Granite Bay is ideally located next to Folsom Lake and has two entrances for boats and campers. Since the lake is surrounded mostly by federal lands, private property that touches the lake is rare and Granite Bay is home to those lucky homeowners. There are also a few neighborhoods where you can walk to the lake or enjoy a bike ride along the shore. There are special events ranging from boat shows to art festivals and camping is available with reservations through the national park service.

The newly created Granite Bay Recreation Association has a new website to connect with other sports fans and is long overdue. This area was once a part of Roseville but the need to separate the paperwork has become crucial for continued growth and Granite Bay officially seceded in 1987. There is every sport a young athlete could hope to play and the parent participation is every soccer mom’s dream come true.

Golf is huge in this part of Placer County and the private course in Granite Bay has lots of challenge and participates in many charity events where you can catch a glimpse of some famous locals.  Boaters and water sports abound when the lake is full and then there is the usual biking clubs who can be seen every weekend along Folsom-Auburn Rd.

Real estate is a bit pricey in this part of town but equally important is the impact Bayside Church has had on the local population. This congregation hosts up to 15,000 people each Sunday and has expanded out to various towns in the valley. This has been a positive for the community and many of the local businesses enthusiastically offer support. Overall Granite Bay is a very family friendly town with lots to offer.

Cameron Park is home to the Cameron Park Airport, a private airstrip with homes that offer airplane hangers for garages. It’s not unusual to see antique planes or private jets flying overhead and on the weekends you’ll hear and see a variety of different aircraft taking off & landing along Cameron Park Rd. 

Located along Hwy 50 between El Dorado Hills and Placerville this small town has been renovating it’s image over the past few years. The old Sam’s Railroad Junction has expanded and a lot of new retail has gone in to replace the vacancies. Across the street is a new Applebee’s and Food 4 Less which makes it the 3rd grocery store in this town. As far as services go it has the essentials and major shopping is only 10 minutes down the road in Folsom. The small town feeling lingers but you know that suburbia is encroaching.

What Cameron Park really offers is vast open spaces close to an urban environment. There are a couple of great places to eat but most people move here to get a little space around them. Most of the subdivisions have a minimum of 1/3 acre lots, some have valley views and the really nice properties have views of the Sierra. There are a couple of gated communities and a Cameron Pk. Country Club with homes but mostly regular homes on larger lots with plenty of space to have a garden.

Cameron Park Lake has a few community events during the year and the local 4H is very active supported by a thriving home schooling community. Occasionally this area will be referred to as Shingle Springs but that’s located south of Hwy 50 and is much more rural with larger ranches.

Great Lifestyle and Amenities

The name Rocklin translates to “rock pool” which is a very accurate term used to describe this area as granite outcroppings seem to dominate the landscape. Rocklin CA got it’s humble start as a quarry town and as is typical of small towns the local streets are named after the town fathers who settled here and got things rolling. Most of the city sits on the very land that George Whitney owned (Whitney Oaks Golf Course) and passed to his heirs. The Rocklin History Museum offers lots of interesting facts about this area and it’s worth the read especially if you are interested in Native American History and the Transcontinental Railroad.

Rocklin is home to Sierra College which is nestled in the Sierra foothills and has a solid reputation preparing students to continue at the university level  offering three campus’ stretching from Rocklin to Lake Tahoe. On the weekends the college hosts a used car sales lot which I have found to be handy for selling and buying used vehicles, both land & water. There also is a private college, William Jessup University, that just opened and is located at Hwy 65 & Sunset.

Recreational activities in Rocklin range from baseball to rock climbing and the park & rec offers leagues for children and adults in addition to the local sports stores and athletic clubs. The hills prove an acceptable challenge for bicycle clubs and the Quarry Classic is a must see for soccer fans. Sunset Whitney County Club has been a fixture here since the 1964 and is a private country club offering golf, swimming and the usual amenities and currently open to the public for golf.

West Rocklin borders Hwy 65 and the hills are covered with homes as far as you can see offering the complete suburban lifestyle. East Rocklin borders Loomis and Granite Bay along Sierra College Blvd and is home to more rural living on larger acreages and close proximity to Folsom Lake. There are farm stands selling local produce and orchards growing everything from olives to persimmons. Variety in lifestyle is the constant in this community and Rocklin is ever changing to meet the needs of the community.

Roseville, CA is a great city located along Hwy 80 half way between San Francisco and Lake Tahoe.  Situated in the Sierra foothills of the Sacramento valley this up and coming town claims #90 in the top 100 places in 2008 to live in the United States according to Money Magazine.

Historic Roseville has a quaint downtown area with a new civic center, classic movie theatre and local shopping with antique stores and assorted local vendors. They host an Art Walk every 3^rd Saturday from spring to fall and there are a variety of street fairs that support charities and special events during the summer months.

Granite Bay is the bedroom community located next to Roseville and was once part of this city. It is similar to El Dorado Hills in that it has a more affluent population and caters to the upper end real estate shopper. The private Granite Bay Golf Club is located in the middle of this lovely area and is available for special events.

West Roseville offers incredible shopping thanks to the Galleria. When this mall opened in the early 2000s, it was showcased as one of the newest concepts in shopping mall design. The expansion has yet to be complete with an additional wing just opening called the Fountains. Located across from the main mall this new center offers Whole Foods as the main anchor.

East Roseville offers a more tranquil setting with established neighborhoods and easy access to Folsom Lake. Homes on acreage are still available and working farms offer roadside produce that get plenty of business from the locals. On the weekends, you will see bicycle clubs riding along Auburn-Folsom Road with both types of bikes sharing the road.  

This northern section of the Sacramento valley offers virtually every sport imaginable and is located within 1.5hrs drive to some of the world’s best winter sports in Lake Tahoe. If you are considering a relocation please give me a call and I’ll be happy to get you started.

Each year the owner of  Emprie Ranch Golf Club (Club Corp) has a huge charity event at all their clubs nationwide (140 clubs), This year’s event was aiming to raise 5 million for a variety of charities. One of this year’s charities was Muscular Dystrophy Association’s (MDA) Augie’s Quest which is dedicated to finding a cure for Lou Gehrig’s disease. There are many charity events held at Empire Ranch Golf Club and I’ve been privileged to help at one of the events supporting the Cancer Society. There are various challenges hosted there to raise support for local schools, the local food bank and corporate sponsored events.

Empire Ranch Golf Club is the only golf course in the city of Folsom and is a par 71 for those who can appreciate that fact. A number of friends love this course for it’s undulating hillsides and challenging terrain but I have to say that although I’m not much of a golfer I do find the landscaping to be peaceful and the views relaxing. Unfortunately this course requires that you get a golf cart because it’s too long to walk which is a shame. The course winds through the Empire Ranch community and has a variety of homes with views at each tee as well as the usual putting green and driving range. I love walking in that area of Folsom because it’s so close to Nisenan Park which was originally going to be a private golf course for the community until the developer realized the cost both in construction and maintenance.

Folsom High School uses this course for their team and some of those talented students have managed to get golf scholarships to various colleges.  I was told by a friend (golfer) that if you happen to be female and can consistently shoot 80 or under that you can be assured a full scholarship at many colleges.

The golf pros who coach and the staff are known for their friendly nature and of course you can’t beat the fact that you can play virtually year round in the Sacramento Valley. I just wonder how those homeowners manage to listen to all those excuses about why the ball landed outside the green and next to their fence.