Tahoe Donner Hiking Club

Description and Mission

The Tahoe Donner Hiking Club is a chartered club of Tahoe Donner.
The mission of the Tahoe Donner Hiking Club is to:

Encourage fitness and friendship while hiking
Foster appreciation for hiking, backpacking and “leave no trace” principles

More information is provided on the Hiking Info page.

Check out our FAQ’s for lots of great hiking tips.

Lead a hike, it’s easy! 

Choose a hike from our hike library (or add a new hike if the one you want to do is not listed) then fill out our form – we take care of the rest!

Review the Hike Leader’s Role – Hike Leader’s Role 

Board

The Tahoe Donner Hiking Club has six board members, each of whom is the coordinator for a club functional area:

  • Communications, Membership and Financial Coordinator,
    • Robin Reese
      • communications @ tdhikers.com
      • info @ tdhikers.com
      • Bio: Robin created the Tahoe Donner Hiking Club and had the by-laws approved by the Board in 2010. She retired in 2006 from 33 years of university teaching, the last 25 at California State University, Sacramento. She and her husband live full-time in Tahoe Donner where she spends the majority of her time skiing, jogging, golfing, hiking, backpacking, dancing, snowshoeing and playing tennis, bridge, MahJong and other games. She currently teaches line dance at the Truckee Recreation Center and attends several line dance workshops each year. Robin is a fast hiker who enjoys hikes greater than 8 miles. She is also an avid backpacker. Her goal is to complete the Pacific Crest Trail in Oregon and Washington before she dies!
  • Black  Hike Coordinator
    • Rob Mains
      • blackhikes @ tdhikers.com
      • Bio: Rob is a lifelong hiker, backpacker, cyclist, and very fond of both alpine and Nordic skiing. He enjoys sharing the outdoors with others, and is happy to be the black hike coordinator for the hiking club. Rob is a semi-retired technology executive who works part time for the Linux Foundation in open source chip design.
  • Blue  Hike Coordinator
    • Katie Neubauer Veni
      • bluehikes @ tdhikers.com
      • Bio: My husband Joe and I moved to Tahoe Donner in 2015.  I retired from getting paid as a fundraiser in the arts and conservation and prior in concert and recording production for jazz and blues music. But I still work for no money for local nonprofits, including my favorite, the Truckee Roundhouse Community Makerspace, where I am active and serve as a Board Member. An Ohioan by birth, a New Yorker for many years, I have lived in California since 2001. I am drawn to mountains all over the world, and I am trying to make up for lost time with as many hiking experiences as possible. I love nothing more than the view from the top!  I appreciate the Hiking Club and its knowledgeable and friendly members who have taught me so much about our precious High Sierras.
  • Green Hike Coordinator
    • Sharon Matranga
      • greenhikes @ tdhikers.com
      • Bio: Sharon joined the Hiking Club in 2021 and has been a Tahoe Donner homeowner since 2006 and a full-time resident since 2020.  She retired in 2020 and is now able to enjoy her favorite outdoor activities such as hiking, skiing, skate skiing, snowshoeing, mountain and road biking, and paddle boarding at her leisure. She loves the beauty and peacefulness of the outdoors and looks forward to frequenting more of the trails in our beautiful High Sierras as well as meeting new friends.
  • Backpacking Trip Coordinator
    • Joyce Scardina Becker
      • backpacking @ tdhikers.com
      • Bio: Joyce’s backpacking career began back in 1966, when her Girl Scout troop embarked on a 5-day trek across the Desolation Wilderness.  Fifty years later, Joyce organized her first backpacking trip for the Tahoe Donner Hiking Club, retracing the steps she took and singing the songs she learned as a Girl Scout.  Other memorable places Joyce has hiked include Nepal in 1982 and the Dolomites in 2019.  Today, Joyce heads up the beginner-level backpacking trips (1-2 nights), as she wants to introduce more Hiking Club members to the joys of overnighting in the back country.

      •  Joyce retired in 2023 from 25 years at California State University East Bay, as the Director and Instructor of the Wedding Planner Certificate Program.  She also successfully ran an event planning company, Events of Distinction, in the Bay Area for 26 years.  Nowadays, when Joyce is not “glam-packing”, you can find her playing tennis, paddle boarding, hiking, biking, kayaking, skiing, snowshoeing or working out.

  • Away Trip Coordinator
    • Sue Kelso
      • awaytrips @ tdhikers.com
      • Bio: Sue joined the Tahoe Donner Hiking Club in 2010. A part-time Tahoe Donner resident, she hikes frequently in the Lake Tahoe area.  She has hiked the Tahoe Rim Trail – and the Bay Area Ridge Trail, in the Bay Area where she spends more time – as solo out-and-back day hikes.

        Sue enjoys combining hiking with travel.  She participated in the Hiking Club’s trips to the Dolomites, the Julian Alps, and Patagonia.  She has also hiked in Southern California, Ontario (Canada), Northern Ireland, Wisconsin, Pennsylvania, and other locations.  A long-time ice skater and more recent wildflower enthusiast, she has been known to combine those activities with travel.  Her long bucket list includes the MacLehose Trail in Hong Kong, which she began hiking in 2018.  Sue’s current/ongoing hiking project is the Pacific Crest Trail.  She has hiked over 500 miles, some solo and some with the Club, mostly as day hikes.

  • Website Coordinator
    • Webmaster @ tdhikers.com

Membership

Learn more about TD Hiking Club – links to FAQ page – membership