Commune with the Ghost of Twain July 29-31 in Incline Village at the Mark Twain Cultural Center.

All summer long Mark Twain will share his adventures in two separate story formats. Tales of Tahoe for Families is perfect for the kids, and An Evening with Mark Twain is uncensored-unabashed Twain at his finest.

Presented by McAvoy Layne, you’ll think you’re sitting with the man himself. McAvoy is author of the soon to be published, Becoming Mark Twain, and winner of the Nevada award for excellence in school and library service. He portrays the Ghost of Mark Twain in A&E’s biography of Mark Twain and in the Discovery Channel’s Cronkite Award winning documentary, Adventures of Huckleberry Finn.

Tales of Tahoe for Families -  July 30

To inspire kids and everyone to “read good books” the family shows feature “The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County” and other humorous sketches.

An Evening with Mark Twain for Adults -  July 29 and July 31

Shows start at 7pm, doors open at 6pm. And, you’re invited to bring a picnic dinner.

Mark Twain Cultural Center
760 Mays Blvd., Suite 10, Incline Village

The Mark Twain Cultural Center will also feature live theater from Good Luck Macbeth, live music from Tahoe’s Jimmy Buffet-Darin Talbot, live flamenco and classical guitar from Martin & Vargas. For more information, please call 775-833-1835.

Mark Twain (1835 – 1910)

Samuel Langhorne Clemens, better known as Mark Twain, is one of America’s most celebrated authors and humorists. After working as a printer and a riverboat pilot, Twain moved to Nevada with his brother Orion, who had been appointed secretary to territorial governor James Nye. After many adventures, Clemens’ wit won him a job as a reporter for the Territorial Enterprise in Virginia City. He was a lover of the literary hoax and perfected it in Nevada where he created fabulous stories including a discussion about a petrified man. In the spring of 1864, Twain became embroiled in a dispute over one of his libelous hoaxes, and so he left Virginia City in May 1864. He used his western sojourn as inspiration for Roughing It (1872), a book that flowed between fact and fiction. The author’s Nevada experience was far more than the source of anecdotes and the birthplace of a pen name. For Twain the cosmopolitan Comstock proved the perfect training ground with its thriving literary tradition that exploited the western tall tale to its utmost.

From their humble beginnings that started on Riverside Drive seven years ago to their new digs on commercial row, the artisans continue to welcome new and old friends to their monthly “First Fridays” from 4-8pm.

Keeping the tradition alive that they started at Brickelltown, First Fridays include live music by local bands and performers, local artists, refreshments and, as always, a fresh perspective on art.

Riverside Studios includes vintage clothing creations by eco-stylist Heather River, pottery by Alanna Hughes, handbags, belts and leather accessories by Kahlil Johnson, and jewelry by Sondrea and Mary.

Riverside Studios
10060 Donner Pass Road. (next to the Squeeze In)
Downtown Truckee on Commercial Row

530-587-3789

Where art and community go hand in hand, join the artisans of Riverside Studios every First Friday for a fresh approach and a glass of wine.

Photo: Alanna Hughes of Riverside Studios

Check out these valuable fire preparation tips taking place July 3-11, during Wildfire Awareness Week. And attend the free Lake Tahoe Basin Wildland-Urban Interface Summit on Friday, July 9 from 9am to 5pm at Harvey’s.

Wildfire Awareness Week is being held to encourage all Lake Tahoe Basin residents to “BE EMBER PREPARED!” and help protect our homes and communities from the embers that cause destruction of many homes during wildfires.

Wildfire Awareness Week is sponsored by fire service professionals, the Nevada Fire Safe Council, University of Nevada and University of California Cooperative Extensions, and other interested organizations to promote wildfire and ember awareness.

Click here for the complete details of each of the following events.

• Jul 04 – Glenbrook Community Picnic
• Jul 04 – Meeks Bay Fire District’s Pancake Breakfast
• Jul 05 – Wildfire Awareness Week film festival Explore Tahoe, 4114 Lake Tahoe Blvd. South Lake Tahoe
• Jul 06 – Fire Management in Washoe Meadows State Park, Meyers, CA
• Jul 06 – Forest Fuels Reduction Field Trip 925 Country Club Drive (Tahoe Cross Country Ski Center), Tahoe City
• Jul 06 – Wildfire Awareness Week film festival Explore Tahoe, 4114 Lake Tahoe Blvd., South Lake Tahoe, CA
• Jul 07 – South Shore Conservation Block Party at Miller’s Outpost at the Y, South Lake Tahoe, CA
• Jul 07 – Wildfire Awareness Week film festival Explore Tahoe, 4114 Lake Tahoe Blvd. South Lake Tahoe, CA
• Jul 08 – Firewise Landscaping Class, Lake Tahoe Community College Demonstration Garden
• Jul 08 – Wildfire Awareness in the Garden North Lake Tahoe Demonstration Garden at Sierra Nevada College, Tahoe Blvd. & Country Club, Incline Village, NV
• Jul 08 – Wildfire Awareness Week film festival Explore Tahoe, 4114 Lake Tahoe Blvd. South Lake Tahoe, CA
• Jul 08 – Fire Station Open House Lake Valley Fire Station 7, 2211 Keetak St., Meyers, CA
• Jul 09 – Wildfire Summit Harvey’s Casino, Stateline, NV
• Jul 09 – Wildfire Awareness Week film festival Explore Tahoe, 4114 Lake Tahoe Blvd. South Lake Tahoe, CA
• Jul 10 – Tahoe Fish Hatchery Grand Opening celebration Tahoe City Field Station (fish hatchery), Tahoe City, CA
• Jul 10 -  North Tahoe Fire District’s Free Yard Waste Drop Off Day Homewood’s South Lodge (Ski Bowl Way), Tahoe City Cross Country Center (925 Country Club Drive), North Tahoe Regional Park, Tahoe Vista
• Jul 11 – Tahoe Paradise Fire Safe Chapter Neighborhood BBQ 768 Cayuga Street, South Lake Tahoe, CA
• Jul 11 -  Free Chipping Day North Mandan Firesafe Chapter, South Lake Tahoe, CA
• Jul 11 -Tahoe Douglas Fire Station Open House and Fuels Reduction Project Tour Tahoe Douglas Fire Station #4, 875 Hwy 50 in Zephyr Cove, NV

Through her classes and workshops, Audrey passes on her family traditions of basket making where she demonstrates weaving techniques and discusses her Native heritage and culture.

Join Washoe-Paiute weaver Audrey Frank for a lesson on coiled basketry utilizing a resource that is readily available…pine needles! This class is ideal for beginners or weavers looking for a refresher.

Morning refreshments and materials provided. Please bring a lunch and wear suncreen as this event is held outdoors in Layton Park. Pre-registration is required and classes fill quickly. $25 members / $30 nonmembers.  Please call the Gatekeeper’s Museum for more details and to register at 530-583-1762.

Gatekeeper’s Museum/Marion Steinbach Indian Basket Museum
130 West Lake Blvd.
Tahoe City, CA 96145

About Audrey Frank (Nevada Dept of Cultural Affairs)

Audrey Frank’s family tree branches out to both the Summit Lake Paiute and Washoe Tribes of northern Nevada. Her grandmother taught her to bead daisy chains, but Audrey didn’t become serious about basket weaving until many years later when she learned how to make pine needle baskets from her aunt and step-mother. They taught her how to start the basket, create its “Washoe running loop stitches” and make decorative lids. She makes several basket styles, but all range from 1 to 1.5 inches of tightly woven needles. Each woman in her family weaves a signature design into their basket lids. Audrey often incorporates a small pine cone on the top.

Audrey passes on her family traditions of basket making through classes and workshops where she demonstrates weaving techniques and discusses her Native heritage and culture. Participants learn about traditional basket materials, techniques, processing, styles and their importance in the Washoe and other Great Basin tribes. Among Native Americans in the Great Basin, pine needle basket weaving has a unique story because it is primarily a one-family tradition and was initially learned from non-Native teachers. Audrey’s aunt didn’t learn pine needle weaving from the generation before her, nor did she learn from family and friends as is often the case with folk art. Instead, it was in a workshop taught by non-Native weavers at Lake Tahoe’s Gatekeeper’s cabin more than 20 years ago.

The Washoe are a small tribe living in western Washoe and Douglas Counties, Carson City and the Lake Tahoe area, with some members as far away as Mono County, California. Their baskets are distinct from those of the other major Great Basin tribes in some respects, but they share many characteristics. Audrey’s family is noted for their pine needle baskets because they were the first Native Americans in Nevada consistently weaving baskets out of this material. Audrey is learning traditional willow basket weaving as well, which she considers more complex than the pine needle weave and more traditional for both the Washoe and Paiute cultures.

The 17th annual Tahoe ARTour is a self-directed studio tour offering numerous opportunities to meet 32 local artists in their work environment, to learn about a variety of art mediums, and to buy directly from the artists.

Meet the artists at the Opening Reception at North Tahoe Arts on July 8.

A variety of art mediums are featured, this has included watercolor, acrylics, weaving, oil, glass, printmaking, textiles, jewelry, pastels, ceramics, pottery, sculpture, mixed media, woodworking and photography. Many of the artists are well established and nationally known with work in major galleries throughout the United States. Others are promising emerging artists. All are juried to participate in ARTour and represent a slice of Tahoe’s art and mountain culture.

17th Annual Tahoe ARTour
sponsored by North Tahoe Arts

Two weekends:
Friday, Saturday and Sunday

July 9, 10, 11
July 16, 17, 18

Studios are open from 10:00am to 5:00pm

Opening Reception: Meet the Artists

Thursday, July 8
5 to 7pm

North Tahoe Art Center
380 North Lake Blvd.,Tahoe City (next to the fire station)

Gallery Exhibit will run July 1 – August 2, 2010

ARTour Brochure and Map:

Free ARTour brochures include detailed maps to the studios, photos of each artist’s work, and short statements by each artist. You can find the Tahoe ARTour brochures at many locations including North Tahoe Arts at 380 North Lake Blvd.,Tahoe City (next to the fire station), the Truckee Donner Chamber of Commerce, (in the train station in downtown Truckee), and at participating art studios. You can also download a brochure here.

For more info, please call North Tahoe Arts at (530) 581-2787.

A long standing tradition and part of Tahoe culture, this classic festival presents Shakespeare under the stars at Sand Harbor on the mesmerizing east shore of Lake Tahoe.

The 38th annual Lake Tahoe Shakespeare Festival taking place July 9 through August 22nd will present all of Shakespeare’s plays in one night.

One of the country’s most distinctive outdoor venues, Sand Harbor State Park provides the perfect location for spending quality time with family and friends as the Festival captures the true spirit of summer, complemented with gourmet food and nightly wine tastings provided by Shakespeare’s Kitchen.  And, it’s one of our favorite local pastimes and a mainstay of Tahoe’s art and mountain culture.

Celebrating its 38th season, the Festival brings you all of Shakespeare’s plays in one night with the hilarious comedy, The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (Abridged) and the return of the Sand Harbor music series featuring performing everything from 60’s and 70’s hits, Latin rock, blues, jazz, swing, favorites by the Reno Philharmonic and much more every Monday and Friday night.

Tickets are now available online or by calling 800-74-SHOWS (800-747-4697).

Sand Harbor Photo Credit: Jeff Dow

Then try this.

Stand up and paddle from Carnelian Bay to Tahoe City at the 3rd Annual Jam to the Dam, presented by the Lake Tahoe Paddleboard Association.

Talk about a great workout.

Take off at 8am and stand up and paddle 6 miles to the Tahoe City Dam.

Jam to the Dam
Saturday, July 10
8:00am Sharp start time

$40 before July 6, or $50 after – includes brunch, a commemorative race jersey, and a guaranteed good time!

START LOCATION: Patton Landing Beach – next to Sierra Boat Company Carnelian Bay

FINISH LOCATION: Tahoe City Dam

Registration forms can be picked up at Tahoe Paddle & Oar in Kings Beach, or click here for more info and to download the form.

Be sure to get the collectible posters, and check out the other SUP races in Lake Tahoe including the 4th annual Ta-Hoe Nalu Stand Up Paddleboard Festival on August Aug. 21-22 in Kings Beach with five races, including a 14-foot elite race class and OC-1 Outrigger Race.

And, the finale of SUP races, the Tahoe Fall Classic on September 26, a 22-miler race from Camp Richardson in South Shore to Kings Beach in North Shore. Ouch!

Tahoe Paddle & Oar
8299 North Lake Tahoe Blvd.
Kings Beach
(530) 581-3029

Join naturalist, educator and artist John (Jack) Muir Laws, for a 2-day sketching in nature workshop on July 10 and 11 on the shore of Tahoe City that will inspire you to head outdoors with sketchbook in hand.

Participants ages 9 and older will be introduced to the basic techniques and tools to help you draw plants, landscapes, birds and other wildlife. Bring your own sketchbooks and pencils and be ready to draw.

Presented by the North Lake Tahoe Historical Society the weekend event will run 9am to noon and will be held mainly outdoors in Layton Park, next to the Gatekeeper’s Museum and Fanny Bridge, so please dress accordingly. Morning refreshments will be provided.

Cost is $25 for members of the North Lake Tahoe Historical Society, $30 for non-members, and free for 17 and under with a paid adult.

Gatekeeper’s Museum/Marion Steinbach Indian Basket Museum
130 West Lake Blvd. in Tahoe City, CA 96145

For more info, please call the North Lake Tahoe Historical Society at 530-583-1762.

In addition to tastings by more than 25 regional breweries, you’ll be treated to a barbeque and live music by three first-rate bluegrass bands, Mud Thump, The Brothers Comatose and The Dixie Bee-Liners.

The event kicks off at 2 p.m., with beer served until 7 p.m. and live music continuing until 7:30 p.m. on the Village Stage. Mud Thump will start things off at 2 p.m., followed by The Brothers Comatose at 4 p.m. and headliner, The Dixie Bee-Liners at 6 p.m. Building on the tremendous success of their 2008 bluegrass chart-topper, RIPE, The Dixie Bee-Liners most recently introduced their album Susanville, noted as a musical road trip along America’s highways and byways.

Other events on tap at Northstar Resort on July 10 include a Kids’ Adventure day camp, adult golf school, a complimentary outdoor movie showing of “Where The Wild Things Are,” and star gazing with Tahoe Star Tours on the mountain.

Tickets are just $30 per person for guests ages 21+ and include a commemorative pint glass, unlimited, responsible beer tastings and live music. Non-alcoholic beverages and barbeque fare will also be available for purchase. Tickets can be purchased at the Tickets & Season Pass office in the Village at Northstar, by calling 1.800.GO.NORTH, or online at www.NorthstarAtTahoe.com.

Guests are encouraged not to drink and drive. Complimentary shuttles will be offered from Northstar Resort to Kings Beach, departing the resort on the hour from 6 p.m. to 10 p.m., and from Northstar Resort to Truckee, departing at 7 p.m. and 8 p.m.

Oh yeah – and you get a $5 all-you-can-eat Pancake Breakfast.  It all happens Saturday, July 10, from 8am to 10am.

Children between the ages of 8 and 17 are welcome and must be accompanied by a parent or guardian.  Kids (Young Eagles) should register between 8 and 8:30 a.m. at the Truckee Tahoe Airport, 10356 Truckee Airport Road.

Sponsored by the Truckee/Tahoe Experimental Aircraft Association (EAA) Chapter 1073, all pilots are volunteers and are not compensated in any way for this great educational experience.

Young Eagle Rallies are a program of the E.A.A. to introduce youngsters to the world of aviation. Eagle Rallies are a worldwide effort. To date, over 1.5 million youngsters have experienced the thrill of flight as Young Eagles. At Truckee, volunteer pilots have flown over 1000 Eagles since 1994.

Don’t want to fly?

Join the pilots for the $5 Pancake Breakfast breakfast and view the planes at least.

Pancake breakfasts are held the SECOND Saturday of each month from 8am to 10am, and open to the public. For $5 it’s all you can eat including hot coffee and juice. There are usually several unique aircraft sitting on the ramp in front of the chapterhouse as many of our local members and sister chapter pilots drop in and put their planes out on display at the Truckee Tahoe Airport, 10356 Truckee Airport Road, Truckee, CA 96161.

For further information, call Charlie White at (530) 587-4811 (days) or eagles@eaa1073.org.