South Lake Tahoe SUP Day Trips
Stand up paddleboarding is an exciting activity for any age group and skill level, especially around Lake Tahoe where there always seems to be “just one more” location to see around the next corner.
When you can plan to spend an entire day out on your SUP, you will have enough time to see everything you want to - or at least get started. Lake Tahoe is 72 miles in circumference, so the journey would take the average paddleborder around 24 hours without any stops or breaks. But this does not leave much time for taking in the sights or enjoying a picnic on a remote beach, so unless you are planning to test your endurance or set a speed record, you face the question of where to start your day trip.
SUP Day Trip Ideas
The “trail” that lets you circle all of Lake Tahoe is called the Water Trail. The trail has signage along the way to indicate the “trailheads,” marking the best places to launch your stand up paddleboard.
The entire trail consists of several sections of the trail that are easily accessible from South Lake Tahoe, whether you are staying in a campground or hotel in the area. This also makes it convenient if you are planning to rent an SUP from SUP Tahoe, South Lake Tahoe’s best SUP rentals. Picking up a rental SUP at our store provides easy access to any of these day trips:
Zephyr Cove to Camp Richardson
This entire trip is almost 14 miles and would make for a full day of paddling if you want to do a point-to-point journey or be very ambitious and go there and back again. Along the path, there are also several sandy beaches open to the public where you can put in an SUP, making it possible to customize this journey for whatever length you want and take frequent breaks along the way.
You can start at either Camp Richardson and the surrounding area or Zephyr Cove, as both sites have several amenities. Some of the sites you will want to check out along the way include:
Beaches - This part of Lake Tahoe provides some of the best beaches and when you need a chance to lay on the sun or a place to set up your picnic, you have options that include Pope Beach, Baldwin Beach, Kiva Beach El Dorado Beach, Keys Beach, Lakeside Beach, and Nevada Beach.
Wetlands - Just to the west of Keys Beach is the Upper Truckee Marsh where the Truckee River meets the lake. Here you can see a variety of birds, turtles, fish, beavers, and plant life.
Restaurants and Drinks - Many beaches have restaurants and cafes available just off the lake if you need a bite to eat. The Beacon Bar and Grill in Camp Richardson, Beach Bear Cafe or Idle Hour off of El Dorado Beach, Boathouse on the Pier, Riva Grill, Tahoe Pops, and Brooks Bar and Deck can all keep you sustained throughout your trip.
Any of these beaches on this list can also be your primary spot for SUP if you want to stay in one location.
Emerald Bay
Often considered one of the most beautiful locations on Lake Tahoe, Emerald Bay is at the southwest corner of the lake. The small inlet has emerald waters that give the bay its name and they are clear enough to see into their depths from your paddleboard.
Fannette Island in the middle of the bay is home to a historic teahouse and on shore in Emerald Bay State Park is Vikingsholm, a historic mansion. This is all in addition to the many incredible views of the surrounding trees and mountains and waterfalls at Eagle Creek.
Because there is no easy spot to launch an SUP from within Emerald Bay, this is the perfect location for a day trip. The closest launch spots are 3 miles away in either direction from either Baldwin Beach in the Lester Beach at Rubicon Point to the north. You can travel from either of these locations to Emerald Bay where you can explore and enjoy a picnic lunch before heading back to your starting point in the afternoon.
When planning your SUP trip to Emerald Bay, you should be aware that many motorized boats will visit this area during midday and early afternoon, which will make the water choppy. Planning your arrival and departure earlier in the morning and later in the evening will allow for easier paddling.
Lake Tahoe West Shore SUP
The west shore of Lake Tahoe offers a variety of adventures on the water and on shore, and you can travel to all of them on an SUP. Meeks Bay is the perfect place to start or end your trip, especially if you can camp at the campground there. If you are looking to park there without camping, you will need to arrive before 8am.
Meeks Bay can be the basis for two different day trips. If you want to head south toward Rubicon Bay, you can get to Lester Beach and Calawee Cove Beach Cove beach where you will also see the Rubicon Point Lighthouse. There are fewer places to stop on this route as many of the beaches you pass are private.
You can also go north towards Sugar Pine Point, stopping on the way at the Hellman-Ehrman Mansion and its nearby boat launch that looks like a set of train tracks running out into the water. Sugar Pine Point State Park has several options for hiking, birdwatching, and picnicking to enjoy it before you head back to Meeks Bay.
You can also plan your own SUP day trip based on your SUP abilities and the sites you most want to see. This map of the Lake Tahoe Water Trail shows the locations from which you can launch and land on an SUP or kayak to help you plan your starting and ending points, as well as any stops you would like to make along the way.
You may also want to book your SUP ahead of time. Reserving an SUP online from SUP Tahoe will expedite your process so you can get out to the water faster for your adventure and make the most of your day.
We also offer options for evening and overnight stand up paddleboard rental, enabling you to extend your day or get an early start. For the truly ambitious looking for multiple days, we offer multi day SUP rental in Tahoe. If you prefer to remain seated throughout your journey, try our kayak rental instead. Like SUP rental, kayak rental Tahoe includes everything you need. We have Tahoe multi day kayak rentals available as well as single day and overnight rentals to help you customize your perfect trip.
