Did You Know There Is A Whale In Lake Tahoe? It's True! (6 photos of Whale Rock)

Ok, Lake Tahoe's whale is made of granite and it doesn't swim, but whale watching at Whale Beach is almost as fun as whale watching in the ocean. And you're guaranteed to see Tahoe's whale if you visit Whale Beach!

"Sunset at Whale Beach, Tahoe 2"

Whale Beach is a popular spot to enjoy a beach day, located on Lake Tahoe's beautiful east shore. It can be a bit of a hike from the closest parking lot, about 2 miles, but it's worth it. There is about 100 yards of sandy beach here which is not too common for Tahoe's east shore. Most of the east shore consists of big granite boulders, right up to the water line. Although Whale Beach is clothing optional, there tends to be a lot less naked people than just up the shore at Secret Cove. This makes photographing here a little less awkward and you don't get the glaring concerned looks from the nude folks.

"Stick Shelter at Lake Tahoe"

I have tagged Whale Beach's location using @steemitworldmap, you can find the link in the comments below. In the warmer months, there is a decent sized parking lot open above Chimney Beach, which is a little bit north of Whale Beach. A phones's GPS will easily bring you to the beach, but know that if you make it down to Chimney Beach (you can't miss the old brick chimney at the beach), all you have to do is start heading down the trail south and you will reach it in about 20-30 minutes or so.

"Whale Rock, Lake Tahoe 2"

The whale can have many different looks depending on the time of day, time of year, or water level. If you want those nuclear blue, green, and aqua colors in your water, I would suggest arriving in the morning. I find that when the sun rises over the mountain behind you (while looking at the lake) and the sunlight first hits the lake, that's when you get the best colors. This is around 9 or 10 am, depending on the time of year. You can get those colors for quite a while, and if you use a polarizing filter on your camera lens, you can sometimes get those colors to show up later in the day too.

"Whale Rock, Lake Tahoe 3"

Panoramic photos are a lot of fun at Whale Beach. Sometimes there is just too many people there to get a good pano, but if you get lucky and go on a slow week day, there are many other beautiful boulders at the area that can add to the scene. When the lake level is lower, more boulders become visible.

"Pebbles at Whale Beach 3"

Just past the water line, there are tons of gold colored pebbles. These aren't as nice to walk on barefoot at the smooth sand but they can make for a nice foreground to photos. I love the contrasting colors of the golds and blues in the photo above.

"Solar Eclipse Above Tahoe"

When the whale is backlit, it becomes more of a silhouette. This can make the whale look even more like an actual whale breaching out of the water. Also, when the lake level is higher, the surrounding boulders get submerged and this too can make the whale look more like a whale.

Alright, I'm tired of typing out the word "whale" so I'll leave it at that. If you have any questions about this location, my photos, or my photography techniques, please ask in the comments section.

Thank you for looking and reading! Cheers!

Scott Thompson
Scott Shots Photography

As always, large limited edition prints (printed by me personally) and image licensing available. And yes, I'm fishing for upvotes and shares from steemit whales with this post, lol.