Is America off your bucket list? Lake Tahoe has a beauty that will lure you back
The case for America’s greatness is compelling, even allowing for its foibles. It has every type of landscape you care to name, from deserts to mountains, forests, everglades, geysers and glaciers.
I’ve oftentimes entertained the opinion – unfashionable in the current climate, it hardly needs stating – that America could well be the greatest country on Earth. I accept there’s a lot about it that drives me spare, not least the way Americans sprinkle sentences with archaic phrases like “oftentimes”, and preface each step in any series of instructions with, “go right ahead and…” And yes, there’s the small matter of you-know-who.
But even allowing for these foibles, the case for greatness is compelling. It has every type of landscape you care to name: from deserts to mountains, tropical beaches to frozen waterfalls; grand canyons, mighty rivers, forests and everglades, geysers and glaciers. It builds impossible things, makes some damn good wine and has the friendliest people you’ll ever meet.
And it has Lake Tahoe.
I’m not quite prepared for the exquisite beauty of the world’s second-largest alpine lake, partly because I’m busy driving on what feels unnervingly like the wrong side of an icy road, guiding an excessively large SUV through a narrow pass in the Sierra Nevada mountains. The lake comes into view gradually – flashes of sapphire flickering between the trees. The strobing intensifies until a blob of blue fills the entire windscreen, and I have no choice but to pull over, get out and gawk.
Straddling California and Nevada, Lake Tahoe is known as “the jewel of the Sierra Nevada”. Snowy mountains wrap round its shores on all sides, and dark forests fringe golden beaches sprinkled with granite boulders. But what gets most people is the almost surreal transparency of the water (you can almost walk into the lake without noticing it’s there) and how it continually spins the colour wheel, landing on cobalt blue, turquoise, aqua, emerald green or steel grey, depending on the light and the time of day. You can’t look away.
It doesn’t surprise me to learn the lake attracts 15 million visitors a year, more than the combined number of visitors to Yosemite and Yellowstone National Parks. The area has the highest concentration of ski resorts in North America (more than 15 are dotted around the lake) while in summer you could just about cross the lake using the various watercraft as stepping stones.
Managing the environmental – as well as aesthetic – impact of tourism is taken very seriously, and building regulations are strict. The bulk of the Nevada side of the lakeshore is commendably free of development, so you see nothing but nature from the water.
I have the good fortune to be staying at Edgewood Tahoe, the only luxury resort with true lake frontage, situated on the southern shore. Originally a stop on the Pony Express, the property has passed through five generations of the Park family, and there’s a wonderful homage to their history displayed throughout the hotel.
The modern, mountain-style main lodge is less than 10 years old, but the property’s 18-hole golf course (Tahoe’s only lakefront golf course, and by far its finest) has been around since 1968. The border with California cuts through the 9th hole, and beyond that lie the conjoined border towns of Stateline and South Lake Tahoe, comprising of a splatter of cardboard box casinos, gaudy restaurants and tacky tourist shops. Mind you, after laying eyes on Edgewood, anything else seems like an eyesore.
It’s magic from the moment you enter the property’s “great room”, a gorgeous, cathedral-like gathering space, all tactile timber and stone, with a vaulted ceiling, exposed beams and 11.5m full-length windows framing the lake and the distant mountains. A cosy fireplace flickers in the corner and bronze-toned leather armchairs are warm to the touch.
Thoughtful design touches anchor the property to its environment. A feature wall of aspen trees is hand-carved into silver limestone. A second limestone carving, this time an intricate, topographical relief of the lake, hangs behind the check-in desk. A rope ceiling installation in the bistro – hand-woven by Australian artist Dani Marti – gives a nautical nod to the water, while in the lobby floats a timber screen fashioned from a picket fence salvaged from the property’s early cattle ranching days.
A heated terrace leads out to a private beach, with caramel sand and deck chairs for lolling. In summer, luxury MasterCraft speedboats will pull up to the jetty and whisk you off for water-skiing, wakeboarding or a picnic on the water. I’ve come in early spring, so I opt for the heated outdoor pool and hot tub over the frigid lake, but it’s intoxicating just to stroll along the beach, beside sweet-smelling pine trees, as the lake gently sloshes against the sand. I get chatting to a fellow beachcomber, who tells me spring is the underrated season at Tahoe. “You can do it all. Oftentimes I’ll ski in the morning and play golf in the afternoon.”
Oftentimes it’s nice to do nothing expect sit and stare at the rampant beauty outside your window. A cosmetic refresh is rolling through the main lodge’s 154 contemporary-styled rooms, with greens replacing blues, steamers replacing irons and fixed cushions replacing the loose cushions I’m told guests like to prop against the gas fireplace, resulting in interesting singed patterns. In any case, the rooms are lovely as they are, each with a private terrace or balcony.
Book one facing the lake if you possibly can.
There are 14 self-contained villas located a short stroll from the main lodge, ranging from two to five bedrooms, all beautifully furnished and ideal for families, with luxe bathrooms and a heated patio with outdoor hot tubs and a firepit. Service is impeccable, and I’d bank that some guests are generous tippers. A private chef can come knocking if you don’t feel like cooking, and a ski butler will drop by to fit you out for the snow (Heavenly Mountain Resort is five minutes away). A fairytale ice rink is wheeled out for all guests in winter, while summer sees a fleet of kayaks and stand-up paddleboards lying in wait on the sand. It’s the ultimate Tahoe pad for all seasons.
The weather seems unsure which way to go when we first arrive, but on our last night the coin falls firmly on the side of winter. We wake to fat snowflakes floating down and piling up on the fairways. I pour a coffee and sit by the window to watch the greens turn white, then rug up and walk down to the lake, now the colour of brushed steel. The pine trees, the deck chairs, the jetty, the beach, everything is completely covered in snow.
As I walk back towards the fire-lit lodge I’m once again overcome by that nagging, somewhat shameful thought that America might just be the greatest country in the world. At least from certain angles.
Go right ahead and convince me otherwise.
Checklist
Getting there: Edgewood Tahoe is a one-hour drive from Reno, or three-and-a-half hours from San Francisco.
Stay: Edgewood Tahoe, 180 Lake Parkway, Stateline, Nevada. Rooms from $US344 ($530). Villas start around $US2700. edgewoodtahoe.com
Eat: The Bistro at Edgewood is casual yet elegant, with a modern mountain menu and swoony views across the water. The tomahawk steak is the size of a car tyre, sliced perfectly pink and served sizzling on a buttery hot plate. In warmer months tables spill onto the lakeside terrace, and the best book out early, so make a reservation prior to your trip if visiting in peak season. Golfers can tee off with beef short ribs or a seafood poke bowl at Brooks’ Bar and Deck, overlooking the 18th hole. The new fine-dining Edge Restaurant & Lounge doesn’t open until July but is already the talk of the town. If you’re coming through Reno (definitely worth a night or two, probably not more) hit up Arario for some fab Korean fusion in the lively Midtown neighbourhood.
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