The USDA Forest Service Lake Tahoe Basin Management Unit (LTBMU) will temporarily be closing the Kiva Beach parking area and Forest Road 1311 Heritage Way on Saturday, August 17.
The Forest Service says the temporary closure is in support of an annual Washoe Tribe picnic and assures that members of the Washoe Tribe of Nevada and California can successfully gather on their ancestral land.
The LTBMU issued a temporary forest closure order from 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. for the parking area of Kiva Beach.
They say that fee-free public parking is available at the nearby Kiva Picnic Area and at the Taylor Creek Visitor Center.
Kiva Beach will remain open to all but visitors are being asked to be respectful of the Tribe's culture and practices.
The Tribe will be gathered along the shore of Lake Tahoe and visitors are asked to refrain from taking any photographs or recordings of the events or its members.
LTBMU says that signs will be posted along the trails leading to the beach and along the highway before and after the event to notify visitors.
According to The USDA Forest Service Lake Tahoe Basin Management Unit, this traditional cultural event supports their agency's commitment to work more successfully and together with Tribes that have been displaced from their Indigenous homelands.
