When I was in second grade my family moved from downtown Tahoe City to Dollar Point. At the time it was a quiet neighborhood with plenty of vacant lots for childhood exploring and the perfect street football field between the telephone poles in front of our house. The hood has grown and changed a lot since the days we used to to spend our teenage summers hanging out on the sandy beach and pier. Now it is quite a bit more sophisticated and provides perhaps the best package of amenities of any neighborhood on the California side of North Tahoe.
Dollar Point is located at the top of Dollar Hill about 2.5 miles from Tahoe City. It is a large development with several hundred homes. Near the entrance is a complex that includes an expansive swimming pool, spacious lawn area and three tennis courts. In the summer, a full program of tennis lessons and clinics is available through my old high school buddy Greg Felich.
Past the pool and tennis courts, Observation Drive leads down the hill to Edgewater Drive, and the shore of Lake Tahoe. At one end of Edgewater lies two more lakeview tennis courts and the gated beach facility. At the lake you will find a large sandy beach with BBQ facilities for groups, the pier, buoys and small watercraft storage racks. The shallow waters are good for swimming, and the south facing orientation is ideal for both all day sun, and sailing.
Across the highway from the entrance to Dollar Point is the wide open forest of Burton Creek State Park and national forest lands. This is prime mountain biking and hiking terrain in the summer, and home to Tahoe Cross-Country Ski Area in the winter. Tahoe XC has 65 kilometers of trails, including several that lead to lakeviews, and provides rentals and lessons.