Truckee California - Introduction
In the cold winter of 1846-47, the Donner Party, a group of West-bound
pioneers, was trapped by 22 feet of snow in the Sierra
Nevada (which appropriately means snowy mountains in Spanish) where
nearly half of them died (and some resorted to cannibalism). It’s an
easy drive these days along Interstate 80 between sites associated
with this tragic winter like Donner Memorial State Park and
civilization (not to mention sit-down restaurants), so there’s nothing
morbid about a detour through these parts. Truckee, the nearest
high-mountain town, provides all the tourist amenities that the Donner
Party could only have wished for over a century ago, and equipped with
an airport offers ready access to other area attractions including
Lake Tahoe, to the south.
Truckee history is preserved in its
downtown, where many of the buildings have stood for over a century,
reminders of an earlier era when this was a rowdier place. Though
noisy saloons and busy gambling houses no longer set the pace,
visitors can get a glimpse at least of Truckee’s wilder days on a
walking tour of historic sites. One of the earliest ski resorts in the
United States, Hilltop Lodge, no longer serves the slopes but serves
up instead food and drinks in its reincarnation as a restaurant. Also
local is an Emigrant Trail Museum and Pioneer Monument, with the
Donner Party story the focus.
In addition to atmospheric
historic sites and assorted galleries within Truckee city limits, find
in the immediate vicinity a good assortment of outdoor activities,
from rafting runs down the Truckee River in season to rock climbing,
hiking and boating or swimming on nearby Donner Lake. There are eight
downhill ski resorts within a short drive of Truckee, and a good
clutch of official cross country ski areas, so plan to keep that heart
rate up no matter the season.
Truckee is about 31 miles west of
Reno and about 12 miles north of Kings Beach and Tahoe Vista via
Highway 267, communities on the north shore of Lake Tahoe.
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