Ugggghhh, I am not happy about this return to winter! I am ready for long, sunny days at the lake, hikes, mountain biking, and drinking beer on patios. We’re in for quite a stretch of rainy days, but luckily there’s plenty of things to do in Truckee and Tahoe when the weather isn’t great.
Bars, Breweries and Restaurants
Eating and drinking is always a fun indoor activity, and this area has a number of great ones. Here are some of my favorites:
- Alibi Ale Works Brewery (Truckee & Incline Village): This brewery has awesome beer and something going on most nights of the week – from outdoor movies to trivia to knitting to open mikes to charity bingo to live music, there’s something for almost everyone. Check out my brewery review here!
- Cottonwood Restaurant & Bar and Moody’s Bistro (Truckee): For a fancier night out in Truckee, these two restaurants are my favorites. Cottonwood has an amazing view of downtown Truckee and Moody’s is perfectly located for bar hopping after dinner. Both restaurants have great food and fun cocktails.
- West Shore Pizza (Tahoma): This place has my favorite pizza in the area, great beer, and a casual, laid back atmosphere that makes it a great place to hang out while it’s raining.
- Artemis Lakefront Cafe (South Lake Tahoe): If you want to eat with a lake view while staying dry, I love Artemis Lakefront Cafe in South Lake’s Ski Run Marina. Their whole menu is amazing, but especially their brunch food (Baklava French toast? Come on!). They also have a full bar, so you can get a real Bloody Mary. Artemis has two locations with great food, but only the Lakefront Cafe has brunch and view.
- South Lake Brewing Company (South Lake Tahoe): Located in the more industrial part of town, South Lake Brewing Company is worth the trek. Their beer is great (be sure to try the Trail Builder Pale if it’s on draft – proceeds from this beer benefit TAMBA). The big warehouse setting means there’s plenty of room for games, well behaved dogs, and large groups.
Indoor Activities
While Tahoe and Truckee are known for their outdoor activities, there are a ton of fun things to do indoors (even ones that don’t involve the casinos!) if you know where to look. Here are some of my favorites.
- Go see a movie at Tahoe Art Haus (Tahoe City). This awesome theater serves beer, wine, and gourmet popcorn and is locally owned. They have a great mix of blockbusters (the staff all dresses up for Star Wars movies!), indie movies, outdoor films, and local events.
- High Altitude Fitness (Incline Village) and Blue Granite (Meyers): If it’s too wet to climb outside, there are a couple of great climbing gyms in the area. I’ve spent a lot of time climbing at High Altitude Fitness, which has top roping, auto belay and bouldering, as well as a high end gym feel, including a sauna and smoothie bar. I haven’t actually climbed at Blue Granite yet, but have heard rave reviews from friends who have.
- If yoga is more your speed, I recommend Tahoe Yoga & Wellness (Truckee), Tahoe Yoga Shala (South Lake Tahoe). I’ve also taken some really fun aerial yoga/aerial arts classes at Inversion Tahoe.
- There’s frequently great live music in the Truckee-Tahoe area. Some of the best venues to check out are The Divided Sky (Meyers), Crystal Bay Club (Crystal Bay), and the casinos in South Lake Tahoe.
Get Outside Anyway
With the right gear and some planning, there are plenty of outdoor activities to do in the rain. Hiking is probably the easiest activity to do in the rain – all you need is a raincoat and some waterproof shoes!
- I love my Patagonia Torrentshell Jacket
with a light layer underneath, since I’m going to be working up a sweat. I usually wear either my SmartWool Hoody
or a midweight Patagonia Capilene
for my base layer. For shoes, wet hikes are about the only time I switch trail runners for my KEEN Targhee Mid Waterproof
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 Columbia Saturday Trail Pants
.
- Since it’s still early season, a lot of the higher hiking trails haven’t melted out yet. The best bet for rainy day, spring hiking in Truckee and Tahoe are the lower elevation trails. My recommendations are Powerline Trail (South Lake Tahoe), Fallen Leaf Lake Trail (South Lake Tahoe), Emigrant Trail (Truckee), and Sagehen Creek Loop Trail (Truckee).
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 
.
Biking is a little more challenging in the rain, but doable, especially if you stick to roads, gravel and paved trail. Most of the mountain bike trails in Truckee and Tahoe aren’t designed to be ridden in the wet, and will get damaged or destroyed if ridden while muddy. As much as I hate doing it, I stay off the trails until they’ve dried out enough to be safely ridden.
- My rainy biking gear is pretty similar to hiking, with a rain coat and light baselayer. My raincoat is bright orange, which is great for visibility, but if you have a darker or more neutral color, maybe add a lightweight safety vest for visibility. I skip the rain pants and wear thick, knicker length pants – the Pearl Izumi Sugar Thermal Tights
. I also wear full finger gloves when it’s rainy and cold. The Giro LA DND
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.
- My recommended rainy day road rides are the Donner Lake Loop (Truckee), the Olympic Valley to Tahoe City Bike Path (Tahoe City) and exploring the miles of bike paths in South Lake Tahoe.
. 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.Disclosure: Some of the links in this post are affiliate links. If you make a purchase, I receive a small percentage of the sale as compensation – at no additional cost to you. I promise to only recommend products that I use and enjoy!
for Christmas from Greyson. I’ve done quite a few rides with it, ranging from a short lap of a smooth flow trail to a 20 mile gravel/singletrack/road combo ride to a steep, rocky, and loose route. I’m really impressed!
. I also knew that I wanted a way to hold a water bottle, so the low profile Dakine 
wouldn’t work. The Hot Laps 2L was one of the few packs that met my criteria, and it had great reviews.
, which packs really small) or tube, pump, tool, phone, and keys, depending on the ride. This isn’t a pack to take if you’re going very far or alone. I’ve generally used it on rides that are short, close to home, or with another person who is carrying most of the tools (thanks, 
.
, and I’ve started playing around with it. This weekend, Greyson, my friend Kelly and I headed back to 
(full review coming soon) on a few road rides and on one trail ride, but they were all pretty short and I was excited to see how the bike did on a longer route with a mix of road, trail, and gravel riding. I can’t take credit for this route, Greyson did all of the research and put it together. It was challenging (especially the road climb!) but fun, and it had amazing views.
, which is a very waterproof coat. It’s not very stretchy or packable, though, and I’m interested in trying out something like the 
into my hydration pack. It’s tiny enough that I don’t even notice, and while not fully waterproof, it will help if I get caught in the rain. On the bottom, I like to wear full length chamois tights if it’s cold or particularly muddy. I have the 
, which I like, though I wish they were a little longer. If anyone knows any good full length tight chamois that fit someone 5’11” – let me know! Greyson likes to wear water resistant baggy shorts over his chamois, but I haven’t found any water resistant women’s baggies, unfortunately. When it’s grey, cloudy, and wet, I’ll switch to 
in my 
. I also carry sunglasses with me in case the sun comes out, because I cannot function when it’s too bright.
, which is useful if you encounter trees downed across the trail and something like the 
, which is great for rinsing mud off your bike.
