Off season Special: Sugar Pine Point State Park

November 12, 2014 by trudilee

By Tim Hauserman

Today, in an effort to escape after too many hours staring at a computer screen, I headed to Sugar Pine State Park.There I walked for two hours past ancient incense cedars, Jeffrey pines and firs. I strolled across a bridge and pondered the beaver dam below. I marveled at the joy of a swift hike along the smooth soft dirt of a well maintained trail. I saw tons of squirrels and birds, but only one other human. Welcome to the beauty and serenity to be found in the Tahoe off-season at Sugar Pine Point.

The park, located just south of Tahoma, has a humongous campground that is bustling with summer time activity. It’s also the home of Ehrman Mansion, the lakeside beauty that is perhaps second to Emerald Bay’s Vikingsholm as Tahoe’s favorite place of residence. But in November when the summer crowds are back in the Bay Area going to school or playing golf, you can have this pleasant bit of paradise to yourself.

I walked the five mile loop that parallels General Creek. You will not find jaw dropping lakeviews or steep climbs, but a lovely walk through the woods and a chance to rewind and renew. You may also enjoy the fact that you are walking where the worlds greatest cross-country skiers once competed. While the 1960 Winter Olympics are called the Squaw Valley Olympics, the nordic skiing events, including the first Olympic biathlon, were held in what would become Sugar Pine Point State Park.

Once you’ve returned to Highway 89, you can cross the highway and wander down to the lakeshore and the grassy grounds of the lakefront estate. While it is just as beautiful now as in the summer, you are likely to have the place to yourself and might start to believe you’ve gone back in time.

If the snow flies before you get a chance to hit the trails. No worries. Those former Olympic trails, are still pretty dang good for nordic skiing. In fact, the park grooms several trails for cross-country skiing throughout the winter.

For more information on the nordic history of Sugar Pine Point, pick up a copy of David Antonucci’s book Snowballs Chance: The story of the 1960 Olympic Winter Games.