Martis Camp – The New Mountain Home Style?

I’ve been working in North Lake Tahoe for a while now, for Kelly and Stone Architects, and one thing that strikes me about living here is the progressive direction mountain home design is heading. When you imagine a Mountain home (ie a ski cabin or lake house) what do you think of? Does it look like one of these…

Traditional Log home

traditional mountain cabin – Ryan Group Architects

Traditional Lake House – Smith and Vansant Architects

Here in Martis Camp however, where most of the projects I am working on are located, they are pushing a more modern aesthetic. Many of the homes here, which are predominately second homes, are mixing in more materials, typically combining steel panel, mixed color barn wood, clear cedar siding, stone, and board formed concrete. My first time in Martis Camp, I was surprised at the modern aesthetic of most of the houses. I have to say, if this is where the “mountain home style” is headed, I’m excited to see what else is in store.

Curved roofs are becoming popular Martis Camp Lot 371 by Kelly and Stone Architects

The developers who are running Martis Camp right now, the DMB/Highlands Group, are doing a great job with the review process. Each project in Martis goes through a preliminary and final design submittal, where each project is examined by the development team to ensure the desired quality and aesthetics are being carried out. Martis Camp is also not for the faint of heart – lots are typically in the million dollar range, and the most of the components are custom – no Home Depot parts here!

Flat roofs on Martis Camp Lot 82 – Sandbox Studios

Corten Steel panels and traditional stone on Martis Camp Lot 97 – Ward Young Architecture and Planning

One thing that has impressed me in Martis Camp is the level of detail put into every single project. Many houses have exposed steel and wood structure with interesting connections, really showing the viewer how the house is being held up. In traditional mountain homes there is often exposed structure, but it is refreshing to see exposed steel and glulam wood beams.

Modern interiors with floor to ceiling glass and steel accents Martis Camp Lot 236 – Sagemodern

Multiple materials on the same facade Martis Camp Lot 219 – Sagemodern

Mixed material use, and exposed steel structure Martis Camp lot 197 – Ward Young Architecture and Planning

Statement entries with timber detailing Martis Camp lot 236 – Kelly and Stone Architects

Winter in Tahoe

After living for a few months in Lake Tahoe, and have to decide how to keep up my running in winter, in particular with snow, I thought I would share with you all a few lessons I have learned. Keep in mind, I almost exclusively run trails here in Tahoe, mostly out of a lack of adequate/safe roads to run on. Perhaps this can help all of you push through those long snowy winter runs.

1) Bring Sunglasses – even though it snows here, which would imply clouds, it is surprisingly sunny and there is nothing more blinding then sun reflecting off the snow. I normally survive with a hat to block the sun, but I have found here I really need sunglasses.

Sunny days in the snow require sunglasses

2) Runches (Running Lunches) are my new best friend. Living in a place with only a handful of streetlights and sidewalks, running at night is nearly impossibly, mostly out of safety. The snow here blocks the bike lanes I ran in after work in summer, there are no sidewalks or streetlights except in downtown, and dark snowy footing is iffy at best. So if running before or after work in the dark is not an option, running at lunch is the solution! I hit the trails when my schedule allows, putting in a few miles and returning to work a happy camper.

3) Microspikes make all the difference. I use the Kahtoola Microspikes which easily pull onto my shoes, effectively turning any pair of shoes into ice and snow worthy. When it first started snowing I didn’t realize how essential these would be, but now I don’t hit the trails without them, no matter how sunny I think it has been to melt the ice. I forgot my spikes last week, and ran the same route this week and my pace was almost 2 min/mi faster because of the additional traction and no fear of slipping on the ice.

Kahtoola Microspikes, I never leave home without them. The silicon frame is super easy to slide on and off my shoes

4) Wear gaiters. Almost every time I run I wish I had real gators rather then tall socks to span that gap between my shoes and tights. Socks keep the skin warm, but do not stop the snow from getting in my shoe.

5) Wear layers. I find with the sun here, even when it is under 32 degrees, I warm up fairly quickly, especially when hills are involved. I usually layer up in my Oiselle tights, Flyte tank, Lux longsleeve, Brooks Gloves, and Smartwool Socks. This way, I can switch up the layers based on the warmth. By the end of my runs I’m usually in my tank top and gloves.

Charlie chooses shorts when I often choose tights

6) Hydrate. Winter is deceiving, but the air here is as dry in winter as it is in summer. I find I have to run with my handheld, and that it luckily doesn’t freeze thanks to the warmth of my hand.

7) Slow down. I feel like I’m (mostly) accustomed to the elevation, but the cold has a huge effect on my lungs. All the cold air I breathe doing speedwork and trying to set QOMs on Strava causes me to cough for a few hours after running. So in my running I have to pick and choose my “hard” days so that I am not always hacking up a lung.

I hope these help all of you with winter running woes, I would love to hear how you are all dealing with the cold, particularly the snow and ice, and if you have any tips for staying in shape for the winter.

Overland Emigrant Trail, Truckee, CA

Last week Charlie and I wanted to venture out on a new trail for our run. We had heard of the Overland Emigrant Trail and its smooth single track, but were not sure where in the North Lake Tahoe area this gem was.

Overland Emigrant Trail Map

As it turns out, the majority of the trail is 10 minutes from our front door. We headed out for a run to scope it and see what all the fuss was about. It was a beautiful morning, we knew the snow was coming soon and wanted to get in one last snow-free trail run. We started at the historic Donner party Campsite and ran out to Prosser creek.

There were amazing views of fields and snow capped mountains, culminating for us at the creek shore. The trail contributes for another 5 miles to Prosser Reservoir, but that was a much longer run then we had planned.

Prosser Creek, our turn-around point

When we got back to the trailhead, I was looking at the map for the Emigrant Trail and noticed it also headed back a few miles along Alder Creek towards our house in Tahoe-Donner. I made a mental noted to check out that part of the trail, hoping the snow would stave off one more week so I could run it.

On Wednesday we got a few inches of snow. Bittersweet for me as it means snowboarding/cross-country/snowshoe season is upon us, but also means an end to my sunny trail runs. Luckily, Wednesday was the only snowy day, and the snow melted off most places the rest of the week, thank you sun!

Snowy section of the trail by Alder Creek

Today, despite the chilly 28 degrees my phone was telling me, we headed out to run on the closer side of the Emigrant Trail, from the Tahoe Donner trailhead to the Donner Historic Campsite. The run started off along Alder Creek, crossing ever so often on homemade bridges. There were quite a few patches of snow, but nothing my Saucony Peregrins couldn’t handle. The trail was really a site to see. Since it followed the river for all but the last 3/4mi to the campsite, we heard the pleasant trickle of water, amused at the amount of ice that has accumulated. Because we started on the Tahoe-Donner side, the way out was mostly down hill with a few rollers, making the way back predominately uphill. We stopped to throw rocks and break the surface, but many of the rocks bounced off and found a resting place on the ice. With the sun steaming down and my fleecy Oiselle Lesley Tights and Lux layer, I was rather toasty by the end of the run.

Maybe winter running won’t be so bad after all.

Stopping on a bridge to throw rocks on the ice

Smooth section of trail

homemade bridges, some more rickety then others.