After breakfast we drove west, then north, from South Lake Tahoe, along the west side of the lake. We stopped at the Taylor Creek Forest Service Visitor's Center and toured the Rainbow Nature Trail. It is a very nice, paved walk along the stream and marshy area with many interpretive signs. They have an underground exhibit, called the Stream Profile Chamber, that lets you see what the stream looks like from the fish's perspective. It's a really pretty, interesting area.

It was cloudy the entire time we were there. We also took the Beach Trail through the trees to get down to the level of the lake, where we watched the waves slide over the sand. Then we walked from there along an unmarked path, across a parking area, to the Tallac Historic Site.

We really got lucky. We got to the Taylor Creek Visitor Center around 9:00 a.m., so we were almost the only folks on the Rainbow Trail. That made it even more enjoyable. But as we moved to the other trails there were more and more tourists. By the time we returned from visiting the Tallac Historic Site the area around the Visitor Center was a zoo. A good number of people, especially families, have rented, or brought their own, bikes. They are everywhere. But the paths are mostly paved and flat, so it makes for easy riding.

We bought a couple of Lake Tahoe Recreation Maps, and headed on up the road.