Hiking Down to Emearld Bay State Park on Lake Tahoe

Now, you all know that Capt'in Fletterhozen, Owner and Chief Operating Officer of Royal Air Fletterhozen Airways, usually takes his family on the most Exotic Vacations imaginable. And of course,... this year was no exception; as you'll see from the series of posts coming your way.

The first posting of the series has the Fletterhozen family taking it easy in the Northern Lake Tahoe region of California, enjoying everything this area has to offer. For the first outing, the family made the hike down from Highway 89 to the beaches of Emerald Bay on the Southwest side of Lake Tahoe. Nestled on the West end of the Bay is the Great Vikingholm house, and here is what the California State Parks webpage says about this historic home.    

Vikingsholm is one of the finest examples of Scandinavian architecture in the western hemisphere. Mrs. Lora Josephine Knight purchased the property encompassing the head of Emerald Bay and Fannette Island in 1928 for $250,000.

Before starting construction of the summer home late that year, Mrs. Knight and her architect traveled to Scandinavia to gather ideas for the construction of the house. Work on the home ceased at first snowfall in the winter of 1928, and was started up again in the spring of 1929.

Two hundred workers were brought to Emerald Bay and started hand hewing the timbers, carving the intricate designs, hand planing the wood for the interior walls, and forging the hinges and latches. Most of the materials to construct the home came from the Tahoe Basin.

Trees were cut for their size and lack of knots, and the granite for the foundation and walls was quarried from behind the house. The ideas for the construction came from buildings dating as far back as the 11th century. Some sections of the home contain no nails, pegs, or spikes.

One of the interesting architectural designs is the sod roof which covers both the north and south wings of the complex. The interior of the home has paintings on some of the ceilings and walls and two intricately carved dragon beams. The six fireplaces are of Scandinavian design with unusual fireplace screens.

Most of the furnishings in the home were originally selected by Mrs. Knight and reflect typical pieces used in Scandinavian homes of the period. A number of original antiques were purchased and others were reproduced to exact detail, even to the aging of the wood and duplication of scratches.

The furnishings on the second floor were reproduced from the architects drawings of 18th and 19th century museum pieces. A step into Vikingsholm is like a step back into medieval times and a chance to gain an appreciation of a unique style of architecture and the person who had it built.

This home is so authentic to Scandinavian homes of the period, there is even a sprinkler system installed to water the roof where local grasses grow to this day.

 After taking in a swim on the beach, the Mrs. and the Fletterhozen children took to the water in Kayaks to explore the surrounding Bay.  They are on the left side of the boat in the foreground.

And while they were underway, the Capt'in spotted a BEAUTIFULLY restored wooden Chris Craft powerboat cruising by the beach. Coming down Emerald Bay to take pictures of the Vikingsholm just behind the beach area is a favorite pastime.      

  That is it for Day One, a good time was had by all!