Lake Tahoe and Reno
A wedding ring that came off in cold, clear Tahoe water
Sand Harbor, Incline Village, Zephyr Cove, South Lake Tahoe, Kings Beach, Tahoe City, Reno and Sparks
Lake Tahoe's clarity is measured by lowering a white disk, 10 inches (25 cm) across, and noting the depth at which it disappears. In 2025 that depth was about 69 feet (21 metres) on average, UC Davis measured. So a lost wedding ring here may be lying in plain view on the bottom, in water that is cold in every season.
Ring Seekers is a lost ring and jewelry recovery service that connects people who lost a ring, wedding band, watch, keys or phone in Lake Tahoe and Reno with a metal detectorist who can search there. Tell us what happened and where. We find a detectorist who can reach the place, brief them with your map and photos, and tell you honestly if the odds are poor. This page sits under Nevada on our site, but it serves both shores of the lake.
An engagement ring, an Oura ring, an earring, necklace, bracelet or chain, an Apple Watch, a key fob, metal-framed glasses or a hearing aid is handled the same way. So is a lost phone in lake shallows, or a lost ring on a lawn in Reno.
What to note while you are still on the beach
Stand as close as you can to where it happened and take one photo towards the lake and one back towards the shore, each with something fixed in the frame, a rock, a pier, a tree or a building. Then write down how deep the water was on you, knee, waist or chest. Drop a pin before you leave.
Send the photos, the pin and a picture of the item, or of its pair, to us on WhatsApp. We cover Incline Village, Zephyr Cove, Reno and Sparks in Nevada, and South Lake Tahoe, Tahoe City and Kings Beach in California.
Places we cover in Lake Tahoe and Reno
- Incline Village
- Reno
- South Lake Tahoe
- Tahoe City
- Sparks
- Kings Beach
- Zephyr Cove
- Sand Harbor, Lake Tahoe Nevada State Park
- Burnt Cedar, Incline and Ski beaches
- Zephyr Cove Resort beach
- El Dorado Beach at Lakeview Commons
- Regan Beach
- Kings Beach State Recreation Area
- Commons Beach
- Emerald Bay beach below Vikingsholm
- D.L. Bliss State Park, Lester Beach and Calawee Cove
- Truckee River Whitewater Park at Wingfield
- Virginia Lake Park
- University of Nevada, Reno
- Sparks Marina Park
Which beach, which shore, which park
Start your message with the name of the place.
Sand Harbor's sloping beaches and rock formations
Sand Harbor lies on the eastern shore, inside Lake Tahoe Nevada State Park. Its beaches slope gently, and the rock formations draw swimmers and scuba divers. A beach patrol is on duty from Memorial Day to Labor Day, the busy season. Tell us whether you were on the sand, among the rocks or at the boat ramp.
Burnt Cedar, Incline and Ski beaches in Incline Village
These three beaches are kept by the Incline Village General Improvement District. Burnt Cedar has a small sandy beach with a protected swimming cove and a large grassy point. Incline Beach has a swimming area and a kayak launch, and Ski Beach has the boat ramp and a volleyball court. Name the beach and the part of it.
Zephyr Cove and its rental boats
On the lake's southeast shore, in Nevada, the beach at Zephyr Cove Resort is open all year. Summer brings parasailing, paddleboarding and beach volleyball, and boats, kayaks and jet skis can be rented. If a phone, a pair of glasses or a chain went in from a rental, tell us where you set off and which way you headed.
South Lake Tahoe's two city beaches
El Dorado Beach at Lakeview Commons, where Highway 50 meets Lakeview Avenue, has a public boat launch, and kayaks, pedal boats and paddleboards are rented there. Regan Beach, also on Lakeview Avenue, is the quieter one, with a large grass area, a sand volleyball court and a dog water park at its east end. The city rents out Regan's grassy knoll for weddings, and if something went missing at one, the photographer's pictures can show where people stood.
The shallow shelf off Kings Beach
Kings Beach State Recreation Area has 979 feet (about 300 metres) of frontage on the North Shore, in California. It is a day-use park with a large sandy beach and a playground, and the boat ramp is at its east edge. The lake bed is a shallow shelf, so a ring lost while wading may still be within standing depth.
Emerald Bay and D.L. Bliss on the west shore
From the Vikingsholm parking lot on Highway 89, a steep mile-long trail drops about 500 feet (150 metres) to a small beach and pier at the head of Emerald Bay, and boat campers tie up on the bay's north side. A few miles north, D.L. Bliss State Park has Lester Beach and Calawee Cove, both used for swimming, kayaking, paddleboarding and scuba diving. Tell us the beach and how far out you were.
Four acres of grass and sand at Commons Beach
Commons Beach is the lakefront park in downtown Tahoe City, with picnic sites, a playground and a small amphitheater. In summer it hosts free concerts and a weekly farmers market. A loss on the lawn and one in the water are different searches, so say which side of the waterline you were on.
Reno's river park, Virginia Lake and Sparks Marina
The Truckee River Whitewater Park at Wingfield runs for 2,600 feet (about 800 metres) in two channels around a grassy park with an amphitheater, in downtown Reno. Kayaks, rafts and inner tubes use its 11 drop pools. Virginia Lake Park has a designated off-leash area. East of Reno, Sparks Marina Park has two beaches, a fishing pier, volleyball courts and a 2-mile (3.2 km) walking path.
Four things that hold for every enquiry here
One person answers, whichever state you were in
Nevada shore or California shore, the same person replies on WhatsApp from first message to last.
Nobody drives up to the lake without your photos
The two landmark photos, the pin and how deep the water was on you reach the detectorist first.
Wading depth or open lake, you get a plain answer
A ring lost on the shallow shelf at Kings Beach is one kind of search. A watch dropped from a boat, on a lake more than 1,600 feet (about 500 metres) deep, is a much harder one. If yours sounds doubtful, you hear it in our first replies.
Money is talked through before a date is set
We explain the costs before any search is booked.
Clear, cold water and a level set by a dam
How far down the white disk stays visible
In 2025 the disk stayed in sight to about 69 feet (21 metres) on average, UC Davis measured. In water that clear you may have seen the bottom where the item went in. Say what it looked like.
Sixty-eight degrees as a summer average
The lake surface averages 68 F (20 C) in summer and 41 F (5 C) in winter, the EPA says. The Truckee at Reno's whitewater park ranges between 50 and 70 F (10 to 21 C). In water this cold a small, well-marked area matters, so fix the exact spot.
One river out, past a 6-foot dam
Sixty-three streams run into Lake Tahoe and only the Truckee runs out, past a 6-foot (1.8 metre) dam that controls the level. On a gently sloping beach a small change in level can be a wide strip of sand, so say where the water's edge was. Waves and boat wake could also shift a light item a little in the shallows.
If your loss looks like one of these
I could see the bottom the whole time at Sand Harbor, yet my wedding band vanished the moment it came off. Does clear water help?
It helps with the spot. You may remember what the bottom looked like there, open sand or a particular rock. Sand Harbor's beaches slope gently, so say whether you were still standing or already swimming, and send a photo from the beach towards the rocks.
My engagement ring came off at Kings Beach two weeks ago. Is a lost ring in lake water that cold still worth a message?
Yes, write to us. Kings Beach has a shallow shelf, so tell us how far out you had waded and how deep it was on you. A photo with the playground or the boat ramp in it places you along the beach.
My iPhone went in off a rented jet ski at Zephyr Cove, a few hundred yards out. Be honest, how bad is that?
Open water has no landmarks, so it is a long shot, and you would hear that from us first. Apple says Find My can show an offline iPhone's last known location for up to seven days. Screenshot it and send it to us, with where you set off from and which way you were heading.
My wife's diamond earring came off somewhere on the grass at Burnt Cedar Beach in Incline Village. Is one earring worth writing to you about?
Yes. An earring on grass is a small thing in a known place, a fair start. Burnt Cedar has a large grassy point with benches, a playground and picnic areas, so name the nearest one, and keep the matching earring to photograph for us.
My ring is in the dry sand around our blanket at Commons Beach in Tahoe City. Would a metal detector rental do the job?
Quite possibly. A fresh loss on dry sand or a lawn is where renting one yourself can work, and yours is that kind. Once it is wet sand, water, a large area or a small item, a detectorist makes more sense. Photograph where the blanket was before you leave.
My mother's hearing aid came out at a graduation on the Quad at UNR. Do you look for things that small?
Yes, we take enquiries for hearing aids, as we do for earrings, chains, bracelets, watches and metal-framed glasses. The Quad is the university's traditional setting for Commencement, so photos from the day are your best map. Send one that shows where you sat.
My Apple Watch is somewhere in the water at Sparks Marina and our flight home from Reno is tomorrow. What should I do before we leave?
Fix the spot today. Sparks Marina has two beaches, so say which one. Photograph the water from where your towel was and note how deep it was on you. Everything after that can be done on WhatsApp from home.
Lake Tahoe and Reno
Tell us the beach and how deep you were standing
Two landmarks, a pin and a photo of the item.
Nevada shore, California shore or a park in Reno, the first message is the same. Say what went missing, where you were and when, and attach your photos. We reply on WhatsApp with how we see it and what to send next.