I hope you are getting excited about our upcoming adventure together in the Sierra Nevada!

Our trip begins on Sunday, July 30th, at Clair Tappan Lodge, where we will meet by 3:00 p.m. This will give us a chance to get to know each other before we head to an early dinner at 5:00. After dinner we'll gather over a cup of tea or hot cider and go over the week's itinerary.

Directions to the Lodge:
Clair Tappaan is located at 7000 feet in California's Sierra Nevada. It's 45 minutes west of Reno and one and a half hours drive east of Sacramento just off of Interstate 80. From eastbound I-80, take the exit for Soda Springs/Norden - old U.S. 40 - and go 2.4 miles east on Donner Pass road. The lodge is at 19940 Donner Pass Rd. (old U.S. 40). Look for our sign slightly up the hill on your left and the wide footpath leading up to the Lodge. Parking is available on either side of the road. You can check road conditions online at the CAL-TRANS website (www.dot.ca.gov/cgi-bin/roadlt), and go to Yahoo maps (maps.yahoo.com) to print out a road map.
You can get more information at: www.zitnow.com/tahoe/../ctl/index.html#transportation

If you want to stay at the lodge either before or after the trip, you may call them directly to make arrangements at 530-426-3632, fax 530-426-0742, or at ctl@sierraclub.org. A month or so before the trip begins, please send me your travel plans. I will send everyone the trip roster with your contact information (unless you instruct me otherwise), and your arrival times, so you can correspond with each other about carpooling.

Food
The food at the lodge is plentiful and hearty, though some days can be carb-heavy. A vegetarian meal is offered daily. We will also have snacks available. Each morning before breakfast we will make a sack lunch that will be carried in our backpacks to eat on the trail. It is recommended that you bring a plastic reusable sandwich container to cut down on paper bags and litter.

Training
I hope you're climbing stairs, hiking, cycling and walking. If you don't live in a hilly area, a stairmaster will prove helpful. Don't worry about strenuous hikes, as there will be more than one hiking option offered each day. However, the better shape you're in, the more you will enjoy this trip.

Even if you walk 4 to 5 miles a day, allow at least 3 to 4 weeks to train for a 5- mile hike (our average) (If you're new to exercise, you'll need 6 to 8 weeks).

See: http://www.zitnow.com/recreation/hike_ratings.html#conditioning

The Play
Today I reserved our tickets for the Shakespeare Festival. I am delighted to announce that we will be seeing [PLAY] on [DATE], which is staged at Sand Harbor on the shores of Lake Tahoe. (You can Google "Tahoe Shakespeare Festival" to get more information.) If you are able to read the play before we see it, it will be more enjoyable and easier to follow. If there are any Shakespeare buffs among you who would like to lead a discussion of the play ahead of time, let me know!

Please don't hesitate to contact me with any questions or concerns about this trip. So far there are 12 signed up, and a maximum capacity of 18. If you know of anyone who might be interested in coming, please point them to the website and the trip description.

I look forward to meeting everyone soon. There will be one more bulletin before the trip begins.

Kathie Fowler