As more states in America legalize marijuana (Welcome to the club, New Mexico and New York!), more cannabis dispensaries and distributors are emerging all around Lake Tahoe as it gets easier to jump on the 420 bandwagon. Therefore, here’s a more in-depth guide about all things Lake Tahoe dispensary to find products that can either enhance your mountain experience or improve your health…

First off, are there dispensaries near Lake Tahoe?

Absolutely! In the November 2016 election, Nevada and California voters passed measures to legalize marijuana and since then, dispensaries around the lake were scrambling to scoop up permits (NuLeaf in Incline Village and Tahoe Wellness Center in South Lake were some of the first to open).

There is now a plethora of physical dispensaries all around Big Blue with the majority being in South Lake Tahoe/Stateline. Several somewhat underground cannabis delivery services all over Tahoe also transport products to marijuana and CBD aficionados on both the Nevada and California sides. And the delivery game is likely to be expanded if cannabis ever gets decriminalized on a federal level and Uber drivers can capitalize on it.

Where can you legally buy marijuana in Lake Tahoe?

There are a variety of places to buy recreational marijuana in Lake Tahoe if you’re at least 21 years old and have a valid ID. Here is a breakdown of cannabis dispensaries in Lake Tahoe:

Dispensaries in South Lake Tahoe

Tahoe CBD

With the term “CBD” in its name, this cannabis company focuses on serving those that want the health benefits of cannabis without the high. Owner Jack Young prides himself on selling “full spectrum” CBD products using a high technology process that extracts the greatest number of terpenes and Phyto cannabinoids out of the hemp plant. Many of its full spectrum oils, capsules, salves, and gummies lean towards the medicinal side, which draws a little bit of an older crowd. However, Tahoe CBD also delivers THC-chocked flower and pre-rolls as well. Tahoe CBD recently launched a skincare line, and its pet friendly tinctures can help your pup recover from swimming in the lake all day. If you want to go to Tahoe CBD in person, find them at 987 Edgewood Circle in South Lake Tahoe.

Tahoe Wellness Center

Opening in 2009 long before the cannabis craze took over, the locally owned Tahoe Wellness Center is located on 3445 Lake Tahoe Boulevard, extremely close to the lake. Providing an abundance of pre-rolls, extracts, and flower (including the famous Willie’s Reserve line), Tahoe Wellness Center has 756 products that it sells online, and it was named Best Delivery, Best Environmentally Friendly Business, and Best Head Shop by the Tahoe Daily Tribune in 2020. As Tahoe Wellness Center has evolved over the years, it has added its own cultivation facility and licensed extraction process making many of its cannabis products one of a kind, and it is one of the only places that sells marijuana seeds (although they are a bit pricy at $122.30 per 10-pack).

Embarc Tahoe

Recently opening a storefront across the Heavenly Village and next to my favorite Mexican food place Maya’s Mexican Grill, this Embarc dispensary is its third location in Northern California (it also has dispensaries in Alameda and Martinez). Embarc emphasizes being locally owned and supporting its communities, donating one percent of its sales to a community investment fund. It also prioritizes its shelf space for female, LGBTQUA+, local farms, and BIPOC brands. Embarc’s products include everything from extracts to edibles, even a whole line of cannabis-infused drinks in lemon lavender, cranberry sage, and ginger lemongrass flavors. It’s also free to join the Embarc Passport Club which gives members exclusive discounts, offers, and early access to newly released marijuana products.

Cannablue

Another newish South Lake Tahoe cannabis dispensary that also keeps a location in the Bay Area is Cannablue. Located on 2179 Lake Tahoe Boulevard, Cannablue provides “a wide selection of connoisseur grade flower, concentrates, edible, and vape products that represent the quality Lake Tahoe is known for worldwide”, as it states on its website. Along with its top shelf, grown-with-care cannabis variations, Cannablue aims to stay true to its name by giving a portion of its proceeds back to organizations that help maintain Lake Tahoe’s water clarity. Its #KeepCannaBlue initiative uses a combination of profits, volunteer time, and thought leadership to implement and maintain sustainability in the community such as putting effort towards restoring the natural environment, putting in place erosion control measures, and supposedly developing an effective public transportation system. Cannablue also delivers to the Bay Area.

Dispensaries and Head Shops in North Lake Tahoe and Truckee

NuLeaf

Within months of voters approving recreational/medical marijuana dispensaries in Nevada, the boutique cannabis shop NuLeaf popped up in Incline Village. Right there on 877 Tahoe Boulevard across from the Christmas Tree Village, this inconspicuous dispensary with a wood-paneled exterior offers a different kind of tree inside. Selling a multitude of flower strains laced with various levels of THC and CBD, what’s nice about NuLeaf is that you can physically look at the flower and smell it upon request. The chocolate edibles and drinks are good, and their CBD-prominent salves help ease joint pain. Covid really helped NuLeaf dial in their delivery and curbside pickup program making it extremely easy to go in or pick up what you need from anywhere in North Lake Tahoe. And if you go there often enough then they’ll likely hook you up with the local’s discount.

Lady Luck Skate & Head Shop

With three locations in Incline Village, Tahoe City, and Kings Beach, the Lady Luck Skate & Head Shop appeals to skateboarders who also appreciate fine blown glass. You can visit one of the nearby dispensaries to find flower to put in that pipe, bong, or papers, or buy CBD, vape pens, or kratom directly from the store. Lady Luck is also a main distributor of Fresh Air Clothing and rumor has it that they’ll be opening another store in Truckee soon.

Lake Tahoe Cannabis Delivery Services

Tahoe Harvest Collection

Dropping off cannabis to your door in Truckee and North Lake Tahoe, Tahoe Harvest Collection is a convenient and reliable delivery service that will bring you a package of flower, edibles, tinctures, pre-rolls, concentrates- and even seeds- in a timely manner. This California-licensed father-and-son team prides itself on sourcing only the finest quality marijuana products, featuring about 150 cannabis varieties and accessories in its online store. Open daily from 11am-8pm, this “dispensary on wheels” will deliver to restaurants, hotels, houses, or other private properties in the Truckee/North Lake Tahoe area.

Tahoe Honey Company

“Honey & Pot & Bears, Oh My!” says the Tahoe Honey Company, infusing all its favorite things into a unique Tahoesque logo. At the Tahoe Honey Company based in Truckee, this delivery service that serves all of Lake Tahoe is all about promoting good health, friends, the outdoors, and quality artisanal cannabis. Its product guide encompasses flower, pre-rolls, concentrates, tinctures, and more derived from marijuana that’s grown outside, indoors, or in light deprivation. Tahoe Honey Company founders also provide full explanations about how certain cannabis strains and its related items affect you on its website.

Medicine Box

Founded by longtime Kings Beach local Brian Chaplin, Medicine Box sells cannabis tinctures infused with soothing herbs sourced from small craft Nevada County farms. The county’s strict limits on canopy size puts the emphasis on quality not quantity, and the plants grown under the Medicine Box brand use specific permaculture principles that the team came up with to bring it from soil to oil. Its staple Equanimity tincture is a full spectrum sublingual cannabis liquid formulated with synergized botanicals and herbs that calm the body’s nervous system and help facilitate a good night’s sleep. To learn more about Medicine Box’s unique extraction process while helping to protect the earth and keep small growers in business, visit https://medicinebox.green/. Equanimity is distributed throughout North Lake Tahoe and Truckee via Winter Greens

The Best Lake Tahoe Dispensary

Since every dispensary is unique, it’s hard to distinguish if any one is better than the other. It all kind of depends on what types of products you like and what kind of high (or CBD products without the high but all the health benefits) that you are looking for. Every single dispensary employee I’ve met is knowledgeable and passionate about its products and can steer you in the right direction to whatever you are looking for.

If you are more into CBD and a bit nervous about walking into a dispensary, then Tahoe CBD, Medicine Box, and the Tahoe Honey Company are worth looking into. If you split your time between Tahoe and the Bay Area, then perhaps it’s worth checking out Cannablue or Embarc. Tahoe Wellness Center and NuLeaf are some of the longest standing dispensaries since marijuana became legal in California/Nevada, so their products and deals for Tahoe locals are dialed in.

However, my favorite dispensary is just outside of Lake Tahoe in Washoe Valley. Located on Highway 395 between Reno and Carson City, SoL Cannabis makes a lot of its own products in-house, all grown in natural sunlight and organic soil. You can watch the marijuana plants grow from a viewing area (like being in a Napa vineyard). Its flower, edibles, and tinctures are affordable and pure, providing customers with Tahoe quality at Reno prices. Various educational information is spread out through the dispensary describing the benefits and likely effects of its cannabis, and I’m usually the youngest person in there (the average age of its customers is 55 years old). SoL also hosts live music outside in the summer, where it’s common to see people in tie-dye shimmying to the band with Mt. Rose as the backdrop. SoL also delivers to the lake.

Benefits and Words of Caution to Enjoying Marijuana in Lake Tahoe

Cannabis keeps gaining popularity mainly because it’s not just a way to get high anymore- many studies show that it can help heal your body. From curing insomnia and anxiety to relieving joint pain, THC and CBD properties within marijuana can unleash a variety of benefits.

Budtenders are happy to match you up with an appropriate tincture, edible, or nug depending on what you fancy, and most plants, edibles, salves, et cetera, encompass a combination of THC and CBD. Indica strains tend to make a person sleepy while sativa-prominent flower can enhance certain experiences. Microdosing an edible and then going camping, hiking, paddleboarding, or stargazing in Tahoe can be taken to a new level with the support of cannabis.

However, “microdosing” is the key word in testing out a new cannabis product. Smoking flower can take immediate effect, while edibles are known to create a delayed reaction. Since ingesting weed can make you hungry, it’s worth microdosing edibles by eating or drinking a quarter or a half of an intended amount and then waiting 45 minutes to an hour to see how it affects you. Taking too much can lead to an untended high and paranoia that could potentially last for hours.

While it’s probably assumed, you also shouldn’t drive while impaired. Marijuana can weaken your motor skills and stays in your system for up to 72 hours. However, CBD-only certified products can have trace amounts of THC in them (up to 0.03%) but it’s not enough to make you feel high.

Be Safe, Be Smart, And Have Fun

There are plenty of cannabis dispensaries around Lake Tahoe that can help you find what you need to ease your pain from an intense day of hiking or shoveling snow, boost your sleep or appetite, or simply used to enhance your recreational experience in the mountains. Just be safe, be smart, and have fun.

Lake Tahoe Dispensary Links