Some things in Tahoe never die.

The living history can be experienced at the Pope Estate boathouse, but time is running out.

The U.S. Forest Service Lake Tahoe Basin Management Unit will wrap up its Boats of Tahoe tours Sept. 15.

But workers giving the Wednesday afternoon tour showed the desire to go out with a bang, or rather a squeal and roar.

Mike Rhea of the Forest Service branch brushed up on his Tahoe history, inspiring old steamer lovers and firing up the winch that brought the Quic Chakidn into the boathouse about a decade ago. It took a little gasoline and elbow grease.

The scene among the six spectators resembled a scene from a high school shop class, as the men peered over the 1930s winch engine. A plume of smoke hovered over it, but the motor stayed running for a minute or two.

Rhea recalled the time in which the 14-ton boat caressed the laid rail ties to bring it into its final resting place.

“I hooked up the winch, and I ran,” he joked, explaining that the snap of a winch cable can be lethal.

The Quic Chakidn, which stands for “quit your kidding,” has a past and a reputation. It hit the scene in the Roaring ’20s and covered the lake through the prohibition period, with an oven that could cook for 40 people. It exemplified defiant wealth, as original owner Walter Hobart liked to make his presence known with a siren that echoed across Emerald Bay. It was later owned by Lloyd Saxon.

Fast forward to Wednesday – Rhea blew the brass siren to give the handful of men gathered a sense of the noise the residents were forced to endure until a whistle replaced it. They covered their ears.

Whether one speaks of Hobart, Tevis or Pope, the characters of Tahoe in contemporary times may not hold a candle to the past.

Wealthy tycoons paraded around the lake with obscenely expensive toys with names that provide a legacy for the mountain paradise – from the Consuelo to SS Tahoe. The latter lies 373 feet down below the lake surface off the shores of Glenbrook. The residents believe the Bliss family sunk it in 1940 to avoid donating it to the World War II effort. It may have become scrap.

According to Rhea, the Navy had its way with the Quic Chakidn – taking it out on the lake to perform radar and sonar tests.

The lives and exploits of the boats and their owners have become fodder for quick history lessons at the Tallac Historic Site.

“They say these boats cost more than the average person makes in a lifetime,” Rhea said, stopping short at venturing a guess of how much. “Still now, boats are a nice status symbol.”

– Susan Wood can be reached at (530) 542-8009 or via e-mail at swood@tahoedailytribune.com