Tent Camping with a River View

I said maybe because we didn’t actually go after reading the last several reviews. We decided our vehicle was probably not suitable for the road in as several people had a lot of trouble getting up to the camp.

Pros: Great location and price
Cons: Pretty gnarly. Didn't look like there were ten sites. Found 2 obvious campsites and a few others that I couldn't tell if they were meant to be sites.

Suitable for people with enough gear, can rough it, and have experience driving off-road.

Camping site was gorgeous with a view of the American River but fair amount of trash around the site and water had a faint paint-like taste.

Had a great experience on Brian’s property! Great hospitality from the host and his daughter. The view was beautiful. Close to everything with the full camping experience. Highly recommend, thanks again!!

Great river views, Brian was super responsive, and a clean site. Close to the river and amenities. We would do it again!

Had fun as always, nice and quiet in and love the view as always

Great convenient spot to auburn. I seriously just needed an easy place to put up my tent and sleep, and this fit the bill.

Regarding the entrance, it wasn’t too bad. Getting in and out was no issue in my Subaru. If you want to go further down the hill you’d need high clearance/4WD, but most normal cars could get down to the first area. Anything sporty or lowered would be an absolute no go.

I appreciate the kind and positive responsiveness the owner had from the day of booking forward.

Upon arriving at the site, we decided not to stay and instead drove back home to the bay area that night after a quick stop at the river. Here's why:

The sites weren't numbered, so we weren't sure which was ours. What I think was ours was very small, had no flat surface for tents (very chunky rocky dirt that needs serious grading), was hard to get to in a car and not walkable with supplies (rough, narrow road), too close to road noise, and much too far from the porta potty.

The large, flat area with shade down below would have been impossible to get to, even with my truck. It was not worth the possibility of getting stuck and having to deal with getting towed out when we only had one day there.

The large flat area with the great view of the river has zero shade. We would have cooked in the sun (take a large sunshade in case this is the only spot you can get in with your car to camp). There is also no privacy at this spot, it is completely exposed from above.

We feel that the land needs to first be improved to be comfortable to stay, particularly needing road grading, tree/bush pruning, and new planting.

You DEFINITELY need a 4-wheel drive to navigate the land. I had a 2-wheel drive truck that has good ground clearance but was still sliding around on the sandy rock to get out.

With more work, this land has potential.

When I read a bad review I like to give the benefit of the doubt. It could of been a bad day or just one of those days.
Well, I think I was too trusting when I chose this location. First, I had a difficult time finding the place. After 20 minutes of driving back and fourth I pulled over - texted the host at the 909 number provided, I asked for some sort of direction or help. Well, as expected he did not reply. So after waiting for 15 minutes I tried again.
When I found the place, I ran into other campers who said they also never heard from the host, they kinda just chose a spot where ever. Well, the road down to the site was steep and rutted. I would not advise this if you do not have 4 wheel or a top heavy vehicle (rooftop tent). I spent 15 mins trying to get back up - stuck.
What I'm saying is, a simple reply, a warning, a description, just make an effort to actually care about the customers who are looking for a place. Be a good host and care or pretend too. Be honest about your property, groom the road and care (even a little).