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June 2024
News From the Trail

Trail Tracks

June is National Great Outdoors Month!

We are experiencing summer temperatures early this year. Lots of people are floating down the Truckee River already. We also enjoyed the recent three-day Reno River Festival! Summer came upon us quickly.

With June being the National Great Outdoors month, I will take some time along the Truckee Canyon to enjoy the sights and sounds. I’m usually riding my bike through different sections and trust me, my eyes are glued to the trail ahead. This will require some hiking!

Here are some fun facts about the canyon and places to explore:

*There are 65 tributaries that flow into Lake Tahoe but there is only one outlet: Pyramid Lake. Both lakes are worth taking some time to explore.

*The Little Truckee joins the river at Boca Reservoir. In 1868, a prosperous sawmill and ice company operated there. The Little Truckee was dammed to store the logs in the summer and harvest ice in the winter. Because there was ice, spring water, and trains bringing in hops, barley and other ingredients needed to brew beer, the Boca Brewing Company was built in 1876. There is still a town site to explore, which is across from the Boca Dam.

*Farad Power Station has some interesting history as well. The power station was built in 1899 so that they could pump water out of the mines in Virginia City. The river was diverted to the flumes at Floriston to provide the power. And for a little trivia, Virginia City’s power distribution system was designed by Thomas Edison!

*The Mystic Hot Springs were located in Farad. Many of you may have enjoyed a respite of what is left of the hot springs flowing down from above I-80.

I hope this encourages you to explore the Truckee Canyon during National Great Outdoors Month or any month!

Mary Beth Roselli, Chair of the TPT Board

Celebrating Janet Phillips

The next time you pass Fleish Bridge, take a moment to admire the beautiful plaque honoring Janet Phillips, founder and visionary of the Tahoe-Pyramid Trail. She passed away in December of 2022 and this wonderful plaque is to honor her along with her numerous accomplishments. The plaque is mounted next to her husband Mike Phillip’s plaque, who passed away in 2020. Relax on the bench and listen to the mighty Truckee. This gorgeous setting was one of Janet’s favorites!

We recently held a small gathering to unveil the plaque, and her brother Michael was there to say a few words and meet people close to Janet. Please stop by to honor and remember our amazing founder and appreciate her love for our outdoor community.

Another Cookie Ride in the Books!

We had a fantastic time at this year’s Cookie Ride! The TPT has hosted this event at Crystal Peak Park since the Verdi-Mogul bike path opened. The weather was perfect for a ride and the cookies were plentiful. Donations were greatly appreciated!

Thank you to our volunteer bakers Sarah Bousfield, Jack Jenney, Denise Drazy-Shedd, Debbie and Michael Dow, Cathy House, JoAnne Gipson and Mary Beth Roselli. We couldn’t do it without you! The cookies were greatly enjoyed by our wonderful community of riders on this beautiful day.  

California Trails and

Greenway Conference Recap

California State Parks presented the 39th annual California Trails and Greenway Conference that took place at Lake Tahoe at the end of March. This year’s topic was “Understanding the Past, Embracing the Future”. There were two days of individual seminars and classes directed to a hands-on experience and field trips.

Several TPT board members attended. One of the sessions that our Board Chair attended was “Connected Communities Trail Master Plan”, presented by Greg Williams of the Sierra Buttes Trail Stewardship. Janet Phillips often said, “if you attain the goals you set for yourself, you didn’t set them high enough!”. Well, Greg has set quite a goal for himself. His project will connect 15 towns in six counties, crossing land with five government land managers. It will also pass through the ancestral homelands of many indigenous people. The economic boost to these towns could be monumental. They are calling this route the Lost Sierra Route.

The TPT board is aware of their goals and would like to see the connection to Reno through the Tahoe-Pyramid Trail, entering near Glenshire or Dog Valley. We are in the feasibility phase, working out where a trail can be laid or where existing trail can be used. A master plan will then be proposed.

For more information on the Connected Communities project, click here:

Another engaging session that was of interest was “Biodiversity Engagement Zones: Restoration, Community and Trails”. Their focus of these zones (BEZ) was that you need to identify the various habitats and create a trail that benefits wildlife, water quality, native plants and climate change mitigation. At the onset, we would involve many “-ologists” and bring together communities to integrate the needs identified and to create an understanding of what decisions are made. You then create a trail that will have many benefits for years to come.

The trails built in the past provided many lessons for our design of future trails. And we are fortunate in Northern Nevada to see our trail systems continue to grow with the future in mind!