OP-ED: My First Trip to Tahoe and How it Changed Me
It was brisk. Man oh man was it cold. I’m a southern California born and bred type panzy that doesn’t quite like when the temp drops below 65, so that cool wind coming off that dawning lake cut to my bones like a fresh fishing knife. But boy was it beautiful.
It was my first trip to South Lake Tahoe and my colleague and I drove up on a Friday and had to be back in LA Sunday night to start the edit. It was a quick one, but had I known what impact it would have on me beforehand, I would have scheduled a longer trip.
The moment we pulled into our small lake house that was afforded to us for free by my new client for the weekend, my boot hit the sand and my lungs filled with the cleanest oxygen I’ve inhaled in months…even years. It was a rush of euphoria. I love alpine environments, but this was something else. This was something special. Every man woman and child who live in and around Lake Tahoe knows what I’m talking about, what words cannot describe. The calmness, familiarity of the lake was almost as if I’d been here before, or as if she knew I’d be back again. A feeling and familiarity I’ve never experienced before.
My client slash tour-guide for the weekend was the man of the mountain. Born and raised in Tahoe, he built his family business here and was ready for a change. I had experience in online marketing and he knew Tahoe was ready for the future…but wanted to show me its roots before we show the world its soul online.
It was brisk. 5am right as the sun was dawning over the strange bit of island that remains on the lake. This was a special spot and one that has been photographed many times. But seeing it with my own eyes was something special and at that moment, mother nature opened up for me, and the curtain to the world’s stage had begun. Spectacular colors and rays of light from all angles, as far as the eyes could see. Nature, nurture and eagle a flight. The word spectacular could not even scratch the surface of the spectacular picture unfolding before my eyes. Something I knew I would never forget.
You see, this lake is not just majesty, it’s one of a kind. It’s one of the most majestic alpine environments on the planet and I had the opportunity to bask in its glory.
I had the honor of coming to Tahoe as an unassuming guest…I only hope anyone who has this honor is given the same rite of passage as I did. Your life will forever be changed.
Staff Writer
