Tree project to affect South Shore beach, bike trail

Pope Beach and the Camp Richardson bike trail will be impacted by a tree thinning project.

The U.S. Forest Service will be thinning of trees to reduce excess vegetation that can feed wildfires, provide defensible space to neighboring communities and improve forest health.  

Work is expected to continue through mid-October.

It is expected that the Forest Service will temporarily close the bike path. The temporary closure is anticipated to last for approximately two weeks. Signs will be posted.

Hazards may be present even when operations have ceased for the day.    

In addition to temporary disruption to recreational areas, other short-term impacts from forest thinning projects include changes to the appearance of forests. Treated areas look disturbed at first, but recover visually within a few years.

This forest thinning is part of the South Shore Hazardous Fuels Reduction and Healthy Forest Restoration Project, which aims to treat approximately 10,000 acres on the South Shore of Lake Tahoe over the next few years.