Exploring Tahoe National Forest with Off Road Tahoe

By Jon Crowley

I recently had the opportunity to explore a small part of the Tahoe National Forest near Truckee California with a tour company called Off Road Tahoe. Although I live just a few hours away, I have not taken the opportunity to explore this area. Tapping a local’s knowledge is an awesome way to do this!

Off Road Tahoe is the first UTV tour company in Tahoe permitted by the US Forest Service to operate in the Tahoe National Forest. Their guides are Wilderness First Responder certified and stewards of the land. Plus they have years of backcountry experience and are passionate about sharing the off-road experience.

Off Road Tahoe utilizes a small fleet of two and four seat 2018 Can-Am Commanders for their guests. They take up to seven guest on a 20 mile loop that takes about three hours. They provide all the safety gear and guest get to get behind the wheel of one of the Can-Am Commanders.

I brought up our Can-Am Defender XT-P and joined Sean from Off Road Tahoe in his Can-Am Commander Max as we checked out some of the area that they use for their tours.

We stopped every 10-15 minutes and Sean talked about the area and what we were seeing and what to expect.  Always nice to have someone knowledgeable about the area!

The area is almost all in the trees but there are a few places where you break out in the open a bit for some spectacular views.  This is all up around 6,000 to 8,000 feet, so the tours are run during the late Spring and into the early Fall.

If you are traveling to the Lake Tahoe area, and would like to get a taste for off-roading or would just like to see the forest from the comfort of a Can-Am Commander, be sure to check out Off Road Tahoe.  They can be found online at www.offroadtahoe.com and on Instagram at @offroadtahoe