The Truckee Meadows would be nothing without, well, the Truckee River.
Life in our community depends on it, from the cottonwoods and Lahontan cutthroat trout to the people who drink its water each day. Beyond the survival element, perhaps the most lovable quality of the Truckee is the chance to cool off in it.
Here is a guide to enjoying the river this summer.
Floating
Local guides advise that the perfect Reno float is from Mayberry Park to Wingfield Park. While that nearly three-hour journey is lovely, it means navigating an abandoned diversion structure at Ambrose Park, west of McCarran Boulevard. This obstruction can be tricky for first timers. Starting at Crissie Caughlin Park avoids both this obstacle and the intense Mayberry Park weekend crowds. Launching from Caughlin Park also cuts the float time in half, which can also be a major benefit. Between the sun exposure and scraping against rocks, a 90-minute journey feels like a sweet spot.
People have floated down the Truckee on everything from inflatable mattresses to dollar-store inner tubes. Look for tubes made with thick plastic or rubber to discourage popping. Tubes with handles are easier to keep ahold of, though handles are not necessary. Other useful gear includes hats, water shoes and a dry bag for clothing, towels, keys and phones. Do not forget sunscreen.
There are several ways to transport yourself from the terminus of your float to the start—assuming your vehicle is parked where you started. If you have two cars, you can drive both to the terminus point to park one car, and then drive the other to the starting point; at the end of the float, you’ll have a car ready to whisk you away. Another option is to leave bikes at the terminus instead; it is an 11-minute, 2.3-mile bike ride between Wingfield Park and Caughlin Park. (Just be prepared to carry all of your gear.) A third alternative is Sierra Adventures. This local company provides shuttling services as well as equipment rentals for tubing. To learn more, visit wildsierra.com.
Rafting
Get the adrenaline pumping with a guided rafting trip along one of the river’s many rapids, which vary from class 1 to 4. Note that the class ratings increase during heavy spring flows.
Class 1 and 2 are considered acceptable for beginners and young children. Class 3 rapids are intermediate but are still considered acceptable for beginners to attempt. Class 4 rapids are intermediate to advanced and require solid knowledge of handling the boat.
Several rafting companies service the area and can help get your group situated with the correct experience: Irie Rafting (raftirie.com), Tributary Whitewater Tours (whitewatertours.com/river-rafting/truckee-river) and Tahoe Whitewater Tours (gowhitewater.com). Sierra Adventures also provides kayak tours (www.raftingreno.com).
Hiking and biking
The Tahoe-Pyramid Trail, founded in 2003, now extends along the river for much of the 114-mile route from Lake Tahoe to Pyramid Lake—81% of it, to be exact. Hikers and bikers can travel from Tahoe City, Calif. to Sparks, from Mustang to USA Parkway, and from Wadsworth to Pyramid Lake.
At Crystal Peak Park in Verdi, along the 0.5-mile interpretive loop, you’ll find ruins from the site’s past life as a lumber mill and remnants from the Verdi Glen Resort, which closed in 1938. The walk is partially shaded under a mixed canopy of cottonwood and pine trees.
Oxbow Nature Study Area and McCarran Ranch Preserve are both conservation areas that preserve wetlands along the Truckee River. Each of these parks is home to dozens of birds, reptiles, bugs, mammals and plants. Towering cottonwoods, willows and spectacular shade follow along both of these trail systems. Walk along the mile-long loop at Oxbow, or a 5.4-mile there-and-back trail from McCarran Ranch Preserve in Patrick. There’s an awesome beach spot within the first tenth of a mile from the Patrick trailhead.
To enjoy riverside biking, the Tahoe-Pyramid Trail offers sections for road biking, mountain biking and gravel riding. Road bikers, check out the 9.8-mile section from Olympic Valley to Truckee. This section is along Highway 89 and features gentle curving roads, thick forests of pine, and towering walls of granite. Pull over at the turnout at approximately mile 6 to take a quick dip in the river. Mountain bikers, enjoy the 8.6-mile section from Verdi to Farad, where you go through pine and sage forests, over the Fleish suspension bridge, and deeper into the stunning Truckee River Canyon. River access is periodic throughout the ride. Gravel riders, try the 10-mile Mustang to USA Parkway section, where the trail tread alternates between gravel, sand, pavement and rock.
For more information about the Tahoe-Pyramid Trail, including maps, visit tahoepyramidtrail.org.
Swimming
While the Truckee can move fast, there are eddies and pools along the shore that provide safe spots for people to swim. Idlewild Park is an awesome place to find these.
Mayberry and Wingfield parks are classic swimming spots, and Lockwood Park in Sparks is a hidden gem with cottonwoods, a great swimming hole, a rope swing and two trails—the 0.4-mile Interpretive Loop and the 0.8-mile Lockwood Loop.