Things to do in Truckee when the Snow Sucks!
Let’s be real. The winter of 2020 has not been a great one for Truckee-Tahoe. It started out strong, but we haven’t gotten real snow in what feels like months! While a powder-filled winter vacation in Truckee might be preferable, there are still lots of fun things to do here, even when the snow isn’t great.
Outdoors:
While we haven’t gotten much snow lately, the early season snow put down a nice base layer and the resorts are still going strong. On sunny days, that means a fun day for skiing and riding groomers. Here are my tips and tricks for having a great day of spring riding or skiing.
If the resorts aren’t your speed, there’s still enough snow for snowshoeing in a lot of the higher elevation, like Chickadee Ridge near Incline Village. For something snow free, the Truckee River Legacy Trail is a paved, class 1 bike path that currently connects downtown Truckee with the Glenshire neighborhood. The trail parallels the Truckee River and is plowed in the winter, making it a great place to walk, run, or bike year round. Eventually, the Truckee River Legacy Trail will connect across all of Truckee and down to Lake Tahoe! Another great paved trail is the Trout Creek Trail, which connects the Tahoe Donner neighborhood to downtown.
Peavine Mountain // tahoefabulous.com
My favorite upside of a crappy winter? I don’t have to travel as far to go mountain biking. While the Truckee and Tahoe trails aren’t rideable yet, there’s plenty to ride within an hour of Truckee! I’d recommend the Foresthill Divide and the Culvert & Confluence Trail Loops in Auburn, Hoot Trail in Nevada City and Peavine Mountain in Reno. Here’s a post I wrote with my recommendations and favorite gear for spring riding.
Treat Yo Self:
While Truckee isn’t known for it’s amazing cuisine, we’ve got some good options, especially if you want to eat outside and enjoy the warm weather. Grab out front at Moody’s Bistro, Bar & Beats or on the deck overlooking the Truckee River at 1882 Bar & Grill in downtown Truckee. At Donner Lake, you can have an amazing BLT at The Pub at Donner Lake and get the best ice cream in all of Truckee-Tahoe at Little Truckee Ice Creamery. Both of these places have outdoor seating too.
Little Truckee Ice Creamery // tahoefabulous.com
Photo via truckeeicecream.com
If the weather isn’t great, I’d highly recommend getting a massage! There are a bunch of great spas and masseuses in Truckee and North Lake Tahoe. I’ve had excellent massages at Zenergy Massage & Wellness, and Aloha Massage comes very highly recommended as well. For the full spa experience, you can’t beat the Spa at the Ritz Carlton Lake Tahoe. Trilogy Spa in Olympic Valley is great, too!
Photo via RitzCarlton.com