Trout Creek breach sends water flowing into Lake Tahoe
By Kathryn Reed
Mother Nature is hard at work this season as she creates another tributary into Lake Tahoe.
Trout Creek in South Lake Tahoe normally flows into the Upper Truckee Marsh and then into the Upper Truckee River that lets out into Lake Tahoe at Cove East.
Not this year.
Trout Creek is flowing into Lake Tahoe -- a rare thing. Photos/Kathryn Reed
The creek has its own outlet into the lake. Although it is crossable via foot, it might mean getting soaked up to at least one’s knees in some locations.
“It’s nature doing what nature does,” Bruce Eisner of the California Tahoe Conservancy said. The state agency owns the marsh. “It’s fascinating to see nature in action.”
The CTC will continue to let Mother Nature do what she wants. It’s likely in a month the breach will not be evident as the snowmelt decreases and temperatures rise.
This is not the first time a breach has occurred. But it’s also not an annual event.
For now, much of the meadow near the edge of the Al Tahoe neighborhood is more like a marsh. Egrets are swooping low as if fish may be in those waters. Flocks of Canada geese waddle in the muck. Mountain chickadees chatter about cheeseburgers.
Blades of wild grass poke above the water. Reflections of the cloudy unsettled sky are reminders summer has yet to arrive in this part of the state.
But all has not been quiet this spring along the beach. On a couple warm nights South Lake Tahoe police officers have been called out to break up parties. Bonfires have been a problem in the past. Several cigarette butts line the trails in the area. A wildfire is a real concern.
At the May 18 City Council meeting it was agreed the CTC will pay $12,251 to the city for police officers’ overtime to patrol the Upper Truckee Marsh and beach area, as well as Cove East on the other side of the river through June 25. An agreement between the city and CTC was entered into in July 2009 for police to patrol the areas at a cost of not more than $20,000. The extra money is to fill out the current contract.
The CTC is in the process of crafting a draft environmental impact report regarding restoration of the Upper Truckee marsh. It will come out this year. It was delayed for several months because the bond freeze by the state prevented money from flowing to the CTC to fund the creation of the document.
“We have an obligation to protect habitat. That is our overriding concern,” said Ray Lacey, CTC deputy director. “The CTC is closely monitoring the use patterns. It’s likely in the future there will be different recommendation to tailor some of those patterns.”
The agency is worried about dogs off leash, more so in the wetlands than on the beach. Residents have become reluctant to frequent the beach when young people are partying there.
Wildlife habitat as well as recreation concerns are things the CTC staff and ultimately the board will have to balance.
Public input will be sought by the CTC as it moves forward with plans.
Kae,
It’s stories like this that make your news outlet so valuable to the community. It’s informative, topical and interesting. Thanks!
Residents have become reluctant to frequent the beach when young people are partying there.
Give those kids a break ,the only thing to fear is fear itself.
$20.000 be better spent on putting in some fire rings and trash hauling, tables.
I for one, will be sampling the new Trout Creek and the Upper Truckee outflows.
That channelized river along the Keys is terrible, unimaginably poor planning.
Anyone care to wager how many times more sediment is in the Upper Truckee than trout creek?
H you really want fire rings on the beach?
Jeez…. you know that meadow almost burned 2 years ago.
But I agree on the more trash receptacles.
yes F,,,That’s what they do, keep fire in one spot.
Listen, I see it all the time with people harassing youths,Damn people, didn’t you every go have fun when you were young.Anything they do, people got complain,skateboarding,little get together at the beach,bike jumps in the woods,some their current music playing a little loud.
Our neighborhood has a good understanding,we all put up with each others life styles.We share,when the kids have a party which isn’t every-night,they come tell us, the next morning they come clean up the street.They don’t block driveways in snow or dry pavement.
I found that the young 18 to 25 year olds are better than us baby boomer’s were. They are smarter, they are more conscious of their foul words,just more grown up.After 40 years of being a resident, I’ve had many kids share my wife , my life.They return with kids ,grown up with good jobs,good looking, beautiful people .If every youth that’s lived here next to me, across the street were my kids, I have over 60.
I loved their playing guitars,fiddles,banjos, singing,dancing,loving,heart aches.People who play together ,stay together.It’s a thing we all need to cultivate good relation.Give them a chance to grow up, find out who they are.Open commutation with people how you learn to live happy lives.
It’s never too late to become Happy!Not all success is measured with how much money you have,but what you soak up ,love while you here for the short life span.
F the whole town almost burned down couple times. Fire not the problem it’s how you use it.I don’t think people are intensional out to Harm our meadows,wild life,burn the town down.
This is American,land of the free.Grab the lawn chairs, a sub, a six pack,bottle wine , cheese ,fishing pole,a frizz,get out there live.