Jaw-dropping Sierra foothills ranch with its own lake tops market in Grass Valley. See it

One of the highest-priced listings in the Sierra foothills town of Grass Valley is an eye-popping ranch on 171 acres with a 6,750-square-foot main residence and guest house available for $4.77 million.

Dubbed Rock Creek Ranch, the property’s centerpiece main residence sits next to a lake where lodgers can “watch the ducks and geese on the lake from the sunlit breakfast room,” according to the property listing. Three different creeks feed into the lake that is large enough for paddleboarding, kayaking and fishing.

No doubt the house is expansive, but it’s also comfortable and inviting, listing agent Bruce Renfrew of California Outdoor Properties said.

“It’s large, and it sleeps a lot of people, but with a lot of really large over-the-top McMansions, you feel like you’re not in a personal home,” he said. “You feel like you’re in a hotel lobby or a resort or something. It doesn’t feel like a comfortable, relaxed family environment. This place just feels like a home. It doesn’t feel over the top at all, it’s so tastefully done.”

Grass Valley is less than 60 miles north of Sacramento, California.

Nearly every room has views of the lake, from spacious kitchen to the dining room and living room, Renfrew said. The interior brings nature inside with is natural wood and beams and stone walls under high ceilings and windows.

The house contains four main bedrooms, but there’s also a big sleeping loft ideal for children and grandkids, “like a big open dorm,” he added.

Wine cellar, game room and caretakers home

The house has a wine cellar, elegant living room, formal dining room and two large family rooms. There’s a game room and media room, as well.

The 1,500-square-foot guest home has three bedrooms and two bathrooms. Farther away there is a caretaker’s cabin.

And then there’s the stunning grounds, which offer grand views and water resources abundant enough to allow for the building of additional homes.

The ranch is essentially a “recreational retreat in a serene setting,” according to the property listing, with a pool and spa, lake, pond and expansive areas for hiking, riding ATVs, hunting and trap shooting. A four-stall barn, fenced arena, paddocks and 170 acres for riding is available for equestrian enthusiasts.

Solar panels linked to the grid provide approximately 75% of the electricity, according to the listing.

The original ranch was only 80 acres surrounded by high fence where the previous owner raised fallow deer, processed the meat and sold the venison to local restaurants in Grass Valley and Nevada City, Renfrew said. More parcels were bought to fill out the 171-acre estate.

The house is expansive, but it’s also comfortable and inviting, listing agent Bruce Renfrew of California Outdoor Properties said.
The house is expansive, but it’s also comfortable and inviting, listing agent Bruce Renfrew of California Outdoor Properties said.

The ranch stands out among Grass Valley properties, Renfrew added.

“It’s an outlier,” he said.

Also, the former owner used to rent the entire place out as a wedding venue with enough room to sleep wedding parties.

Sandy Ballou of California Oudoor Properties is the co-listing agent.

The pool and spa are just the beginning of the recreational opportunities at Rock Creek Ranch in Grass Valley, California.
The pool and spa are just the beginning of the recreational opportunities at Rock Creek Ranch in Grass Valley, California.

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