Lake of the Pines is a successful experiment in leisure living

Ready to sign up the kids for swim lessons; join a card or service club; participate in golf or tennis tournaments; or take a canoe out on a mountain reservoir? There?s one place in the Auburn area where all can be done without even leaving the neighborhood: Lake of the Pines.Sitting about seven miles north of Auburn, just north of the Placer County line, Lake of the Pines is an experiment in leisurely living that dates back to the 1960s.After World War II, there was a national shift caused by a more diverse labor force and shorter work weeks that resulted in a more relaxed style of life. At the same time, older people began retiring at younger ages and seeking out active pastimes.Managers of Western Lake Properties, a major development company, saw the changes occurring and responded by introducing a new type of subdivision centered around resort facilities that would appeal to the youthful retirees. The company designed a residential community with building sites edging a manmade lake, 18-hole golf course, parks, sports courts, beaches and boat docks. And there would be club houses, social halls and an administration hub woven into the tract.The company purchased three large ranches to create Lake of the Pines, including the Henry Pilliard spread, which was originally settled in 1860 on 1200 acres, and still had descendants running cattle on it well into the middle of the 20th century. Bulldozers carved into a natural basin of meadows and pasture land rimmed by pine forests and oak woodlands to cut out the imprint of the lake. The reservoir?s dam was completed in 1966 and the 230-acre reservoir filled by April of the following year. In 1969, the Boise Cascade development company purchased the project, marketing the lots to older workers in the Bay Area and Southern California. While the developer continued construction on the common amenities, contractors were busy constructing spec houses aimed at retirees who were scaling down, and building custom vacation homes for buyers planning to use them as weekend getaways or future retirement villas.But retirees weren?t the only ones interested in the new subdivision. Many disillusioned youths pushed a back-to-the-land movement that helped fan population away from metropolitan areas into more rural parts of the state. With Highway 49 and the newly completed Interstate 80 offering straight shots to employment cores in Auburn, Roseville and Sacramento ? and to ski slopes, pristine lakes, scenic canyons and raging rivers ? residents could enjoy a plethora of leisure-time activities within an easy drive to the work place.In 1972, the Lake of the Pines Association was formed to take over administration of the communal holdings, with a staff of employees maintaining the grounds and facilities and committees of volunteers assisting, as needed. The association is jointly owned by all members and funded through monthly dues.With approximately 2,000 parcels offering everything from modest entry-level houses to chalet-style cabins and luxurious lakefront manors, Lake of the Pines has a wide range of home styles and prices. Outside the fenced development is Lake of the Pines Ranchos, an affiliated development of home sites on parcels of acreage, many with lofty lake views.Also outside the guard gate are clusters of shopping strips, schools and churches: Some are older than the development; some were built to service the nearly 4,500 residents of the resort village; all comprise an informal, unincorporated segment of South Nevada County that nudges Higgins? Corner.The hills in this district that rise about 1,800 feet above sea level also hold the new DarkHorse subdivision, which sits on portions of the old Pilliard ranch as well as 200 acres of the Baldwin Ranch. The development has 330 home sites, with more than 650 acres dedicated to open space and its centerpiece; an 18-hole championship golf course.Lake Combie, which was formed by damming the Bear River, is just down the road. Some estates there carry price tags of as much as $2.5 million, although updated cottages, contemporary homes and old vacation bungalows present a broad choice of properties.Lake of the Pines may have been an experiment on the drawing board, but now it?s home to people of all ages who like to put a little resort-like living into every day of the year.It?s a swimming success.