The top 6 feet of water in Lake Tahoe isn’t really a lake, it’s a reservoir. A federal agency controls the dam at the Truckee River in Tahoe City to maintain the millions of acre feet stored in this reservoir for uses downstream in Nevada. This, combined with the unpredictability of the weather at it’s elevation, puts unique requirements on a pier.

How to get to the water when the lake is having a low level period can be just as difficult keeping one’s boat secure when the lake is at the top.