Getting on the Water: 100% Transparent Clear-Bottom Kayaks (Bonsai Rock & Sand Harbor) & MS Dixie II Cruises

Because Lake Tahoe has zero muddy rivers feeding it, the water has an astonishing Secchi disk clarity of 20 to 22 metres (65 to 72 feet straight down). Do not leave Tahoe without getting out on the water, and remember the #1 golden water rule: always kayak or paddleboard in the morning during core daytime hours, when the lake surface is as flat as a mirror before afternoon southwest winds kick up 2-foot whitecaps.

1. Rent a '100% Transparent Clear-Bottom Kayak' (Or Guided LED Night Tour)

You have seen those viral videos of paddlers floating in mid-air over colossal submerged white granite boulders in neon-turquoise water: they are filmed along the East and North Shores of Lake Tahoe (at Sand Harbor, Bonsai Rock, Secret Cove, Speedboat Beach in Kings Beach, and D.L. Bliss / Rubicon Bay).

• How to Book a Clear Kayak or SUP: companies like Clearly Tahoe (which operates guided clear-kayak tours to Bonsai Rock, Emerald Bay, the Upper Truckee Marsh, AND atmospheric After-Dark LED Glow-Kayak Tours where underwater LED lights illuminate the granite boulders 10 metres beneath your kayak at night), Wild Society (launching from Kings Beach / Speedboat Beach), and Clearly California / Kayak Tahoe (right inside Sand Harbor and Emerald Bay) rent polycarbonate clear kayaks .

2. Prefer a Big Boat? Cruise Emerald Bay on the Paddlewheeler 'MS Dixie II' or 'Tahoe Gal'.

Want to sail right into the middle of Emerald Bay and circle Fannette Island with a cocktail in hand and zero paddling required? Choose between two landmark lake boats (plus historic wooden powerboats and sailing catamarans like the Sierra Cloud in Incline Village or Tahoe Cruz in South Lake):

1. From the South/East Shore, The 500-Passenger Paddlewheeler 'MS Dixie II' (Departs Zephyr Cove Resort Marina, Hwy 50, NV): the largest vessel on Lake Tahoe. Book the 2-Hour Daytime Emerald Bay Sightseeing Cruise or the Sunset Dinner & Dance Cruise, featuring three decks, a glass-bottom viewing monitor showing the underwater topography of the Emerald Bay moraine, and live narration as the paddlewheel turns past Vikingsholm.
2. From the North Shore, The 'Tahoe Gal' Paddlewheeler (Departs Lighthouse Marina in Tahoe City): runs daily 2-hour shoreline brunch, Emerald Bay and happy-hour cruises along the West Shore mansions.