FAQs | Weather & Roads | Wildlife | Emergency | Fire | Disease | Code of Conduct | Souvenirs
All Sagehen visitors should familiarize themselves with the information on this page.
FAQs
- Who can visit Sagehen? How do I get permission to visit?
- How do I get there? What sort of transit options & accommodations are available?
- What kitchen or catering facilities are available?
- What should I pack?
- What happens if I leave something behind after my visit?
- What if I’m being harassed?
- Where can I buy a Sagehen t-shirt or water bottle?
- Can I volunteer at Sagehen?
- Can I bring my dog?
- Can I fish in Sagehen Creek?
- Can I collect firewood at Sagehen?
- Where can I find a map of the Sagehen Basin?
- Hiking guide to Lower Sagehen Creek
- Where can I get more information about Sagehen? | history | brochure | videos | news | wildlife | fens
- Can I visit Sagehen in the winter?
Weather and Road Conditions
Current weather
Report unusual weather or flooding to the National Weather Service: (800) 446-1428
Road conditions
- Caltrans website, or call 1-800-427-ROAD for highway conditions.
Hwy-89 north of Truckee is the military route over the Sierra Nevada and is always kept open, even when I-80 over Donner Pass is closed by weather or idiot truck drivers.
The 1.8 mi. access road to Sagehen from Hwy-89 is unpaved, but the station managers now remove snow as far as the field station. High clearance vehicles will have an easier time, but are not mandatory. All cars traveling to Sagehen or elsewhere in the Tahoe area during winter should have snow tires and/or carry tire chains. Carrying extra winter clothing, snow boots and a little food and water is also wise.
Snowmobiles, snow cats, snowshoes and skis are used to access the snowcat-packed road into the upper Sagehen basin beyond the station between roughly November to May (roughly 6.5-miles to the end of the road from the station). Motorized vehicles operating in the basin–including over-snow vehicles–must remain on designated roads at all times.
Web-Cams
Use these live cameras to get an idea about road & mountain conditions in and near Sagehen.
- Tahoe-Truckee Highway cams
- Squaw High Camp Cam: conditions in the mountains near Donner Pass on the Sagehen side of the crest at 8200′. Sagehen’s major facilities lie at 6400′. The watershed tops out at 8600′.
- Sagehen Fire Cam looks out over the basin from Carpenter Ridge.
Living with Wild Animals
Sagehen doesn’t have problem animals. Help us keep it that way!
Store all food in the kitchen dry boxes and refrigerators, not in your cabin or car. Eat only in the designated dining areas. Keep the place clean, and put all trash in the bear-proof dumpster.
Learn more:
- Living with Black Bears
- Living with California Mountain Lions
- Living with California Coyotes
- Living with other Wildlife
Emergency and Medical
- Safety Guidelines for Field Research
- Sagehen Creek Field Station Emergency Medical Plan
- Sagehen Creek Field Station Emergency Response Plan – 2016
- UC Berkeley Training Plan for Hazardous Materials
- UCB EH&S Publications & Information
Fire Safety
Vector-borne disease (and noxious organisms) that may occur near Sagehen
Sagehen is a relatively benign place. There are no venomous snakes, nor any poison ivy/oak/sumac. Aside from a few obnoxious hornets, our insect and spider fauna is generally pretty harmless to humans. Historically, there have been no (or very few) disease-carrying mosquitoes or ticks at the station. While our ground rodents do carry plague, we lack the fleas that transfer the disease to humans.
Dog tick from Sagehen, with a bite of Tony Iwane in its jaws. Dermacentor variabilis is not a vector for Lyme, but it can carry other diseases.
With global warming, however, all this is changing! The range of disease-bearing arthropods is expanding, so we can no longer state unequivocally that ticks, mosquitoes and fleas are not going to be a potential health problem at Sagehen. Rattlesnakes have even appeared at the Sierra Crest, well above our elevation. And Sagehen–like everywhere–has plenty of mice. Use standard precautions to protect yourself, and read the following information carefully:
- Rodents and Hantavirus
- Plague in California
- West Nile virus
- Prevent tick bites
- Lyme Disease in California
- Tick-borne Relapsing Fever
IMPORTANT! Sagehen has never had a reported case of any of these diseases, but if you come down with the flu after visiting us, see a doctor and explain where you’ve been and what you’ve been doing. Most of these illnesses are easily managed if you catch them early, but very serious if you don’t.
Code of Conduct at Sagehen
Though we are located out in the woods far from campus, Sagehen expects our visitors to behave respectfully toward each other, and toward the station itself. Please let the managers know of any issues you experience or witness. However, all station visitors should read the following information, first.
As a facility of the University of California, Sagehen has obligations under Title IX. Title IX guarantees that the university will act on any situations that deny equal access to education based on gender. If the university doesn’t act, they are subject to severe penalties and loss of federal funding.
Unlike criminal proceedings that require “beyond a reasonable doubt” standards of guilt, Title IX only requires a “more likely it happened than it didn’t” standard in order to take action to protect the complainants education rights.
If you experience (or witness) sexual harassment, assault, stalking, or other gender-based discrimination that potentially interferes with education at Sagehen, please let us know so we can help. But, you should be aware that we are obligated by law to report any incidents for which we receive information. If you would prefer to discuss your situation and options with a confidential advocate first, we will be happy to connect you.
More info about Reporting Options and Resources.
To avoid getting entangled in Title IX investigations, be a good citizen to facilitate communal living at Sagehen: don’t be abusive, nor offload your share of work onto others. And always use the tea test in your interpersonal relations!
