By Julie Horner
While many of us were reveling in the music and magic at the annual Redwood Mountain Faire at Roaring Camp on Sunday June 5, 2016, the much-loved Trout Farm Inn suffered a devastating fire just two miles away. The fire started in the vent above the kitchen’s grill while lunch was fully underway. Cooks, wait staff, diners, and families in the pool safely evacuated and watched from across the street as responders from Zayante, Ben Lomond, Felton and Scotts Valley fire departments arrived to battle the blaze. The building could not be saved, though the pool remained, an azure jewel, unscathed. Still reeling from the loss by fire of the Boulder Creek Brewery a year prior, the tight-knit mountain communities of San Lorenzo Valley mourned the loss of yet another precious local landmark and social hub.
The original bar and gaming room was built across Zayante Creek on land that once housed a trout hatchery. Records show that the establishment was active from the early 1900s on. In Ed Jasmin’s online archive, The History of the Trout Farm Inn, he writes, “In 1942 the bar was moved to its current location and Bill Fischer and his mother purchased it in 1946 from Austin and Jackie Berry. In 1955 he began a small dining room where one could get a steak, trout or chicken dinner for $1.95 while ‘Ma’ Fischer managed the trout ponds. The lounge was later extended in 1956 and 1958. The Trout Farm in the 40’s and 50’s served as an Inn providing overnight accommodations located where the swimming pool now lies.”
The cabins were moved to locations along the creek as permanent residences so that the pool could be modernized to accommodate growing numbers of tourists. “Several owners followed Bill and his partner Bob. In early 2005, the stewardship of this landmark passed to Penny Siler and John Heibel.” The McGuires took ownership of the Trout Farm Inn in 2012 offering a full bar and restaurant, popular live music performance space, and of course, the inviting family pool.
Now Caye Properties, owners of the Felton property where the Trout Farm once stood, have secured county permits and are rebuilding this fabled gathering place. All had faith that the phoenix would rise. Stay tuned!
back in the day this place was really jumping, families would go on the weekends and Bill the owner would cook the great butterfly prawns! He hired Shirley Woodcock to serve as the hostess in the bar. She was our neighbor and always wore full makeup and higheeled springalater shoes! Great place, everyone went there to socialize!