Robb mentioned that he, and others, were planning to “paddleboard across the lake” on the coming Monday, August 11, for a ‘good cause.’ Robb suggested that I might like to ‘cover it’.

The cause was the Bob Woodruff Family Foundation, which provides support and awareness for U.S. veterans with traumatic brain injuries and other war-related injuries. Like many others, I jumped right in.

On Sunday, August 10, after a few days of summer winds, which threatened to sink the mission, the lake was calm, and perfect for a “training day” for those that had signed up to paddle nearly 22 miles with little or no experience on a stand-up paddle board. The A-list of pros, including paddleboarder and big-wave legend Dave Kalama, windsurfing and surf pro Chuck Patterson, and locals David Lafoe and Phil Keoghan, owner of Tahoe Paddle and Oar, with plenty of time on a paddleboard, showed up at Hurricane Bay, on a Sunday, to give guidance to a mix of eager participants, all world-class athletes in their own right, on how to navigate this serious challenge.

By late morning, there was a healthy contingent of would be ‘extreme paddlers’ ready to take on Lake Tahoe’s enormity, south to north.



Monday morning’s sunrise warmed the sand at Camp Richardson, on the South Shore, as the gang of paddlers arrived via boat and car for the challenge ahead. Robb Gaffney, one of the event’s primary organizers, addressed the group as the paddleboards were readied. “This is a small effort……..”

Within a few minutes, the group had assembled at the shore. With little fanfare, the ‘start’ was initiated at roughly 7:15am, and nearly thirty hearty souls, accustomed to challenges and risks most would turn away from, stood up and slowly headed north, on an unknown adventure across Lake Tahoe, the long way. The sight was eerie from the dock, like a scene from The Ten Commandments with a group of desciples walking on water, slowly disappearing into the morning mist.



Onboard Holoholo (Hawaiian for ‘Let’s go out and have a good time’), we caught up with the paddlers mid-lake, seven miles southeast of Tahoe City, nearly twelve miles and two-and-a-half hours into their 22-mile journey. It was a spectacular and odd sight--one that is rarely, until now, seen on Lake Tahoe. The enormity of the Lake, so often underestimated, was enunciated as this group of well-meaning athletes passed the half-way point. Poking out above the trees, the Cal-Neva was the navigation point to the north. While some took the lead, the pack seemed to be holding tight, and the mood was jovial, if not matter-of-fact, as groups exchanged friendly jabs and paddled on.



As Bill Murray said in Stripes, “…and then fatigue set in.” Two power paddlers, David Defoe and Daron Rhalves, made it to Kings Beach in under five hours. But the bulk of the pack found the last few miles to be much harder than expected. The arrivals were slow in coming and those that made it agreed to sit off-shore, and wait for the others. Eventually, in the spirit of the day’s affairs, as bathers galked in wonder, the group made a glorious landing next to the Kings Beach pier as the clock passed 1:30. Mission accomplished.

When asked “how big is Lake Tahoe” most responded “a lot bigger than I expected.” And while, “never again” was a quick-shot response, as the camaraderie bubbled and the cause sunk in, all were ready to say “see ya next year.”



The Bob Woodruff Family Foundation was created to raise awareness and funding for service members suffering from traumatic brain injury, combat stress, and other war-related injuries. Bob Woodruff is a TV journalist for ABC News who was injured in January 2006 by a roadside bomb that struck his vehicle in Iraq, while he was reporting on U.S. and Iraqi security forces. After an intense rehabilitation period, in an effort to help returning injured U.S. service members beyond what the U.S. government was providing, Woodruff and his family established the Bob Woodruff Family Foundation to assist in the long process of recovery and offer long-term support to help reintegrate victims back into their communities.

Editor's Note: The photos in this story are © by Court Leve.