Martis Valley Golf Communities: What Buyers Should Know
May 21, 2026
May 21, 2026
If you are comparing golf communities in Truckee, the biggest mistake is assuming Martis Valley is one thing. It is not. This area is really a collection of distinct club communities with very different ownership models, home styles, access rules, and day-to-day lifestyles. If you want to choose the right fit for your goals, it helps to compare how each community actually lives. Let’s dive in.
Martis Valley sits between Truckee and North Lake Tahoe and includes several of the region’s best-known golf and club communities. For buyers, the real question is not simply which course looks best on paper. It is which community aligns with how you want to use the home.
Some buyers want a highly private, custom-home setting with extensive club infrastructure. Others want more flexibility, a lower-maintenance property, or easier seasonal use. In Martis Valley, those differences are meaningful.
The area also benefits from strong outdoor access beyond golf. Placer County says the Martis Valley Trail includes a completed 4.6-mile paved segment connecting Truckee to Northstar, and the long-term plan is for it to become part of the 62-mile Resort Triangle Trail. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers also notes that Martis Creek Lake, just southeast of Truckee, includes a 4.3-mile wildlife-area loop.
When buyers first tour Martis Valley, they often focus on golf course names, clubhouses, or views. Those matter, but they should not be the only filters. A smarter comparison looks at five core variables.
These points often shape your experience more than the golf itself.
Martis Camp is the most intensely private and highly governed option in the group. It spans 2,177 acres with 671 homesites and follows a low-density master plan. Housing is intentionally custom, with estate homesites averaging more than 1.5 acres and cabin homesites generally ranging from about 0.3 to 0.6 acres.
Its amenity package is extensive. The community includes a Tom Fazio 18-hole golf course, private ski access to Northstar via the Martis Camp Express Chairlift, 26 miles of private trails, the Family Barn, Camp Lodge, an 18-hole Putting Park, sports fields, tennis, and access to the Lake Tahoe Beach Shack.
Ownership here also comes with a more structured operating environment. Martis Camp Club promotes a multi-generational membership structure that can pass to heirs, while the community association handles security, roads, snow removal, wildfire preparedness, landscaping, and architectural review. If you value privacy, service, and a custom-home setting, Martis Camp tends to stand apart.
Lahontan offers a private golf club environment with a strong social and family recreation component. Its location places it between Interstate 80 and Lake Tahoe’s North Shore, with Tahoe/Truckee about 1.5 miles away, Northstar about 2 miles away, and Lake Tahoe about 11 miles away.
The golf offering centers on a Tom Weiskopf-designed 18-hole championship course plus a separate 9-hole par-3 course. Beyond golf, the club includes Camp Lahontan, the Lodge, a spa and fitness center, clay tennis courts, pickleball, bocce, and recreation areas around Gooseneck Reservoir.
Design-review materials emphasize ridges, meadows, pines, open space, and scenic views. That helps explain why many homes in Lahontan present as custom mountain architecture rather than more standardized product. Membership is offered in both golf and social forms, which gives buyers an important distinction to verify as they evaluate a property.
Schaffer’s Mill sits between historic Truckee and Lake Tahoe and positions itself as a private four-season community. Its golf course is a par-71 layout that stretches more than 7,000 yards and includes Meadow and Mountain nines, with elevation changes of up to 400 feet.
One of its key differences is membership flexibility. Proprietary golf membership is reserved for homeowners, while associate golf membership is available to non-residents, and there is also a young executive category for members 40 and under. The club describes its golf membership as a right-to-use model, where members pay an enrollment fee and annual dues rather than carrying operating assessments or capital calls.
The lifestyle offering includes a sports shop, restaurant and café, locker rooms, a workout facility, a resort-style pool, Peg’s Poolside, and Schaffer’s Square. Schaffer’s Mill also promotes a trail system that connects into Martis Valley, including Trail 6, and it offers an on-site vacation-rental program that gives short-term guests access to amenities. For buyers who want a club setting with more flexibility, this community often enters the conversation quickly.
Tahoe Mountain Club centers its golf platform around Old Greenwood and Gray’s Crossing. Old Greenwood is a 600-acre Jack Nicklaus Signature PGA Championship course, while Gray’s Crossing is a Peter Jacobsen and Jim Hardy championship course set across 700 acres, with more than 418 acres of dedicated open space.
The housing mix here is broader than in some of the more purely custom communities. Old Greenwood includes 168 residential lots and 72 townhomes, along with cottages, estate homes, and fractional residences. Gray’s Crossing includes custom-home and homesite options, while current offerings also feature newer contemporary, low-maintenance residences with four floor plans, including 3- and 4-bedroom layouts.
Tahoe Mountain Club members receive access to both courses, 45-day advanced tee times, preferred rates, and league play. The club also markets winter and golf-season programs, plus Northstar ski access, seasonal gear storage, ski valet, dining, pools, and event programming.
Gray’s Crossing also stands out for everyday connectivity. Community materials highlight paved bike-trail connections to Truckee, more than 500 acres of open space, a Pool & Fitness building with spas, steam rooms, and a heated lap pool, and proximity to downtown Truckee. The Village at Gray’s Crossing adds a lower-maintenance residential product with access to golf, fitness, dining, and neighborhood retail.
In Martis Valley, the housing product often tells you as much as the club model. If you are looking for the largest lots and the strongest custom-home orientation, Martis Camp and Lahontan tend to lead that category.
If you want more variety, Old Greenwood offers a wider mix of lots, townhomes, cottages, estate homes, and fractional residences. Gray’s Crossing introduces a more contemporary, low-maintenance option that can appeal to buyers who want easier ownership. Schaffer’s Mill adds another blend, with homesites, luxury cabins, and lodge-style housing.
This matters because home type influences privacy, maintenance load, and how easily the property works as a second home. For many buyers, the best golf community is not the one with the most amenities. It is the one that supports how often you visit and how hands-on you want ownership to be.
Golf may be the headline feature, but trail access often shapes daily life. If you like morning walks, bike rides, trail runs, or easy outdoor time without getting in the car, this can be a major deciding factor.
Martis Camp has a private 26-mile trail network, and the club says it is groomed for snowshoeing and Nordic skiing in winter. Gray’s Crossing offers community trails and a paved bike connection to Truckee. Lahontan sits near Martis Valley wilderness and trail areas, while the public Martis Valley Trail creates a regional paved corridor toward Northstar.
For some buyers, this everyday access becomes just as important as tee times. It can also make a difference for households where not everyone is centered on golf.
Membership should be part of your property analysis from the start. Across these communities, the terms vary enough that you should never assume one structure works like another.
As you evaluate a property, ask clear questions such as:
These details can materially change value, usability, and your total cost of ownership.
For second-home buyers and remote owners, operations matter. A community may feel ideal during a summer tour, but your day-to-day ownership experience often depends on how the neighborhood handles security, winter logistics, guest access, and property oversight.
Martis Camp’s association handles services such as security, roads, snow removal, and architectural review. Lahontan uses gate access and club rules for guests. Schaffer’s Mill offers on-site rental management, while Tahoe Mountain Club supports stay-and-play lodging at Old Greenwood.
If you live outside Truckee full time, these systems deserve close attention. They can affect privacy, convenience, and how manageable the home feels from a distance.
In Truckee, golf season is only part of the story. Winter access can be a major filter, especially if you are buying a second home for year-round use.
Martis Camp offers direct ski connection to Northstar. Tahoe Mountain Club markets Northstar access through its winter membership, and Schaffer’s Mill highlights both proximity to Northstar and a Base Camp there. Your best fit may depend on whether you want direct lift access, club-supported ski services, or simply convenient proximity.
That difference may sound subtle, but it affects how spontaneous your winter weekends can feel.
The best way to understand Martis Valley is to see it as a group of related but very different lifestyle options. Martis Camp leans toward the most private and amenity-rich custom-home environment. Lahontan combines private club living with a strong lodge, spa, and recreation focus. Schaffer’s Mill offers a more flexible private-club model, while Old Greenwood and Gray’s Crossing provide a broader club platform with more varied housing choices and access points.
If you are weighing these communities, the right move is not to rank them in the abstract. It is to match the community to your priorities around privacy, maintenance, membership, trail access, winter use, and the type of home you want to own.
With decades of experience across Truckee and the North Shore, Jeremy Jacobson helps buyers compare lifestyle fit, ownership details, and long-term value with clear, local guidance.
Stay up to date on the latest real estate trends.
Etiam non quam lacus suspendisse faucibus interdum. Orci ac auctor augue mauris augue neque. Bibendum at varius vel pharetra. Viverra orci sagittis eu volutpat.