Peggy Dover

I recently wandered afar into the north-central flank of our neighbor to the south. Clear Lake in California was our target — virgin travel territory.

When I posted gleefully on Facebook how excited I was about a new adventure in Clear Lake, a killjoy woman replied, “It’s a sketchy area. We were there last summer.” I thanked her for her keen insight and for attempting to burst my anticipatory bubble. I mean, let me discover the sketchiness on my own, pa-LEASE. After all, one man’s sketch is another woman’s column fodder, right?

Lane and I were not discouraged, but chuckled all the way down an extended Interstate 5 transport, until we hit the nut flats when a brown haze overshadowed our view. I was beginning to feel the doubt monster’s hot breath over my shoulder somewhere below Red Bluff, when we veered right onto I-20 and headed for the hills. The scene began taking on a pleasing call of the wild.

At 1,400 feet, Clear Lake in Lake County sits a little higher and about halfway between Sacramento and Santa Rosa, and is the largest freshwater lake located entirely within California. Covering nearly 70 miles in area, it is roomy. The water teems with largemouth bass, bluegill, catfish, and other gill-favored types. The perimeter is dotted with a state park, tule marshlands for waterfowl, and several small, presumably sketchy burgs we would explore. We found the whole area a most tantalizing moseying spot.

It’s always exhilarating to arrive at a new destination. I like to roll down the windows and sample the local scents. We could smell the water and caught the aroma of decades of family vacations in campsites, vintage lodges and motels. These were positive memory-awakeners — maybe a trifle damp, but not in the least sketchy, though we reminded one another to be on high alert.

We drove up the east side of the lake through Lucerne, the Switzerland of America (?), so the sign read, and to our destination in Nice. We entered a cozy lodge decorated for the season and with a crackling fire.

If any lodging establishment has a right to be haunted, this is the place. The historic Mission-style building now owned by WorldMark, the club boasts a storied history. Built in 1906 as part of a 3,000-acre ranch, and owned by none other than Kit Carson’s half-brother, it was known as the Carson Rancho. Judge Hastings, California’s first Supreme Court justice, purchased the property from Carson. Since its illustrious early days, it has passed through nefarious hands, including those of a German army officer with possible spy connections and then to the head of a savings and loan who turned out to be an embezzler (from a teacher’s fund) and served time in San Quentin State Prison.

Clear Lake Lodge then became a speakeasy during the Prohibition era and was marketed to the elite social circles in San Francisco, with gambling, moonshining, and rooms let by the hour as highlighted enticements. Due to the regularity of high-stakes poker games, the title of the lodge and villas changed hands almost nightly. Pictures of the original brochures hang on the wall of the great hall. Rumors of a federal bust would elicit orders to load up the slot machines on a boat and dump them in the lake. I wonder …

During the early ’50s, the property became well known as a training ground for Carl “Bobo” Olsen, middleweight Champion of the World, who is said to have many descendants in the area.

The grand old lady deteriorated during the ’70s and ’80s, and eventually it closed, remaining vacant until the early ’90s when it appeared the lodge’s sketchy reputation might be absolved. A religious group purchased it with the plan to turn it into a retreat and rehab place for 15-18 parolees. They decided to relocate for unknown reasons.

WorldMark spent millions renovating the now-beautiful lodge and grounds. Our two-bedroom, two-bath condo with full kitchen included a balcony that looked out to the lake. A long, private pier juts into the water — great for bird watching, fishing, or just breathing in a peaceful fall evening fly hatch.

Join me next week for more details on our romp in sunny California.