Our Colfax 1200' sq. cabin is a slice of heaven on 3.8 acres. Watch turkeys and deer meander by from our newer huge deck! FULL bed for 1-2 adults or parent/child. During HWY 80 road closures WE are always accessible! Requires 6 hours prep time on most days. If we're present, we stay in our MIL unit. Office may be used when Jamie is home and it has a common wall with locked curtained doors. Nicotine in your bloodstream from smoking or vaping means we are the wrong house, unfortunately. WE BOUGHT A GARDEN that happened to come with a wonderful home! It has a super flowy floor plan. Bear River Ranch is a work in progress, inside and out, but very relaxing and quiet. It has GREAT windows, so even when there is noise outside, inside is a cocoon. We live here part time. Of course we don't come in the main cabin unless invited, during your stay. Our cabin is simply and comfortably furnished with large cozy furniture and new (for us) Tiffany lamps. Cook in the large, very fully stocked kitchen (with a gas range including oven), if you prefer to eat in. Tons of spices and many kitchen supplies are available to you. A large arch opens from the Great Room, to our library. Games, books, movies and music are available, to foster disconnecting. We offer wifi and chromecast, though too. You will need your own TV subscription if you plan to watch live tv. The rugs throughout the home are a variety of Persian, contemporary, machine-made but Persian style, and real fur (one reason why we can't have animals). Barbecue on an easily lit charcoal grill - it creates juicier, more flavorful food than a gas grill. We prefer one couple, a single or a parent and child, who will share one bed. Absolutely no couch surfing. A wood burning stove is located in the great room, providing cozy and romantic winter warmth. It's dangerous to touch, so we do not allow its use when a child under 10 is present. There is furnace heat as well . Forced air and great a/c keep you comfy winter and summer. We feel safe opening the windows at night and getting fresh air during the summer, and seldom run the a/c ourselves. We hope you will prefer to cool the house at night and save the environment. We have a hot tub, which is awesome and is located off the library. It is NOT GUARANTEED as part of the amenities. Consider it a bonus. It is $50 per 1 to 7 days, if you wish us to prepare it for you, and if time allows us to get it ready. Gentle slopes allow for easy walking around the yard and grounds. Our chicken coop stands empty, an enclosed vegetable garden, and green house, will over time bring our home back to its original glory. We just put in an Iris mural on the back yard hillside. There are berries and grapes growing wild. Help yourself! Chains are almost never required, yet we are close to serious snow in the winter, where they will be. We do get a few dustings of our own snow at the ranch, which we call "postcard snow". During all of the road closures of highway 80 during the winter we have always remained open, except this past winter where everything between reno and applegate was closed. The main road where we have our address leads right to the Bear River! We don't stay in the home with you, but we do not offer the garage, or the Master suite to guests. You do have "A WHOLE HOUSE", in that it is not occupied by us during your stay. At all. We stay in our "Cottage", a secondary building (mother in law unit), if our presence overlaps with yours: typically 2-4 days a week. THINGS YOU MUST ACKNOWLEDGE READING BEFORE WE ACCEPT: We're about 5-7 minutes from highway 80. Our remote location is by design. No freeway noise here! It is hard to find, we acknowledge that, and we ask you do as well. We suggest you allow us to guide you in by phone your first time in. We are 1/4 mile off the main road! This is the country and you may hear associated noises of five types: 1) The sounds of nature, from screeching hawks to buzzing insects (that bite) to foxes yipping. 2) Sounds of construction and repair. 3) Fire abatement, including chain saws, mowers, whackers and wood chippers. 4) Gun or rifle fire. People in the country like to shoot guns. Annoying, but part of the experience. You can't hear it in the house. 5) Music from our cottage or garage to discourage local skunk from getting even more local, or burrowing under the house. Things did not end well for the last intruders. The VERY attached porch is our personal space. Under rare circumstances we will give it up, but is generally in use by Jamie as her office, during brief periods of time, mostly during the day. It's our Winter Greenhouse, and Jamie's office year round, unless we agree to give it up. Plants need to be watered, ergo you may hear Jamie in the office or be asked to water if we leave it to you. OUR COUCHES ARE NOT BEDS. PLEASE SLEEP and canoodle IN BEDS ONLY. (Evidence that a couch has been confused with a bed is a $250 extra cleaning fee.) Our quarter mile long driveway comes off the main road and passes 4 other properties, (3 with visible houses) so please drive slowly, at our neighbor's request, max 5 MPH. There are EIGHT Gardens, all of which were damaged by tenants and a solid six of them are still in recovery. The deck is on two sides of the south and western side of the house and part of your space. There is a covered work area outside the kitchen and office. Jamie will use it sparingly or not at all but it provides access to her office, when that is necessary. We leave some of our food in the fridge and freezer and we ask other than condiments, it not be eaten. If you use oil or a spice, etc. til it is almost gone, please inform us, or replace it yourself. We are in a forest. We see wild animals. Once Jamie might have seen a wildcat, saw wide low eyes moving at dusk. Maybe a coyote. Jamie heard huffing once suggesting a bear, but did not see one. They are usually a couple of miles away. Don't let your child out at night alone, just like the city. Do not allow your child outside alone in late may, through mid June at any time of day. Baby fawns have HUGE mothers who are very dangerous. ONE CHILD ONLY, ever. We have had multiple instances of abuse, which is why this listing is SO long, but we still like most of our guests very much, so we keep hosting: Our house was flooded, doing extensive damage to the new floors - you will see imperfections from repair. Guests used a weber kettle to build a fire pit type wood burning fire. In August. It got out of control and created a massive mess both inside the house and outside on the deck. It was so hot it melted the glaze! Don't do stuff like them, and we'll be fine! NO Animals please!!! We offer "access" to our entire property, except the locked Master Bedroom, the garage, the Cottage behind the main house and the Tuff shed in the back yard. Use of the porch is our discretion only and unlikely. No Garage access available. You may enjoy walking the entire property and you are welcome to do so. Ask us for the boundaries. Please close any gates behind you. The listing is for ONE VACANT HOUSE, NOT ONE VACANT PROPERTY and we do not offer or guarantee we won't be present in the cottage, which is 30 feet away. You can hear music in the cottage when in the back yard, pretty much at all times, so that we are not invaded by skunks. We will most likely not be present most of the time, and you would want to make sure you have both our cell phone numbers stored in your phone before you leave your home. If we are on site, we are in the Cottage. You may see us on or about the property and we may enter the garage or porch. We don't want to feel like intruders on our property. If you are not at least somewhat social, we will not enjoy having you stay and we would ask you stay elsewhere. IF you are here while you conduct a house hunt, Jamie is a REALTOR® DRE# Zero, 179, 6294 OTHER Professional business services available: ~ ~Real Estate Loan Signing ~General Notarization COLFAX is a town of great significance, in the very important Californian "Gold Country" of the Sierra Foothills. Colfax is roughly equidistant between Sacramento and Truckee (40 to 60 minutes). We are about 25 minutes from Grass Valley and Nevada City via 174 and about 20 minutes or 15 miles above Auburn, to Rollins Lake or the American River. Each of the towns mentioned has a great deal of their own history. OUT AND ABOUT: PANNING FOR GOLD: Bear River is right down the road from our home, just a few miles outside of Colfax. Bear River is famous as a still productive location for the hand panning of gold! All you need is a gold pan, something to sit on, and a container in which to store your collected gold! When you get tired or hot you can just swim or tube in the icy waters to cool off! RAFTING: The American River is across Highway 80 to the east and has great water activities. "The Colfax-Iowa Hill Bridge to Ponderosa Way Bridge run is the most popular section to run and has been a favorite for California rafters and kayakers since the mid seventies. This 9.5 mile run contains many steep drops and boulder slaloms, providing some of the best whitewater rafting of the 3 forks of the American river." Excerpt from the "North Fork" tab of the American River rafting website. KAYAKING: Either river, or lake, will provide hours of sun and fun. SKIING: is world class. Closest is Sugar Bowl, with Boreal nearby. Northstar, Squaw, Alpine Meadows, and Incline, are all within about an hour. Boreal and Incline are best for less experienced skiers. Northstar is great for the average to well above average skier (free lessons for level 6+). Serious double black skiers will skip them and go to Squaw, Alpine or Sugar Bowl. FISHING: Rollins Lake is the Bear River's premier rainbow and brown fishery, according to the AppealDemocrat, and fishing can vary dramatically according to the season. Stampede/Bocca Reservoir (farther up the highway, just past Truckee) is one of the leading kokanee salmon fishing lakes in the West. Anglers will also find plenty of brown, mackinaw, and rainbow trout. Fly fishing is popular at the lake, according to CaliforniaGreatLakes. CELEBRATING: Downtown Colfax offers old town celebrations and a family feeling you don't get in larger communities. We are home to the Fire and Iron Festival, (with a little burner feel) and a fabulous July 3rd Celebration among many others! ARTS: The Colfax Theater is state of the art both in projection and sound. They will be hosting movies, live theater as well as musicians, plus they boast the largest dance floor in northern California. EATERIES: The food is great at most every spot we have tried. Sandwiches from the grocery store are FANTASTIC. The pizza by the market in town is among the best we have ever had in the traditional style. Pizzaiolo is fantastic for a lighter oven fired style. You will love Dine and Dash, but you will stay to relax! We just got a Beach Hut Deli. SHOPPING: Quaint stores dot the main street in town, with locally produced gifts and art. Grass Valley and Nevada City have awesome shopping as well, if you like to spend your days poking around historic towns (we do!) Auburn is about 20 minutes away, with a greater variety of businesses, and services along with a historical downtown area. HIKING: According to MVTrails, "The Stevens Trail is one of the most scenic and accessible trails in our area. Originally built as a toll road for pack mules between Colfax and the gold fields of Iowa Hill, it slopes gently downhill for about 3.6 miles to the confluence of Secret Ravine and the North Fork of the American River. It offers breathtaking views of this designated "Wild and Scenic" section of the river canyon." TRAIN: There are trains in and out of Colfax, and Jamie just took her first trip. Great for a day trip! Food and alcohol on board! You can go either towards Oakland or Reno. ACTIVITIES IN and ON the PROPERTY: GAMES: There are games, and playing cards, plus a new sound system for your rented movies and TV series. We have about 30 movies. Streaming movies is very doable as are zoom meetings. WALK: Our oak covered hills take a while to walk, featuring deer, turkey, and fox, cutting through the property. RELAX as you sip your coffee in the early morning or enjoy a glass of wine on the deck in the evening. barely seeing evidence the nearest neighbor in any direction! Keep an eye out for those deer and other wildlife! We have rarely seen skunk and racoon, but they are there. BIRDWATCH: SierraFoothillsAudubon lists dozens of birds that you can watch from our deck, or while hiking. WILD FRUIT PICKING: Blackberries abound in the summer and you can pick them to your hearts content. Same with with wild cherries, if you can beat the birds to them! There are wild grapes, if you are ambitious and blueberries if you are fast! WE have wifi, but if you need to print, the library offers printing for 15 cents a page. WE would not recommend all guests arriving in Colfax by train. There is no public transportation from the train. No Uber, No taxi. It's a 2.1 mile walk to our home. Plan to have at least one person arriving by car! Colfax has zero night life activity other than a bar or two which may have live music. We have a toy poodle service dog, Blizzard. He is extremely well behaved. He will ignore you (unless you are friendly to him and maybe then still) and is HYPOALLERGENIC and flea free. DO NOT try to to pet him!!!! Please give him time to warm up to you. Multiple children are highly discouraged. If we have said yes before, we might say yes again or if your children are very far apart in age. But DO NOT assume you are the exception. You won't be, and we will charge you for abusing our trust, if not our house. IF YOU SMOKE OR VAPE ANY SUBSTANCE, AT ANY TIME, please don't ask to stay with us. ANY evidence of smoking/vaping/chewing, results in the reservation being terminated and no refund for unused nights. This is our home, and we wish not to be made uncomfortable. Jamie is extremely allergic to nicotine. A $250 to $500 security deposit may be held in our possession via the site, if airbnb continues to allow it, and unless there is damage, extreme dirtiness or SMOKING, it is fully refundable. We want to give it ALL back! Your normal cleaning fee provides up to 6 hours of COVID avoidance level cleaning. A one night stay is the same as a 10 night stay in terms of cleaning and sanitation. We reserve the right to increase fees even if you pre book. This includes local taxes if you are staying short term. We tend to prefer 30 days plus to avoid the tax issue.