'Tis the 'tween season for hiking. 'Tis 'tween death march hot and frozen finger cold. 'Tis the best time of year for a hike in the Sierra up by Lake Tahoe; cool temperatures, golden aspen spires, no bugs. I mean, it don't get no better than this.

The hike from Spooner Lake to Marlette Lake is one of those fine fall hikes. The walk is moderate (about 10 miles round trip, 900 ft. elevation gain), but the pleasure is way up there. You will have views of surrounding Sierra ridges and stroll through numerous stands of golden aspens. At the high point of the hike, you get a wide-angle view of Marlette Lake and the bowl holding its waters. There is a rocky peninsula to walk out on for unobstructed views of the surrounding terrain; it's also a nice spot for lunch and a nap before the return trip.

Interesting local history is associated with Marlette Lake. It is actually a reservoir, built to bring water to Virginia City during the Comstock mining boom. The pipeline is called the Inverted Siphon and it still works today. For more on this, visit the park web site at http://parks.nv.gov/ltbc.htm.

This area is within Lake Tahoe-Nevada State Park on the east side of the Tahoe Basin. The trailhead at Spooner Lake is also a starting point for mountain bikers tackling the famous Flume Trail. Until recently, both hikers and bikers had one route to share. Now, hikers have a separate path for most of the distance, a situation that is safer and more pleasant for everyone. You can, however, return to the trailhead on the bike trail, making the trip a loop of sorts. This isn't as dicey as it sounds because most of the way back is downhill, meaning the bikers are chugging slowly up the grade and it's easy for everyone to safely avoid crashes.

For more information on this hiking area, check out the Lake Tahoe-Nevada State Park web site at http://parks.nv.gov/ltbc.htm. The information number is (775) 831-0494.