Postcard: Emerald Bay, Lake Tahoe 1946

"Emerald Bay, about midway on the south shore of Lake Tahoe, is surrounded by steep and heavily wooded ridges, which form a magnificent background. The reflections from these green slopes in the waters of this Bay, present a mirror of emerald hue in striking contrast to the deep blues and pale greens of Lake Tahoe beyond. The Bay is abou three miles long and over a half mile wide."

Sent in September, 1946, this postcard showcases one of the most famous parts of Lake Tahoe. My family would vacation on Tahoe every year in the summers, and a trip to Emerald Bay was always one of my favorite things to do. You can't drive there - you have to go in by boat or hike your way down from Sugar Pine Point State Park, a number of miles away. It truly is emerald - the color of the water is a deep, luminous green - very different from the deep cobalt and azure colors of the rest of the lake.

On the island in the middle, called Fannette Island, there's the small ruin of a teahouse. Since it's a decript pile of stone, there's something very Miss Havisham-ish about it. Even more so when considering the legend of the place. The mansion nearby on the shore - the Vikingsholm, a gorgeous 38-room example of Scandinavian architecture constructed with materials from the Tahoe area - was once owned by Mrs. Lora Josephine Knight. (Although the Knight's marriage did not last, Mr. & Mrs. Knight have the distinction of being one of the main backers behind Lindbergh's trans-Atlantic flight in 1927.)

Later on, after her divorce and the completion of the Vikingshom, Mrs. Knight supposedly had her butler row her out to daily tea on the island. Now, that is my type of eccentric...