Lake Tahoe - Emerald Bay

Anybody know the speed limit on Emerald Bay or if you can wakeboard in there?

Also water levels and water temps would be great. Thanks.

I like what you're thinking!

That sounds like fun. Let me know if you need a third for that trip!

Emerald would be awesome to go wakeboarding at. I have always thought about living in Lake Tahoe. I haven't been there in a few years but next time I go I will probably be wakeboarding in the summer or snowboarding in the winter. That place is the greatest place to be all year round. you can see a plate at the bottom of the water.

J-Rod how far are you from tahoe?

Also I did that long hike around emerald bay and saw the waterfalls.

Ahhhhh Tahoe! One of the greatest places on this planet.
Never been in the summer, but I have been twice in the past to years snowboarding. Got a suprise storm that dumped over 2 feet of fresh in less then a day and half last season. Had to call my work and tell them I was snowed in.
Ahhhh Tahoe!

Oh yeah, Mango I took the exact same picture last season.
Hey, does anyone know about the story with that island? I cant really remember it all. But I know there is some little stone shelter or something built on it. And some guy lived there back in the day, and eventually drowned and blah blah blah ect....

There is a 5MPH bouy that sits about 100 feet outside the mouth of Emerald Bay...so, no wakeboarding allowed.

Ahhhhh Tahoe is right....I can smell the fresh air and those pine trees w/big pine cones.i didn't think you could really wakeboard in emerald bay because they have cruises that go in and out of there and its not that big of a bay but it would be awesome.

ahhhh one more pic of tahoe just for fun

Mango, I snowboard between 20-30 days a year in Tahoe. I spend two weeks in South Lake every winter for vacation. I'm about 3 hours away.

The last two years during the holidays, we were blessed with huge storms. I rode 1-3 feet of fresh powder most of the time I was there. A three foot powder day might be the only thing better than a perfect set on glass.

Sangeria is right, it's a 5mph zone. It is usually terribly windy in emerald bay anyways unless you get there at the crack of dawn.

If you want to ride on Tahoe you will need to get there before the sun comes up and you might get 2 or 3 hours of good riding in before it gets bad. When I have been up there I usually ride right around the Sunnyside area just outside of the buoy fields. Oh yeah, if you have a drysuit or a heavy wetsuit I would bring it. Tahoe is WAY cold even in the summer.

There's an older wake video out there, 1998-2000 (can't remember the title) where some guys poached Emerald Bay early in the morning Great film. It'd fun to do and you may get away with it
if you try about 5:30 am.

S1

J-Rod, I hear you there! Its a toss up between butter and powder.
We were in South Lake on Superbowl Weekend. The weather looked like crap leading up to that week. Then out of no where a storm came in and dumped. That was two of the best powder days I ever had. But it's all luck of the draw. The year before I was there, same week and had nothing but frigid temps and hard pack.
See, now you guys got me day dreaming about pow in the middle of the summer. Damn!

Yeah that lake is usually cold all year round...you can see the snowcaps still on the mountains in august.

Yeah, emerald bay is sweet... For sure it's friggin cold. I wouldn't want to ride there winter or summer without a serious wet suit or dry suit. I'm not sure about poaching the 5. Tahoe is patrolled by coast guard (read: not the sherrif) and they don't take kindly to that kind of shiz. Anyway, for what its worth, I'd love to see that video.

Supposedly the story is that the shack on the island isn't really a shack. It's actually really big when you get close. It was a vacation house around the turn of the century. You used to be able to take tours...Not sure if you can anymore.

I was just there at the end of June. 15 mph in Emerald Bay. I found the best place to board is in Rubicon bay just North of Emerald. before noon and wear your shorty. Its cool boarding in about 15 ft of clear water over the sand. After head on down to Sunnyside for lunch and a beer. They have bouys and will come out in a raft and pick you up. drive up to the gas pump and the attedant will set you up.

This is an annual trip we take every March. It is awesome, snowboarding in short sleeve shirts and getting some color on the skin after a rainy winter in WA.

(Message edited by tcluv85 on July 14, 2004)

It's an old tea house on the Island built by the rich English lady who also build the castle / mansion at the end of the bay.
Water temp was 68 on Sat. & Sun. acording to Tmorfi who boarding at 7:30am on the morning of his wedding day at Incline Village.

The name of the video that has the Emerald Bay riding footage is "Hit It". There's also some film of riding on other local lakes near Tahoe.
Bart's Watersports has it for 9.99.

S1

A buddy is up there now, says it has been windy and choppy as heck. Rollers were coming over his VLX in the Emerald Bay..it's only 5mph. The water is cold, suggest a drysuit.

Thanks everybody. Well aware of the temps and the wind conditions. Just was wondering if it was 5mph. Too bad. Would have been fun.

There's also some Tahoe footage in Skurfs Up. You have to be somewhat dedicated to ride in Tahoe...up and riding by 7:00 usually. Even then, still rolly sometimes. Water is really hard on your body. July and August are nuts. But, you can't beat seeing the bottom of the lake as you ride. Just don't get distracted.

I was up at Tahoe for 2 weeks over the 4th of July cuz i dont live far away but the water for wakeboarding was cold ! Most of the time we got up at about 5:30-6 and went out to catch some good riding time before everyone was out there. Its no fun tho when the wind picks up espeacially when the winds can really pick up around there then its no use even bein out on your boat. There is nice water sometimes just up a little from Emerald Bay where you can catch some sweet water.

I live in Tahoe, on the North Shore and ride every morning. You warm weather kids crack me up...we stopped wearing wetsuits a month ago. I don't even own a drysuit. The water has actually warmed up alot since we were out in April.

Emerald Bay would rock for wakeboarding if it wasn't a 15mph zone...and good luck getting away with it at 5:30am with all the boat campers in there and the coast gaurd.

May, June, September, and October are the best months to ride. July and August get rough. The lake starts to get boat choppy around 9am. White-caps, and 3ft rollers around 3pm everyday. We havn't had a nice evening in a long time. October is the best time, flat all morning, boat chop in the afternoon, and glass at sunset.

Jennifer...Post some pics of Tahoe so I can sit here and relax a little and pretend I'm there

Not sure if this will work, but here are some shots of some local riders from early March of this year. Don't usually start riding until April, but we had an early Spring. Another great part about Tahoe: this was one of two days this year that I snowboarded Squaw in the morning (9-11) and wakeboarded on glass in the afternoon (12-3). Gotta love it.

I always have a hard time riding in Tahoe. The water's just too damn COLD year-round! But I always end up taking a trip up there at least a few times each summer - LOTS of times in winter.

Maybe Donner Lake's west shore near the beach would be a better choice. I was just thinking a nice Alpine lake would be fun to visit since the water levels in many NorCal lakes is getting very low.

Cool pix too guys!
Here a few of mine

Tahoe and Donner both suck for wakeboarding. (pretty yes) Tahoe is to big and choppy and cold, Donner, if there are 3 boats out there its chopped out. (was there last weekend) Any way If you want to come to the Reno/Tahoe area I can tell you of 5 or 10 lakes where the local boarders go.

Or, you could just keep it to yourself Boca was a zoo last weekend at about 8:30. Plus, rumor has it that they're going to drain that in early to mid-August. Putting more pressure on the other spots. Tahoe and Donner rule!!!

Jennifer is right. We rode in September after all the summer crowds left and we couldn't believe how few people were boating. At 9am on a Friday we drove the entire length of the lake south to north and did not cross one roller. The only other boat we saw was a hot air balloon retrieval boat. That day the lake stayed calm until noon! That might be rare but it's sweet when it happens. Our experience is that the surface water temp usually tops out at 68* in August. In Sept it was still 64*, fine with a shorty.
Mango, here's some more pics to take you away...

Friday, 11am.


Friday, 1pm. Conditions never got worse than this.


Tea House. Blends in extremely well with the surrounding granite.


Vikingsholm Castle on east end of Emerald Bay


Don, is this one of the lakes local boarders go to? East end stayed glassy all day while Tahoe was blown out.


Had it all to ourselves on a weekday.

Mike you should be a photographer with those pics they are real serene!