About North Lake Tahoe
Boasting the highest alpine lake in the country, and the second deepest, and offering crystal clear waters, secluded bays, cozy coves and scenic vistas; Tahoe and nearby Reno are known as ‘America’s Adventure Place.’ Surrounded by snow-capped mountains and evergreen forests, this year-round travel destination is home to world-class ski resorts, hotel casinos, shopping, dining, outdoor adventure and more.

The first known inhabitants to the Lake Tahoe region were the nomadic predecessors of the Washue, Maidu,and Paiute Indian tribes. They existed in the area during the middle archaic period and would come and go as the seasons permitted, to hunt, fish, and collect medicinal plants.

1844 was the first recorded sighting of European pioneers led by the famous Kit Carson. As the region saw more and more emigrants passing through, on their way to the West Coast including the famous Donner Party in the winter of 1846-47, small settlements arose.

By 1859, just after the Comstock Lode in Virginia City, the first east-west road opened (the Bonanza Road), which is now Highway 50.

This road helped open the flood gates to come, which surprisingly had a negative affect on the Tahoe Basin due to the logging of virtually all the trees there were, to build the underground tunnels and homes required for the existence of Virginia City, which had swelled to over 20,000 people. During the late 1800s as people traveled more frequently to the West Coast, the railroad got involved and opened up an extension of the transcontinental railroad via Donner Pass.

By 1905, the first automobiles came through the Tahoe Basin and in 1915, the Lincoln Highway was carved out of the Sierras becoming the first east to west paved road. This increased the amounts and frequencies of raw goods and manufactured products, and roadside stops sprung up throughout the Basin. The prime attractions then, at the turn of the 19th century, were mostly the casinos until people like Walt Disney recognized the area’s potential as a tourist and skiing haven. He helped open the Sugar Bowl and by 1960, Sqaw Valley had opened and was hosting the Olympic Games. Many of those hotels, restaurants and facilities used at that time are still a viable part of the area’s economics today.

North Lake Tahoe communities include Alpine Meadows, Carnelian Bay, Crystal Bay, Incline Village, Kings Beach, Northstar, Squaw Valley, Tahoe City, Tahoe Vista, Truckee, and West Shore.