Bruin Ranch
Working with the landowner and the Trust for Public Land, Placer Land Trust has a one-time opportunity to protect the 2,300-acre Bruin Ranch on the Bear River.
We need your help! 
We are under contract until the end of 2010 to raise the funds to purchase and protect Bruin Ranch. But after 2010, all bets are off. In order to protect this property from being developed (it’s zoned for up to 900 units) we have a year to raise several million dollars to acquire Bruin Ranch and protect it through perpetual stewardship and management.
Bruin Ranch is an incredible property, and with your help it can become a permanent resource for current and future generations. This is a working cattle ranch situated on 2,300 acres of oak woodlands and grasslands, with over three miles of Bear River frontage. The views from Bald Rock Mountain on the property are spectacular, and the diverse wildlife on the property is amazing.
Connection and Protection
What makes Bruin Ranch so unique – in addition to its size and resources – is its location. PLT recently created the Bear-Yuba Partnership with Nevada County land Trust and the Trust for Public Land. This partnership was created to strategically connect and protect the most important landscapes in the foothills of the Bear and Yuba rivers. Bruin Ranch is located right at the heart of existing and proposed conservation projects of the Bear-Yuba Partnership.
PLT has already permanently preserved 1,700 acres directly adjacent to Bruin Ranch: Garden Bar Preserve, and our Big Hill preserves (Liberty Ranch, Taylor Ranch, and Kotomyan Preserve). We’re working with several other area landowners to add another thousand acres to that total. Also, the U.S. Bureau of Land Management is interested in working with PLT to connect and protect several hundred acres of BLM land adjacent to Bruin Ranch and on both sides of the Bear River. Nevada County Land Trust has already preserved thousands of acres across the river, and is under contract to connect these lands to PLT’s preserved lands and Bruin Ranch with a pending acquisition.
Providing for the Future
From hiking to fishing to quiet solitude, the public recreation opportunities at Bruin Ranch are impressive … but we’re shooting for even more. We’re working with Placer County and others to create a one-of-a-kind public trail system in this area. Bruin Ranch will be the key acquisition to link the Bear River to the Hidden Falls Regional Park on Coon Creek through a 7-mile wilderness trail amid a protected landscape of ranch lands, open woodlands, forests, creek and ponds. Along the way, we’ll be protecting the cultural resources of prehistoric Native American peoples, the Maidu and Nisenan, as well as a Basque ranching heritage and Gold Rush history.
Help us make this vision a reality!
Please join the campaign to save Bruin Ranch today.
Donate now through our secure online server to help Placer Land Trust protect important landscapes like Bruin Ranch. By donating, you’ll know that you’re supporting a nationally accredited land trust with a local focus, a proven track record, and a commitment to the future.
You’ll also know that your donation will be multiplied many times over. Placer Land Trust leverages our individual community donations to secure large capital contributions from the business community, philanthropic foundations, grant makers, and public agencies. You don’t have to donate a million dollars to make this project happen … but your gift can be part of helping us secure that million dollars down the road, which will enable us to protect Bruin Ranch for current and future generations to enjoy.
Bruin Ranch In The News
NPR - Down Economy Benefits Land Conservancy Groups
Auburn Journal - Bruin Ranch: Awesome Recreation Potential
"So, do you think
you’d enjoy having 2,300 acres of oak woodland as
your playground for hunting, fishing, biking, hiking, birding and
riding… all just north of downtown Auburn?
Sounds like a pipe dream, right? Well, not so fast…
Preserving it for the public
Bruin Ranch, a privately held piece of land near Auburn Valley
Country Club, is coming up for sale and the landowner has given Placer
Land Trust (www.placerlandtrust.org) first shot at purchasing it. As
always, PLT’s goal is to preserve the land and make it public.
I was lucky enough to get a tour of the place a week back with Jeff
Darlington, the Executive Director of PLT, and it was one of the most
incredible pieces of property on which I’ve ever set foot."
(Click Image to view entire article)
Bruin Ranch Aerial Map