Spring: Wait it out in the great indoors
By Kelley Lang
Spring is a merciless tease, with beautiful 75-degree days—and then hail that will trash your seedlings or blossoming trees, and wind that will make you question your decision to live here.
You’ll need a time out from the incorrigible storm clouds that have dampened your spirits when the weather doesn’t behave. Here’s an abbreviated guide to Reno’s great indoors—from arcades to museums—to help you bide your time until summer.
Families have been coming to the Coconut Bowl at Wild Island, at 1855 E. Lincoln Way, in Sparks, since 2003 to blow off some steam when the weather doesn’t play nice. The fun center offers bowling, mini golf, go karts, laser tag, arcade games and other options to keep you occupied any time of the year. Visit wildisland.com/coconut-bowl for more details.
You can while away the hours reading a good book surrounded by lush indoor plants and trees in the award-winning atrium at the Downtown Reno Library, at 301 S. Center St. Designed by architect Hewitt C. Wells, the multi-level facility also has public wi-fi, computers with internet access, an art gallery, a makerspace and an auditorium for meetings, presentations and performances. Check out www.washoecountylibrary.us/libraries/downtown-reno.php.
Standing kitty-corner from the Downtown Reno Library, the Terry Lee Wells Nevada Discovery Museum (The Discovery), at 490 S. Center St., features a collection of permanent but regularly updated STEAM-based exhibitions, hands-on learning labs and installations, as well as touring exhibitions throughout the year. Discover more at nvdm.org.
Take a visual cruise through automobile history at the National Automobile Museum (The Harrah Collection), at 1 Museum Drive, in Reno. Visitors can explore four galleries linked by themed street scenes featuring more than 240 cars, including antique models, hot rods and iconic vehicles that appeared in Hollywood films. The museum also hosts concerts, film screenings and special events for kids during school breaks. Steer your way to automuseum.org for more information.
Starting with its distinctive building inspired by the geological formations of the Black Rock Desert, the Nevada Museum of Art, at 160 W. Liberty St., aims to broaden the public’s understanding of the role of art and its relationship to the environment. The art museum’s recent expansion added 50,000 square feet to the original space, allowing for a new entrance, a research library, more gallery space and a rooftop garden. You can view more information at www.nevadaart.org.
Pinball wizards and arcade rats can take an electronic trip down memory lane at Press Start Arcade, at 600 S. Center St. The midtown Reno location features a well-maintained collection of retro and contemporary pinball and arcade video games, along with a nice selection of beers and craft cocktails. Press renopressstart.com to learn more.
Generations of locals have spent countless afternoons and evenings roller-skating to ’70s disco tunes, ’80s pop songs and current hits at Roller Kingdom Family Fun Center, at 515 E. Seventh St., in Reno. Whether you’re 7 or 87, it’s the place to go when you want to unleash your inner roller disco queen. Roll on over to www.rollerkingdom.org for session times and other info.
Finally, you can explore the life and legacy of a local adventurer, world traveler, pilot, rancher, artist and philanthropist when you step inside the Wilbur D. May Museum at Rancho San Rafael Regional Park, at 1595 N. Sierra St. The center hosts interactive, touring exhibitions in its events space from January through April and features monthly art shows in its gallery. Start your journey at www.washoecounty.gov/parks/maycenterhome/index.php.
Summer: Bask in the great outdoors
By Sarah Russell
You can find a perfect summer day in any direction. Stay in town, or take a trip, and you can find hiking and swimming that will rejuvenate you and fill you with memories to keep you warm all winter.
Here are just a few of our local summertime adventure hubs that avoid Tahoe traffic.
Quick trips (15- to 40-minute drive from downtown Reno)
Tahoe Meadows: This 1.3-mile loop trail on the summit of Mount Rose Highway near Incline Village is an ideal introduction to the outdoors for youngsters and a great place to bring visiting family for a stroll. The trail is wheelchair- and stroller-accessible and wanders through granite, pines, meadows and creeks.
Mayberry Park, Reno: Head to the this west Reno park, at 101 Woodland Ave., for picnics, paved walking and biking paths, and wading in the Truckee River—or cross the bridge to find the short, steep Tom Cooke Trail and the long, flat Steamboat Ditch Trail.
Thomas Creek and Jones-Whites Creek: These interconnected trails off Timberline Drive follow forested creeks on Mount Rose. You can opt for a short out-and-back (with creek crossings for pups and kids to splash) or a longer loop hike.
Summit Lake: This three-mile out-and-back trail starts at the Interstate 80 Eastbound Rest Area in Soda Springs, Calif., near Donner Lake, and quickly ascends over creeks and up granite steps through forest and meadow, with abundant wildflowers. The trail connects to the Pacific Crest Trail and the under-development Donner Lake Rim Trail.
Wino Beach at Pyramid Lake: This is on Nevada Highway 446 near Nixon—and Pyramid Lake’s slightly saline water makes it a dream for swimming. While the lake is famous for its fishing, it’s also a prime destination for a beach day. Bring a picnic, floaties, a shade structure and perhaps a barbecue. Consider staying for sunset and a bonfire. Day use permits are required.
Brewer’s Cabinet Production Facility: When your adventure is done, but you’re not quite ready to head indoors, the taproom at the Brewer’s Cabinet Production facility is the perfect last stop. Next to Mayberry Park, at 8565 White Fir St., in Reno, it features a spacious beer garden, tasty beers, games and rotating food trucks.
Check out the Truckee Meadows Trails guide to explore more local trails.
Longer Trips (60- to 90-minute drive from downtown Reno)
Nothing says summer like a daytrip!
Carson Pass (south of South Lake Tahoe, southwest of Gardnerville) has hikes featuring wildflowers, creeks and lakes. Check out hikes to Winnemucca Lake and Round Top Lake from Woods Lake, or the Thornburg Canyon or Charity Valley trails from Blue Lakes Road. For swimming in a unique setting, spend a day at Potholes on California State Route 88, six miles South of Kirkwood Ski Resort—a series of swimming holes carved into the granite by the Silver Fork of the American River.
For more swimming, head to the South Yuba River. Near the tiny town of Washington, Calif., you’ll find the Golden Quartz Picnic Area, a perfect spot for a river day.
The Lakes Basin Recreation Area near Graeagle, Calif., is a gem of the Lost Sierra. The Lakes Basin is full of alpine lakes with forested trails winding around them. While there are hiking trails of every length, the five-mile Round Lake and Bear Lakes loop is perhaps a perfect hike. Families looking for a stroller- and wheelchair-accessible hike will enjoy the one-mile paved hike to 176-foot Frazier Falls.
A day in the Lakes Basin isn’t complete without a visit to the Brewing Lair, at 67007 California Highway 70, in Blairsden, Calif. Situated in a grove right off the main road, this small brewery serves delicious beers in a picturesque beer garden. They have games, live music and a food truck during the warmer months, and patrons are free to bring a picnic, too. Bring a growler so you can bring a sip of this heaven home when you go.
Fall: Savor the weather—and brace yourself for the crowds
By Kris Vagner
You might be expecting an ode to Reno’s beautiful fall here. Goodness knows it deserves one—fall outdooring in this region is simply primo! The chilly nights and snow-dusted peaks are a nice reprieve from summer heat. The afternoon weather swings from sleeveless to sweater and back, and they’re both perfect. Hiking among the golden aspens along Hunter Creek is really something special, and so is an ordinary stroll in the city, where the tree canopy has a whole new palette.
But I have to bring this ode to a screeching halt, because there’s something else we need to discuss.
If you’re guessing that fall means it’s time for our wonderful, lively festival season to wind down … well, it does eventually, but first, it revs up. Two big events will bring crowds of tourists and noise to places where you might not expect them, and you are going to need to be ready for this.
First, toward the end of August (technically still summer, but if you and/or your kids are in school, your fall routine will already be in progress), the majority of the 60,000 to 80,000 people heading to the Black Rock Desert for Burning Man will travel through Reno and the Spanish Springs neighborhood of Sparks.
First and foremost—and I say this as a devout Costco shopper—do not go to Costco during the week before Burning Man. Or, rather, do go to Costco if you might enjoy the spectacle of people in fun festival wear loading carts high with booze, food and camping supplies, and you don’t mind lines. There’s nothing wrong with unusually cheerful tourists or booze stacked in carts; it’s the sheer number of tourists and carts that will put a wrench in your plans—enough of them to cause Black Friday-level gridlock in the aisles. If you simply must visit Costco the week before the Burn, schedule ample extra time.
The same goes for Whole Foods, Walmart, Trader Joe’s, the Reno-Tahoe International Airport and many Midtown restaurants.
Said one Sparks resident who often needs to travel on Pyramid Way, “At Winco in both Sparks locations, in particular, the lines are long the weekend before. And traffic on Pyramid is awful, in my opinion.”
Burning Man 2027 is slated for Aug. 29 through Sept. 6. Get it on your calendar now, and when the time comes, plan to do your grocery stock-ups and back-to-school errands a couple of weeks beforehand.
In late September, an estimated 50,000 motorcyclists convene for Street Vibrations. If you’re looking for exciting action that weekend, you are thoroughly covered. It’s a huge festival with events like poker runs, a tattoo expo, scavenger hunts, stunt displays and concerts. (Lynyrd Skynyrd headlined in 2026.) Many of the festivities take place at the J Resort’s Glow Plaza; others take place at venues in Reno, Carson City, Virginia City, the Tahoe area—and, unofficially, on pretty much all of the roads that connect these places.
If you’re looking for a good night’s sleep that weekend, you may be out of luck—and not just if you’re near a major venue. The streets get rowdy all over the region. If you live anywhere near a freeway or the McCarran Boulevard loop, you are practically guaranteed to hear groups of riders rumbling and revving during all hours of the day and night.
In 2027, Street Vibrations is slated from Thursday, Sept. 23, through Saturday, Sept. 25. Also expect rumbling and revving for a few days beforehand and a few days afterward.
All of this said, sometimes rowdy fun is good fun. If you’d rather opt into these big events than dodge them, go to burningman.org or roadshowsreno.com for more information.
Winter: Harvest your own Christmas trees on Nevada’s public lands
By Frank X. Mullen
For those who prefer a bushy, wild-grown Christmas tree over the triangular varieties raised on tree farms, walking into the woods and cutting your own Yule tree is a tradition that’s easily followed in Nevada.
Rules apply: To cut a Christmas tree on federal public land in the Silver State, you must buy a permit from the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) or the U.S. Forest Service, and harvest trees only in authorized areas.
Permits, which go on sale in late October or November, depending on the agency, cost $5 to $10. The permits allow harvesting of local trees like pinyon pine or juniper. In Northern Nevada, Forest Service permits—which go on sale in October for the Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest—cost $10 as of this writing, and are available online via Recreation.gov or at local ranger district offices. Cutting is never allowed in designated wilderness areas, wilderness study areas, active project sites or developed campgrounds, nor are they allowed near private and residential property.
Once the permit and a map (available online with the permit) of allowable cutting sites are in hand, harvesters will need a saw, a shovel, rope or tie-downs, gloves and sturdy boots. If access roads are snowy, take tire chains along. Dress in layers, and bring plenty of water and food. Let family or friends know exactly where you are going and when you expect to return.
Test trees before you reach for the saw: Run a branch through your hand; needles should not strip off easily. Bend a branch to make sure it is pliable and not brittle. Cut the trunk low to the ground, leaving a stump no more than six inches high. Once you get to your vehicle, tie the tree down securely with the butt end facing forward if on a roof rack, and cover it with a tarp to avoid losing needles during the trip.
Once you get home, make a fresh cut at the base of the tree, and make sure the tree stand always has water. Use a plastic tarp at the base of the tree to catch sap that drips off the branches as the tree warms up inside. That’s very important—sap can destroy carpeting and is difficult to remove from wood, tile or vinyl flooring.
After the holidays, bring the tree to a recycling site, such as the ones made available each year by Keep Truckee Meadows Beautiful.