Category: Food & Drink

Summertime, and Tahoe living is easy

On By David BranbyIn Food & Drink, Friend Ships, On The Water, Ports Of Call, Splendido2 Comments

We’ve gotten in a few lively afternoon sails along the West Shore with winds in the 15-25 kt. range and temps in the 80s, so it really feels like summer is upon us here in the High Sierra. The lake level is high and it seems like there are fewer boats out, so you kinda feel like you have the place to yourself — which is just fine by me!

I’m making a point of revisiting a number Lake Tahoe classics this summer, including a yummy breakfast at The Old Post Office in Carnelian Bay with my pal Ancil, dinner with Debbie at Chambers Landing (also yummy and very family-friendly … just a lovely, laid-back Tahoe summer vibe), and one day just hanging out at the south end of Tahoe by Baldwin Beach with Ancil and our buddy John aboard La Crapaud. We anchored in 10 ft. and lolled about in the shade of the bimini for the whole day, sharing stories and watching the world go by. The Baldwin Beach area — tucked away in the extreme southwest corner of Lake Tahoe — is great for hanging out on the hook because the boat traffic is much further off shore as folks cut across from South Tahoe marinas to the must-see spot on the lake, Emerald Bay.

I rowed the dinghy in to shore at Baldwin and explored the wetlands, where evidently the Tahoe Yellow Cress is struggling to survive and efforts are being made to control invasive species as well. The water temp was about 67º F. on Ancil’s gauge, so I went for a swim in the shallows, then sat on the inflatable dinghy and dried off in the sun.

Later in the afternoon, we motored around Fannette Island in Emerald Bay just to bask in the grandeur of that amazing place before heading home for the night.

We’re planning on going boat camping once the 4th of July crowds thin, and I’m looking forward to watching the light change on the Sierra Nevada and the Milky Way to appear. Until then …

Fair winds! DB

Launching La Crapaud

On By David BranbyIn Commissioning & De-commissioning, Food & Drink, Friend Ships, On The Water, Ports Of CallLeave a comment

My sailing pals Ancil and John invited me to come up and help them launch La Crapaud, Ancil’s 1968 Columbia 36, a William Crealock design first produced in 1967. I always smile when I see the name La Crapaud, because it means “The Toad” in French. La Crapaud is actually in pretty good shape for a craft of her vintage that hasn’t had a full restoration, and that can be attributed to Ancil’s incredible mechanical skills. Inside, he has a re-powered her with a new Kubota diesel, put in modern plumbing throughout, and installed a new electric windlass and a propane oven, which he uses to bake apple pies and roast things for overnight stays on his “condo on the lake.” With the three of us pitching in, the launch went very well, and we had her rigged and ready to sail in about 2.5 hours. It was a very calm, warm, bright Tahoe morning, so at 11:30 a.m., we motored over to Chambers Landing, where the friendly gals there picked us up at the guest buoy and quickly got us settled with cool refreshments at the bar.

We had the place to ourselves, so we chatted up the young ladies about what it’s like to work at Chambers in the summers, and they regaled us with stories of how crazy busy it gets, especially once the kids are out of school.

One story the young ladies shared with us that really stuck out to me is how often they get the question, “So, where’s the lake?” from tourists. Like, did you not look at a map before driving up this way??? Evidently, some tourists think that Chambers Landing is actually situated on some inland ocean, and that “Lake Tahoe” must be nearby. You cannot make this stuff up.

After our drinks, we motored south towards Camp Richardson — where La Crapaud lives in the summer — dipping into Meeks Bay and Rubicon Bay and along D.L. Bliss State Park (which is unfortunately closed for the summer) as we had a few hours until Ancil’s partner would pick us up on the Camp Rich dock for the drive back to Obexer’s to collect the trailer and take it back down to Reno. All in all, it was a beautiful day, and just gliding along in the shade of La Crapaud’s large bimini and checking out the sights made it feel like we were on an extended Disneyland Jungle Cruise.

Fair winds and smooth sailing! DB

A fond look back at a (mostly) serene sailing season at Lake Tahoe

On By David BranbyIn Food & Drink, On The Water, SplendidoLeave a comment

It’s funny what you remember when looking back on a sailing season. The thought that most occupied my mind last season was, “OK, are those five new thru-hulls I installed last spring going to stay watertight?” In the end, they worked out just fine, as did the new cutlass bearing (much quieter motoring than in all the previous years we’d owned Splendido) and the “drill-and-fill” repairs to the cabin roof. On the happy side, Debbie and I felt very fortunate that we did not experience the busy fire season locally like much of the rest of North America, so it was a summer of blue skies and ideal wind conditions, which opened up opportunities to explore other parts of Tahoe.

One memorable but somewhat regrettable experience I had was sailing south to Camp Richardson on a busy weekend in August. I hadn’t spent much time at the south end of the lake because I’ve found the winds to be a little flukey down there, and it’s also known for having a quite shallow sandy bottom. Nevertheless, I thought it would be fun to pull into the public dock at Camp Rich and go find a refreshing beverage at The Beacon Bar & Grill, because my sailiing pal Ancil (who keeps his boat down there) had told me what a great place it was. I could see the long pier was bustling with people and boats, so I motored every-so-slowly in and spotted an opening along the pier large enough for our 27-foot Splendido. Right as I started my turn, a small speedboat piloted by two stoned chuckleheads zipped in front of me and poached my spot. I swerved back toward shore to avoid a collision, and instantly felt the keel drag in the sandy bottom. Fortunately, I hit reverse and was able to avoid getting stuck, but that was it for me. I made for open water, set sail and headed north, breathing a sigh of relief at leaving the madding crowds in my wake. Alas, my eagerly anticipated visit to The Beacon would have to wait.

One highlight of the season was trying out a new-to-me pizza joint on the North Shore, Whitecaps Pizza with my buddy Jamie and also with Debbie. I’d heard about Whitecaps from our longtime friend and fellow foodie, Jim “J.B.” Budny of Christy Hill in Tahoe City (more on him below). J.B. had waxed eloquent about the crust of Whitecaps’ pizza. “They do a three-day proof,” he said. “It’s amazing.” J.B. was right. It was remarkable, and sitting at the bar on the deck and gazing out at one of the best views at Tahoe sealed the deal. Whitecaps is my new Tahoe pizza favorite, and I’d drive an hour from Reno for one of their pies.

Speaking of food, at Lake Tahoe, Debbie and I have two places that we love to visit when we go out to eat, and we’ve been fans of both for many, many years.

The first of our Tahoe foodie favorites is Wolfdale’s in Tahoe City. I think we went there on our first date in 1991, and it was — and is — spectacular. Douglas Dale, the founder and chef, has become a friend over the years, as Debbie would occasionally invite him down to Reno to showcase his amazing culinary gifts as featured chef at her place, The Cheese Board & Wine Seller. If you go, do not miss Douglas’ house-made smoked trout with aioli. Better yet, order five of them and make a meal of it. It’s that yummy.

Neck-and-neck with Wolfdale’s is Christy Hill, another longtime staple of the Tahoe City culinary scene. We’ve followed legendary Tahoe waiter and sommelier Jim “J.B.” Budny from Wolfdale’s to Boulevard to Spindleshanks to Christy Hill, where he delivers a masterclass every night in the art and science of service. The views at Christy Hill are to die for, and the nosh is wonderful. J.B. has a gift for pairing wines from all over the world with Christy Hill’s stunning cuisine. Planning a special date night? Make this the place.

We were delighted to welcome some old friends and new ones aboard Splendido this past season. Our friends Mikey and Patty joined us for an afternoon at Sugar Pine as we gently bobbed about, ate, drank and just basked in the bliss of being at Lake Tahoe on a balmy summer afternoon. These opportunities to really unwind are pretty special. Another special guest aboard was my cinematographer colleague and friend, Damian Gordon of Sierra Studio Films, who came up to film Splendido sailing from his drone. Damian is a gifted videographer and editor who’s hired by the likes of the San Francisco Marathon and large corporations to do video work. He’s also the marketing videographer for Nevada’s flagship university, where I’ve worked with him creating student recruiting videos for the past five years. We spent the day sailing the west shore, and I’ll post what we did here once I do the video voiceover that I’ve been putting off now for months. Stay tuned.

You probably noticed one photo in the gallery here showing a vast amount of yellow pine pollen collected along the shore where we launch. Yep, that’s Tahoe in June, and this past year, the pollen was so intense that when a breeze would come up in the pines, it would waft up on a scale that made it look like smoke from a fire. I don’t suffer from pollen allergies myself, but I pity the poor souls who do at that time of year. I think the massive pollen release was a result of the big winter and abundance of water we had over the winter of 2022/23. At the moment, though, the Sierra Nevada snowpack is at 25% of the historical average for January, which is a bit worrying. It looks like a storm is on the way, so fingers crossed for some lake-filling wet weather ahead.

Right now, Splendido is sitting on her trailer in her winter pasture covered with a new-to-me canvas sailboat cover that a fellow Catalina 270 sailor in Seattle gave me, as he found he didn’t need it in the milder Pacific Northwest. My handy pal Ancil is after me to replace Splendido’s battery cables, which we noticed had quite a bit of corrosion at the ends last season. My other projects before launch in a few months include installing brand-new lifelines and a new electric bilge pump, and maybe new portlights, as ours are quite dogged, as they’re now 31 years old. Ah, there’s always plenty of messing about to be done when it comes to boats, but the you realize it’s a privilege to be grateful for, and you just get on with it.

One last thing to note is that today, I’m retiring from the university where I’ve worked for past 11 years to spend more time with my darling bride, Debbie, who sold her business six years ago and has been kinda hanging out waiting for me to get with the program. Our plan is to sail more and stress less, so fingers crossed. I’ll keep you posted. Until next time …

Fair winds and smooth sailing! DB

Kicking off sailing season with some zing

On By David BranbyIn Food & Drink, On The Water, Overnighters, SplendidoLeave a comment

All the hard work this past winter and spring seems to be paying off — we’ve gotten out for five sailing sessions of pure Tahoe perfection. After a wonky June with lots of thunderstorms and winds that were blowing dogs off chains (my pal Ancil said one storm blew 30-40 lawn chairs into the lake at Camp Richardson at the south end of the lake), things settled down and Debbie and I got in some great sailing in 10-12 knot breezes with gusts to 17, which is just about right for our little boat.

I had a little drama with the mooring buoy this spring. I noticed someone had shackled their shiny new wakeboarding boat to the buoy I’d legally leased, which was a little alarming, let me tell you. Evidently, a new homeowner in the area where we rent our buoy felt entitled to take a buoy, leave town for a month and deal with the consequences later. I have a photo showing me pointing out the offending craft (with my middle finger), but I’ll refrain from posting it here. Ancil offered to lend me his auger, but I declined. We have plenty of sharp knives suitable for cutting mooring lines aboard already. 🙂 Fortunately, we have a very cool lease-lord who helped get things squared away, offering us another of his buoys closer in to shore until the switch could be properly made. My favorite part was when the officious blonde lady (let’s call her Karen) with the clipboard in the kayak paddled over and flatly said the situation had changed in this mooring field and I wouldn’t be able to moor there at all next year. After reporting this exchange, my lease-lord texted me: “Don’t you love it when people are confidently wrong?”

This past Saturday, I single-handed up to Sugar Pine State Park and anchored next to Le Crapaud. Debbie had some obligations in town, so I lolled about on the hook and spent a little time enjoying virgin mango coladas (for me) with Ancil and his partner Tina. The moon came up and the lake was like a mill pond. I don’t think I’ve ever slept better aboard. Debbie drove up Sunday morning and I rowed into shore to pick her up. We put up our little boom tent and read books in the shade as the boat bobbed gently — and sometimes not so gently, due to all the speedboats. But, that’s summer at Tahoe and you take it as it comes. Later, I rowed Debbie back to shore and she drove home while I sailed a 17-knot breeze back to Mark Zuckerberg Bay (oops, I meant to say Hurricane Bay). Our pal Mark bought two adjacent properties at the north end of Hurricane last year (reportedly spending $70 million, which I calculate as three days’ wages for him), and we see him out on his eFoil board weaving around our anchorage on flat mornings. But I digress. On my sail back, the wind was right on the nose at 320º (which is my usual head-back heading), so I trimmed up everything tight and really couldn’t “turn the corner” until I was literaly at right angles to our buoy and 1/2 mile off. Magically, the wind veered south at the last moment and I was able to sail right up to the ball. Still shaking my head about that.

We’re headed out this afternoon for a sail and a meetup with fellow sailors where we’ll share our favorite Caribbean Rum Zing recipe and watch the alpenglow paint the Tahoe skies pink and orange. Debbie just pulled out the portable chess set, so I expect she’ll beat me like a red-haired stepchild at that game as the sun sets and the brilliant Milky Way appears.

My next post will likely be a GoPro video I’ve been working on … dang, those things are a lot of work (especially the editing part), so I hope it all comes together.

Until then, fair winds and smooth sailing, and thanks for following along! DB

Splashin’ around the old sailing grounds

On By David BranbyIn Food & Drink, On The Water, SplendidoLeave a comment

Debbie and I headed out on Saturday, July 17 to visit Calawee Cove at D.L. Bliss State Park and Sugar Pine State Park on the way back. On our way down south, we encountered (yet again) a couple of SUP paddlers about two miles offshore with rising winds. We hailed them to make sure they were OK, and asked if they were fatigued, as we’re always happy to pick folks up so we don’t have to read about them in the papers the next day. They said they were fine but a bit lost, so we pointed out Bliss, Meek’s and Sugar Pine to help orient them, and pulled in the mainsheet to get underway again.

We threw down the hook in 15 feet of water at D.L. Bliss, which was (predicably) a parking lot of speedboats on this warm afternoon.

Debbie made some sandwiches and I poured her a glass of wine, and we sat out under our instant sunshade for a couple of hours, watching the neighboring boats and merrymakers having fun.

I had the binoculars out and was keeping an eye on the paddleboarders we’d met earlier. After about 2-1/2 hours, they came straggling in to the beach, safe and sound.

To the southeast, the Tamarack Fire began sending up a new plume of white and gray smoke, and we knew that eventually that smoke would cover the lake. We decided to weigh anchor and head north, so I moved the traveler to port and we sailed on a bowline up to the south end of Sugar Pine, where we dropped the hook in about eight feet of water. The crowds were thinning out and the wind was tailing off, so I took the opportunity to replace three busted sail-slides on the lower mainsail. Evidently, the winter and long layup had made them fragile, so it was well worth the effort. Afterward, I took a quick plunge to cool off, and finally felt like summer sailing season had begun in earnest.
Our “secret” cove on the south end of Sugar Pine State Park.

Fair winds and smooth sailing! DB

A fun sail and sandwiches at Sugar Pine State Park

On By David BranbyIn Food & Drink, On The Water, Ports Of Call, SplendidoLeave a comment

Now that we’ve got the thermostat issue worked out (thank you, Jamie Filbin!), Debbie and I got out for an afternoon sail in 16-21 knots on an ESE heading to Sugar Pine State Park. The breeze—at 90º F.—was as warm as I’ve ever felt at Tahoe, and even in the gusts, Splendido sailed like a thoroughbred as we made our way down to the area just north of the Hellman-Ehrman Mansion. An enterprising American robin had made a massive nest in the anchor locker, which I’d only partly cleaned out a few weeks ago, so I let the entire anchor line out and cleaned out the rest of the hay, grass, feathers and dirt that had accumulated in the locker. Debbie broke out some yummy caprese sandwiches on thick crusty bread, and we lolled about for about an hour watching the changing light, sipping on Lagunitas IPNAs ( a refreshing new favorite N/A beer) and munching on Kettle chips.

The sail back was epic, with Tahoe’s classic canyon winds kicking in for the final boost toward home. I was struck by how few boats are on Lake Tahoe during the week, even at the height of summer. We counted four sailboats besides ourselves and only a handful of speedboats, so it felt like he had the whole place to ourselves—a welcome relief after the rock-and-rolling craziness of July 4th weekend.

Fair winds and following seas. DB

A Taste of Tahoe on a Holiday Weekend

On By David BranbyIn Food & Drink, On The Water, Overnighters, Ports Of Call, Splendido1 Comment

This could be a story about changing out a thermostat on a 1993 Perkins diesel (and how it took two strapping midlifers 48 hours to tear down the engine in a wildly rocking boat on a busy Fourth of July weekend), but to hell with that. This is a story about Tahoe’s unexpected delights—places, pizza, tacos and thirst-quenching libations.

The good news is, we replaced the wonky thermostat. The better news is, my buddy Jamie and I discovered some Tahoe treasures, including a front-row seat at Chambers Landing Grill for an awesome sunset. I tucked into a veggie pizza and a Coors N/A, while Jamie devoured a plate of their amazing tacos and a crisp glass of Kim Crawford sauv blanc. Chambers was hopping with relaxed familes and lots of kids running around, climbing trees and playing paddle ball on the golden sand. The food was yummy, the service was outstanding (despite the fact that we had on Eau du Boat fragrance, two-day beards and grimy boat clothes, amidst the finery of the folks around us). The setting, of course, was pure summer Tahoe: pinkish light settling over the Sierras, the scent of warm sugar pines, and the sounds of happy families sharing stories and talking with their neighbors, largely vaxxed and relaxed, a prelude to a return to normalcy.

Not gonna lie—it wasn’t hard to become a member of the Clean Plate Club at Chambers Grill.

After dinner, we made it back to Splendido and decided to sleep on the lazarettes in the open air—something I had rarely done before. The view was spectacular as the sky darkened and the Milky Way appeared.

After a great afternoon sail in balmy 14 kt. breezes, we slept out in the cockpit in sleeping bags.

I woke up about a quarter to five to absolute silence and the stars overhead fading quietly into the dawn. Jamie was out like a light, so I chilled and just watched the light come up over the lake.

About 5:45 a.m., the first water ski boat roared to life, breaking the silence and the millpond surface of the lake.

After a couple of cups of hot coffee, we rowed in and drove up to Fire Sign Café to see about breakfast. Not surprisingly, the place was packed with holiday guests, so we wandered across the street to West Shore Market and picked up provisions for the day.

Back on board, I put up the shade tent to beat the heat, then we got after swapping out the thermostat. Jamie and I both ended up getting a little “green” from the constant tossing and turning, so we alternated “coming up for air” in the cockpit. Mission accomplished, we ran a number of tests, made sure everything was tight, then buttoned her up and headed home.

I can’t wait to get back on board with Debbie and friends and get some more summer sailing in! Huge thanks to Jamie for helping wrench on the engine and sharing a classic couple of days at Lake Tahoe.

Happy Fourth of July to all who celebrate—and fair winds to you and yours. DB

What boat is that?

On By David BranbyIn Food & Drink, On The Water, Ports Of Call, Splendido2 Comments

Last season, Debbie and I were boat camping off of Sugar Pine State Park on Tahoe’s west shore one day when an elegant couple aboard a beautiful gray-hulled Beneteau pulled alongside, asking if we were part of the Tahoe Windjammers Yacht Club. We replied that we weren’t, and off they sailed.

For months afterwards, we wondered what length and model that beautiful boat was. This summer, after one particularly uncomfortable, sleepless night where we both became claustrophobic in Splendido’s modest sleeping berth, our conversation turned to the idea of exploring what having a larger boat – with larger sleeping quarters – might look like.

“Well, let’s figure out what model that good-looking Beneteau is, and we’ll start there.” I offered, feeling guilty for even broaching the topic, as we have worked so hard on and just adore our own lovely Splendido. Soon, however, Debbie and I were surfing the internet trying to find an image of a gray-hulled Beneteau. After a little Googling, Debbie found a photo of it sailing on Lake Tahoe on the Tahoe Windjammers website, so I contacted the Windjammers to see if they could tell me what length and model it was. After a laughably difficult email exchange with the Windjammers’ web guy – who I suspect thought I was a web scammer – I got an email from the Beneteau’s owners, Leon and Patricia Malmed.

Leon, an engineer who had a very successful career in Silicon Valley and who is also a Holocaust survivor and published author, said the boat was a 2013 Beneteau Oceanis 34, and graciously invited us to visit sometime to take a look at their boat, Mon Amour.

Because the smoke on Tahoe from the terrible California wildfires had shut down our sailing for nearly a month, we were happy to drive to the south shore to indulge our curiosity. Although we had hardly met, Patricia and Leon welcomed us with open arms, and surprised us with a sail aboard Mon Amour. She proved to be a sweet sailer with a striking black North 3DL headsail, beautiful on deck as well as below.

We spent a delightful afternoon talking about sailboats, Lake Tahoe, and life, and it was a superb pleasure getting to know these lovely people. After docking and chatting a bit more, we bought one of Leon’s wonderful books and parted, enriched by the experience and the rare gift to spend time with our new-found sailing friends.

Afterwards, Debbie and I drove along the west shore to Tahoe City and capped a great day by stopping at Wolfdale’s for their amazing smoked trout, Caesar salads, and drinks. We got to chat with Chef Douglas Dale briefly to congratulate him on 40 years in business before we headed down the hill and home again.

Fair winds and smooth sailing. DB

A Day In The Life Of Lake Tahoe Sailors

On By David BranbyIn Food & Drink, On The Water, SplendidoLeave a comment

I thought it would be interesting to show the sequence of events we take when Debbie and I feel the need to get out on the water and go for a sail at beautiful Lake Tahoe.

  1. We get up, have our coffee, and check the “Lake Tahoe Recreation Forecast” to see what kind of conditions we should expect for afternoon sailing.

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2. We load my Toyota Prius with a seabag, food, drink and oars.

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3. We take the scenic one-hour drive through the Sierras to Lake Tahoe.

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4. We park, unload the gear, and walk over to the dinghy at the shoreline.

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5. We load everything into our Walker Bay dinghy and row out.

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6. We run through our departure checklist and set sail to wherever we feel like, most often southwards.

7. We drop the hook and wave to our fellow boaters.

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8. I set up and light the BBQ while Debbie preps and cooks.

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9. We sail off into the sunset, make things ship-shape above decks and below, row back to shore, and settle in for the drive back home. Sometimes, we even stop to get ice cream cones in Tahoe Vista or Kings Beach on the North Shore before heading down the hill to our home in Reno.

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We’re very grateful to be able to enjoy sailing Lake Tahoe aboard our 1993 Catalina 270, Splendido, in this routine yet rewarding way.

Fair winds and smooth sailing! DB

Sailing On A Friday After Work

On By David BranbyIn Food & Drink, On The Water, Splendido1 Comment

It has been a challenging week – Debbie had to move her 85-year-old dad into assisted living, and I’d gotten a bit stressed trying to wrangle a couple of big projects at work – so we made a beeline for the boat Friday afternoon after work to see if we could get a little sailing in, followed by dinner back at the buoy.

Winds were light and westerly when we arrived, and warm — about 80 degrees at lake level. The water temperature is now 65 degrees, and warming daily. Now that we’re in our seventh year of sailing Splendido, we have a dialed-in checklist we follow to get out quickly and get the sails up. With partly cloudy skies and what I call “Tahoe Monsoon” conditions (high pressure over the West and thunderstorms forming in the afternoons), we motored out and found a gentle breeze to set sail. We started by shaking out the reef we’d been sailing with so far this season, but later on, when the canyon winds kicked up with gusts in excess of 20 knots, things just got uncomfortable and noisy, so we turned her into the wind, put the first reef back in, and it was smooth sailing after that. I poured Debbie a nice glass of Lava Cap Grenache from a recent road trip we did to Amador County, CA  (check it out if you haven’t – it’s like Napa 40 years ago), and I grabbed my trusty Clausthaler N/A beer and settled in for a fun afternoon. We cruised around McKinney and Hurricane bays, and were surprised how few boats were out. Later on, we saw four or five more sails come out, including Tahoe Cruz, with a deck full of tourists enjoying the ride.

Back on the hook at about 8:15 p.m., Debbie went below and whipped up a delicious caprese salad with roasted chicken and a balsamic dressing and a fresh loaf of crusty bread. As she prepared dinner, I tidied up on deck and worked on the lazy jacks/lazy bag that’ve gotten a bit out of whack. Afterwards, we buttoned up Splendido and rowed the dinghy back to shore in the gathering darkness, grateful for the chance to sail away from the anxiety of life’s changes and challenges, at least for an afternoon.

Fair winds and smooth sailing. DB