A participant from our Youth Backpacking program recounted their trip out to Dardanelles Lake using the TRT: “Next, we crossed the 89 highway, the most dangerous part of the trip, and started the rocky quarter mile ascent to Big Meadow.” If that quote resonates with you from your own experience of crossing Highway 89, the TRTA has heard you.
The 89 Highway is a major artery flowing into Tahoe, and it navigates to many places both in the mountains and down into the valley. Since establishing the Big Meadow Trailhead, cars are faster, more numerous, and consequentially make those mountain turns a bit more hazardous for horseback riders, bicyclists, and trekkers.
After a year and a half planning, TRTA broke ground on the Big Meadow Highway Crossing project in early September 2024, building the new sections of trail. The TRTA will relocate the trailhead kiosk redirecting users, and deconstructing the old sections of trail in order to officially open the new highway crossing.
