South Lake Tahoe Area: Luther Spires

Luther Spires



Luther Spires

Located high on a ridge, Luther Spires is host to a series of spires and rock outcrops featuring mostly moderate sport climbing. The approach is a gruelling uphill hike that is best avoided on hot days or during peak sunlight hours. Fortunately, the reward for making the trek is a very sublime setting with literally world class views of the surrounding Christmas Valley. The area is actively seeing development and the bolts are in great condition. There is some loose rock and there are some grainy sections, but all in all, this area is becoming a great destination for moderate sport climbers. There are approximately 16 established routes here with many more likely to come.
Approach: Heading South away from South Lake Tahoe, take Hwy 89 for approximately 10 minutes until you see the sign for the Big Meadow Trailhead. Continue past this sign for approximately 1/2 mile and park in the pullout on the left. Walk down into a clearing and follow the dirt trail down and across a large tree that serves as a natural bridge over a small creek. Head left to continue on the dirt trail and follow switchbacks up to the top where the trail will intersect with the base of the popular slab route, Jane Spy (5.7).

For the easiest climbing, head right from Jane Spy and up a small bit of Class 3 to a small collection of 5.8 to 5.10a climbs. Note: no move on the scramble is harder than Class 3. If you find yourself making a 5.0+ move, then continue searching for the easier approach (especially if weighted down by gear, ropes, etc.) Up here on a small terrace, you will find a short 20' spire with bolted climbs on both the right and left aretes. The left is Cheap Commercial Steak Sauce, Two Fifty (5.10a) and the route on the right is Beer and a Hotdog, Two Bucks (5.8). Our party actually found the left side easier. Both climbs while being short feel sustained given the crimpy nature of both the hand and foot holds. Great views out over the Christmas Valley and a small sense of exposure add to the quality of these two short, well protected lines.



CCSSTF & BH,TB

Dog and Grigri, Two Bucks (5.9) is the climb located to the left side of this small terrace. The crux comes before the first bolt and from there the climbing gets a bit easier, but the quality never wanes. Definitely worth leading if comfortable at the grade.



DG,TB (5.9)

Lake Tahoe: 90 Foot Wall

Tahoe: 90 Foot Wall

90 Foot Wall

Standing 90' tall and approximately 150 feet wide, The 90 Foot Wall is host to nearly 20 routes ranging from 5.6 to 5.11b. All routes can be top roped off of bolted anchors, and there are a number of good and moderate trad leads on good but blocky cracks. There are no sport routes at this time.

Approach: Park at the Eagle Creek Canyon parking lot at the far end of Emerald Bay. if approaching from the South, the parking lot will be on your left. There is a day use fee for parking in the lot (which was $5 at the time of our last visit.) To avoid this fee, park along the road at the obvious pullouts as you approach the parking lot. If it is a busy weekend though, be prepared and have cash in case you need to use the lot. From the back of the parking lot, follow the obvious trail up a short hill for approximately 5 minutes. Here head right to the Vista trail which arrives at two benches that make for a great place to watch the sun set over Lake Tahoe and Emerlad Bay. From here the crag will be 100 yards or so dead ahead. Follow the obvious cairns and footprints to the base. To rig top rope anchors, walk the length of the base to its far end and head up and right here. A nice flat top and easy scramble mean that this is an area frequented by those new to climbing outdoors, and it can become quite busy.

Favorite Routes:

Holdless Horror (5.6): This is the thin hands to finger crack that ascends the nearly vertical wall center of left. The climbing is fantastic and it gives those new to thinner cracks a chance to work finger jam technique without having to fully weight their feet in thin toe jams as there are small footholds to the left and right of the crack. Note: Be careful when climbing this on TR as a small buttress to the climber's left could be dangerous if you fall off and swing within the first 15-20 feet. It's not dangerous enough to second guess climbing the route, but its a good thing to be aware of before starting up.



Holdless Horror (5.6)

Rentier (5.7): An adventurous 5.7, Rentier is a nice sustained trad lead with a boulder move off the ground and some interesting long reaches, varied crack sizes, corners, and some stemming. The route is not difficult, but its a full value lead (beware - it gets wide at the top! But the wide crack can be avoided with holds on the face on either side, just make sure you have some bigger pro!)

Strontium 90 (5.8): Strontium is the 5.8 hands to fist crack on the far left side of the wall. The crack starts thin and then works its way up to the 20 foot level or so before getting into a really nice, if not short, hands and fist crack. The climb then briefly tops out onto the top of the flake. You can cross over and finish climbing up to the anchor or lower off here to run laps on the route.



Strontium 90 (5.8)

Shuman the Human (5.6): This is the blocky-crack line on the far lest side of the wall. It is basically a jug hall up slightly reach blocks with a few crack moves mixed in. Our party agreed that it was a fun workout and neat little climb, and would be best climbed as either a warm up or for laps to finish the day with a bit of strength and endurance work.

Casual Observer (5.1). This is the chimney behind Strontium 90 and Shuman. It is top roped off the same bolts as for Strontium 90. One way to get the rope positioned appropriately into Casual Observer for a TR is to climb up Strontium 90 and then lower off into the chimney. The chimney climbs equally well facing in or out, but facing in seemed to offer the better feet. While easy, its a nice introduction to chimney climbing up Sierra granite. A skill that obviously comes in handy a great deal in Yosemite.

Casual Observer (5.1)

Other: Once finished climbing here, you might enjoy a sunset picnic at the benches off the Vista Trail, or take the trail down the waterfall to Emerald Bay. The trail can be picked up directly opposite the Eagle Creek Canyon parking lot. While the water in Tahoe always remains quite brisk, a late rinse in its alpine waters after a long day of climbing can be akin to the feeling of a Baptism.

Lake Tahoe

Nestled in the Sierras at 6,225 feet, Lake Tahoe is a virtual paradise of gray-white granite and crystal blue waters. The lake itself is the largest alpine lake in North America with a depth of 1,645 feet - second only to Crater Lake which is just 300 feet deeper - offering visibility down some 65 feet. The water, while chilly, never freezes, and the surrounding mountains which reach 10,000 feet in some instances offer some of the best skiing in the United States.

The climbing includes thousands of boulder problems (many still yet to be discovered!) as well as an abundance of both trad and sport routes. There is continuous development and new-routing by both locals and visitors alike. The 'golden age' of Tahoe climbing indeed may be in the here and now.

The granite in Tahoe tends to be larger grained and thus more rough on the fingers and hands, but provides better texture for smearing, than that found in Yosemite.

Favorite Areas:



Pie Shop Boulders: Just south of South Lake Tahoe in a town called Meyers sit the Pie Shop Boulders. These boulders offer a wide array of difficulty and height and hours, if not days, of fun can be had climbing here. There is a fine collection of easy and moderates that will suit even beginner climbers. Directions: To reach the Pie Shop Boulders, head North towards the Lake on Hwy 89 past the agricultural checkpoint in Meyers. Make a left turn after approximately 3 miles onto Sawmill Road. Park at a dirt pullout on the left and the boulders will be visible to your right.

Another great boulder with five or six great moderates is located at the end of Sawmilll Road at the intersection with Lake Tahoe Blvd. Use the dirt parking area directly in front of the boulder. Problems range from VB-V4 on this 20 foot boulder. (Pictured below).



Lover's Leap: Visible from the Hwy 50 while passing through the town of Strawberry (just before Meyers), Lover's Leap offers a very high concentration of easy to moderate multi-pitch trad climbs. Camping is available at its base behind the Strawberry Lodge. There are 30 campsites here with a 14-day limit. The campground is spread throughout a thick and beautiful forest and is typically full of friendly climbers who are usually more than willing to share beta and stories around nightly campfires. The climbs here range from 250-500 feet with horizontal dikes throughout which offer face holds in additional to the traditional jamming found on the crack routes.

Lover's Leap above the Strawberry Lodge

DL Bliss State Park: Located along the west side of Lake Tahoe, DL Bliss offers fun (if not slightly highball) bouldering. The high nature of most of the routes is somewhat offset by flat sandy landings. Its a very good idea though to have one or more spotters and several crash pads for this area. That said, its a great setting with a wide variety of problems and usually completely crowd free.

Donner Pass: A wide variety of trad, sport, and bouldering routes cover the Donner Pass area. Favorite areas include Grouse Slab for both trad and sport climbs, Schoolhouse Rock for easier trad lines, and Snowshed Wall for top-roping.

90 Foot Wall: A very popular area located in Eagle Creek Canyon near Emerald Bay, this is a great area to top-rope cracks ranging from 5.6-5.11. Most climbs have bolts at the top but climbers are advised to back the bolts up with trad gear where possible due to the older nature of some of the bolts.

Skiing & Snowboarding

Gondola at Heavenly, South Lake Tahoe

In terms of skiing and snowboarding, there are more than a dozen prominent resorts, with the majority being located along the Northern shore in both California and Nevada. The Southern side of the lake is home to several casinos, the largest of which are Harrah's and Harvey's, and also Heavenly Mountain Resort which is the region's largest and highest in elevation ski area. A brief list of resorts and descriptions below:

Donner Pass Area Resorts:

Sugar Bowl: This is a largest resort in the Donner Pass Area with 1500 acres
Donner Ski Ranch: A small ski area located near Donner Pass on the North west side with 400 skiable acres. Also offers night skiing.
Boreal: A small ski area near Donner Pass with a snowboard pike with half-pipes, barrels, etc. 380 skiable acres.
Soda Springs: Another small ski resort in the Donner Area with 400 skiable acres. Day lift tickets at Soda Springs are good for night skiing at Boreal.

North East Side Resorts:

Diamond Peak: A small area near Incline Village, NV which offers great views of Lake Tahoe and a terrain park. 655 skiable acres.
Mount Rose Ski Resort: a medium sized area on Slide Mountain (above Incline Village) with 900 acres of skiable terrain.

North West Shore Resorts:

Squaw Valley: Host of the 1960 Olympic games. This is the largest resort in the north Lake Tahoe area. Its well known for very advanced runs and has 4000 skiable acres. Also one of the few resorts to offer night skiing.
Alpine Meadows: On the North Shore near Squaw Valley, this is about half the size of Squaw but offers a good variety of terrain over 2000 skiable acres.
Northstar: Located on the north shore, this resort is very popular and offers really long runs and is a favorite of intermediate skiers. 2000' skiable acres.
Homewood: Located on the West shore, Homewood is very popular with snow-boarders. 1260 skiable acres.

South Lake Resorts:



Heavenly Mountain Resort: The largest ski area in the Lake Tahoe Area with 4800 skiable acres. Incredible views of Lake Tahoe and the gondola is walking distance from the casinos.
Sierra-at-Tahoe: A large resort, but slightly smaller than Kirkwood and Heavenly. With 2000 skiable acres, its still plenty large, and has the advantage of being both near the South Lake Tahoe casinos and less crowded than Heavenly.
Kirkwood: A large resort popular with snow-boarders covering 2300 skiable acres located approximately 30 minutes south of South Lake Tahoe.

Water Sports

Swimming: The surface temperature in summer can warm up to 68 degrees, but the water averages around 50F for most of the year. If you aren't averse to chilly temps, then swimming in Lake Tahoe offers a real thrill with crystal clear views down to the rocks below and up to the surrounding mountains. There are many different competitive swimming events in the summer, including a relay across the entire width of Lake Tahoe!



Kayaking: Kayaking is marvelous on the generally flat Lake Tahoe and provides a great way to explore Emerald Bay, look up at Cave Rock, or any number of boulders along the coast lines. Rentals are available through a number of outfitters and tend to range from about $15/hr to $65/full day. Its also fun to try out stand-up paddleboards which are increasingly popular in Lake Tahoe.

Water Skiing: Available through a number of outfitters and is of course a total blast!

Harrah's Casino, South Lake Tahoe

Gambling: There are several large and reasonably fancy casinos across the Nevada Line in South Lake Tahoe. Additionally, one can find a more toned-down gaming experience on the North East side of the Lake at Incline Village and surrounding locations.

World's Tallest Man-Made Climbing Wall, Reno:



Opened on October 1, 2011, this 164' tall climbing wall features 40 top-rope routes, several multi-pitch routes, and a 2,900 square ft indoor bouldering area. The walls are mostly overhanging and provide a great deal of exposure. The wall is located on the outside of the old Fitzgeralds Casino, now re-opened as CommRow - an urban adventure destination. An outdoor bouldering area is planned for 2012. Also of interest is the bar located inside the facility called 'V15'...no word yet on whether or not you need to be Daniel Woods to drink there.