Road bikers have been heading out to conquer the North Tahoe triangle – Tahoe City to Truckee to Kings Beach – for a number of years, but the ride took on a special allure when it became the crux of the short-lived Lake Tahoe Ironman. During that event, held from 2013 to 2015, those crazy Ironman athletes had to ride it twice, including the big climb up Brockway Summit — oh, and by the way, once they finished that grueling ride, they would run a marathon. We normal folks only have to ride the 37-mile course once; the nice three-hour ride showcases the three communities and provides a ton of awesome views.
The great thing about The Triangle is you can start wherever you want, in either direction, to end up where you started. There are bike lanes on the entire ride, but along busy roads. My suggestions to avoid the crowds are pretty much common sense: Ride early in the morning, ride midweek and if you get the chance, ride off season. In addition, wear bright clothing and a flashing bike light on the back — make your presence known.
I like to start in Tahoe City and ride clockwise. I begin at the 64 Acres parking lot; I warm up along the bike trail to Olympic Valley, then jump on State Route 89 to Truckee. It’s mostly a gentle downhill and the Truckee River rushes along beside you. If you are not in a hurry, stop along the river somewhere and rest your weary feet in its cool waters.
The miles pile up pretty quickly and before you know it, you are at West River Street at the edge of Truckee. Turn right at the light and follow this road along with the Truckee River on one side and downtown Truckee on the other. Turn right on Brockway Road. Here you encounter the first real hill of the ride. It’s short, but will get your heart pumping. Now you wind along busy Brockway Road to State Route 267; you turn right at the light.
Next, you roll through the open Martis Valley toward Northstar. It’s a pretty section, but also pretty treacherous because the drivers all seem hell bent on speeding. Just a bit before reaching the Northstar stop light, the climbing begins to Brockway Summit — and the ascent doesn’t stop until you’ve grunted up about 1,300 feet over 4 miles. That’s steep. Stick it in first gear and keep on pedaling. Remember, if you were competing in the Ironman, you would have to do this twice. Eventually you do reach the top.
Now it’s “Whee!” time — a 3-mile sustained downhill. It’s fast, but there is a wide shoulder the whole way, so very ridable. A few views of the lake pop up, but if you are me, you are focused on that white line to the left of you. More daring riders barrel down this section at car speeds of more than 60 mph. At the intersection of State Routes 267 and 28, turn right and head for Tahoe City.
First, though, you might be ready for a dip in the lake. North Tahoe Beach is just on your left after turning right at the light. It has restrooms, water and the world’s greatest swimming pool, Lake Tahoe. If your idea of a dip is more along the lines of ice cream. Keep on riding, in about 1 mile in Tahoe Vista you will come across Cable Car Ice Cream, a few feet from the bike lane. You can’t miss it.
With 8 miles to go, it’s rolling, mostly level terrain for the first few miles to Carnelian Bay. Waterman’s Landing in Carnelian Bay is another possible swim stop. Two more miles brings you to the second and last, big hill of the day: Dollar Hill. This one is just as steep as Brockway, but thankfully quite a bit shorter: less than 1 mile. Once you reach the top your work for the day is pretty much done. The downhill to Tahoe City is steep enough to be fast, but gentle enough to pedal all the way down and it will get you so excited that before you know it you are riding through Tahoe City and to the finish line.
Whether you ride clockwise or counter-clockwise around The Triangle might depend on whether you are climber or a descender. Me, I’m a bit cautious on the downhills so the advantage of the clockwise route is that you are taking the easier descents from Brockway Summit to Kings Beach and Dollar Hill to Tahoe City. The descents in the other direction are much steeper. Of course, that means that the climbs on the clockwise route are shorter and steeper, as well. Pick your poison: easier climbs or easier descents.
Otherwise, those riding clockwise get to ride along the Truckee River, while those riding counterclockwise get to ride along the shore of Lake Tahoe. Whichever way you go, it’s a ride worth doing.
