[media-credit name=” Bucks Lake Lodge” align=”alignleft” width=”300″]
[/media-credit]By Eileen Majors
If cabin fever is setting in, a trip to Bucks Lake Lodge may be just the answer. This quaint resort sits on the edge of picturesque Bucks Lake which boasts 17 miles of shoreline. Situated at one mile high, Bucks Lake Lodge is in the Northern Sierra Nevada, just a couple of hours from Reno, and only about an hour’s drive from Oroville and 17 miles southwest of Quincy on Bucks Lake Road (Quincy-Oroville Road).
The lodge is informal and uncomplicated. Tall pines, a crystal clear lake and clean mountain air come with the stay and modest rates go along with their rustic simplicity. Warm and cozy cabins are plenty comfortable and the wondrous scenes of winter are well worth any sacrifice of giving up the 5-star with room service.
The lodge has a great restaurant and a friendly bar too. I have heard that the food is excellent. Cabins with kitchens have the basics including a real stove top percolator; now that is good coffee! Accommodations range from one to three bedrooms and each hold from two to eight persons. An on site store carries most groceries except fresh meat.
It is not an uncommon sight to see a long line up of snowmobiles in front of the Bucks Lake Lodge. Snowmobilers and cross-country skiers visit the Bucks Lake area during winter for its staging facilities and 100 miles of groomed trails. Bucks Lake has long been considered one of the finest snowmobile destinations in the west. In addition to groomed trails, there are hundreds of ungroomed, but marked routes.
Three staging areas are in the vicinity – Four Trees, Bucks Summit, and Big Creek – along with a number of year-round resorts offering lodging and dining. Bucks Lake Road is not plowed beyond Bucks Summit; travel into the resorts must be done via snowmobile, snow cat or cross-country skiing. The turnoff to Bucks Lake Road, just north of Quincy, is on Highway 70 and is well marked. In the winter, expect a 4.5 mile ski or snowmobile ride on a groomed road.
Driving a car or truck on groomed surfaces is prohibited as doing so ruins the road for permitted snowmobile and ski travel. For information on possible snow cat shuttle service, contact the resort.
Visit buckslakelodge.com and click on ‘Winter Fun’ to download a PDF of the Snowmobiling and Cross-Country Trails
Bucks Lake Lodge
& Timberline Inn
P.O. Box 236 Quincy, CA 95971
530-283-2262 • www.buckslakelodge.org
OPEN YEAR ROUND
US Forest Service – Plumas National Forest snow conditions, maps and other useful information: http://www.fs.fed.us/r5/plumas/conditions/snow/
