days. I like their chile relleno best. Also downtown is Old Town Tap, which has great cocktails, and excellent beer selection and interesting toppings on their wood fired pizza. On the other side of town is Red Truck, which is located in the Truckee Airport. Red Truck is my favorite spot for vegetarian food in Truckee, and they have delicious breakfast bowls too. It’s a lunch counter style place, and you can take your food outside to picnic tables. This is a great spot to bring kids, as there’s a play area, big grassy spot to run around, and you can watch the small planes take off and land.
Coffee: I like coffee just as much as I like beer, and Truckee has some good spots. I work within walking distance of Coffeebar and Dark Horse Coffee Roasters and I’m a frequent visitor to both. At Coffeebar, I like the iced coffee and any of the baked goods and sitting outside on their patio. At Dark Horse, I HIGHLY recommend their cold brew latte with their homemade vanilla syrup. Pacific Crest Coffee Co. has been roasting and selling coffee for awhile, but their coffee shop is fairly new. It’s tiny, so not really a place to hang out for long, but the coffee is delicious and they have a selection of food to go.
Dessert: Self serve frozen yogurt is a great way to cap off a long hike or hot bike ride, and Summit Swirl has great options. It’s also open til 10 pm, which is late by Truckee standards. If you’re hanging out on Donner Lake, walk over to the Little Truckee Ice Creamery and have some of Truckee’s only locally made ice cream. I love the Truckee Trails flavor, which is sweet cream and pinenut brittle!
($88). Other popular, well reviewed mountain bike specific hydration packs are the 
($140), 
($82), and 
($88). The pros for hydration packs are that they give you the ability to pack a lot of gear, the ability to carry quite a bit of water, they distribute their weight across your whole back for comfort and stability, there a lot of options at a lot of price points, and they can be used for a variety of outdoor activities. The cons are that they tend to be on the heavy side, they can be hot and increase sweating during the ride, and having more contact points give more opportunities for chafing.
($40) for Christmas, and I love it – 
($83), 
($56). The pros for waist packs include that they are light weight, they allow for more air flow across your back, and that there are fewer pressure points that might cause chaffing. On the downside, you can’t carry as much gear or water, there are fewer quality options, and they move around more while riding.
($75), but I’ve never tried any out, so I don’t have any opinions or recommendations on those.
tablets have electrolytes without many calories, and I like 
when I need more nutrition along with electrolytes. Tailwind has about 100 calories per serving and is really easy on my stomach, especially when it’s hot out.
($50) which I’ve had for a couple of years and really like it. Slightly heavier but incredibly tough is 
($36) jersey that I’ve had for almost ten years and that has held up through a bunch of crashes. My newest light weight jersey is the 
($60) and the 
($35), which I’ve used a few times and really like. I have 
lightweight knee pads ($60) as well. If it’s really warm, I’ll strap them on my pack for the climb and put on for the downhill, but they’re also comfortable enough to pedal in if needed. Greyson also recently got the 
($85), and he really likes them. Finally, having a lightweight helmet is a key factor in staying cool. I highly recommend the 
($230), which is super ventilated and has a removable chin bar that you can take off for the climbs.
with a light layer underneath, since I’m going to be working up a sweat. I usually wear either my 
or a midweight 
for my base layer. For shoes, wet hikes are about the only time I switch trail runners for my 
light hikers. If it’s really wet or I’m going to be out for a long time, I’d replace the yoga pants I normally wear hiking with lightweight waterproof pants, like 
.
. I also wear full finger gloves when it’s rainy and cold. The 
work great for this. There is all sorts of other gear for long road rides in the rain, like shoe covers, under helmet hats, etc., but honestly, my rides in the rain don’t last long enough to need it.