Passed through there just over a week ago. Hit a sudden snowstorm on 395 just north of Burns, OR (there's a short detour around 395 through Burns, BTW--one of the locals said they had to 'cut a hole' in the road to drain water from recent excessive rains). My BJ8 was OK until the snow got an inch or two thick, then lost traction. Pretty scary trying to get her turned around on a blind corner on a narrow mountain road with deep ditches on either side. Anyway, it looked like that would have been a great Healey Road if it hadn't been snowing.
Alturas isn't particularly scenic. They have a rodeo or something there about this time of year so get hotel reservations. The worst hotel I ever had to stay at was in Alturas.