It was a mission appointed with celestial redwoods and misty coastline, small-batch Pinots and big-value seafood, river canoeing, beach bluff hiking and quirky art hunting too.
It was also inspired by one of Santa Cruz’s cooler lodges, West Cliff Inn, where they’re masters of the bygone art of a real-deal bed and breakfast. That means a historic property, house-baked cookies, indulgent hors d’ oeuvres-wine hour and brekkie-to-your-door service.
Locally owned Four Sisters Inns, which owns and/or operates around 20 inns in unique destinations across California, wanted me to check out one of its sibling properties, which span from Sonoma Valley to Dana Point.
So, thanks to that and an invite from Visit Mendocino County, I was off to the JD House B-and-B in little Mendocino (population 707), where our stylish one-bedroom jacuzzi suite overlooked Mendocino Headlands State Park and the Pacific Ocean.
The trip unlocked too much wonder to explore in depth here. (Visit Mendocino has details there.) But there’s room enough to tap a few highlights among many.
Anderson Valley unlocks a small but mighty roster of world-class winemakers like Goldeneye, Husch and Navarro vineyards. Fresh cracked crab, oysters and Philly fish sandwiches star at spots like Princess Seafood in Noyo Harbor. Fort Bragg taps a wonderland of quirky shops, magnetic art studios and murals with outsize personality, and from there the Skunk Train rumbles off into the woods for exclusive views of the wilderness. A proliferation of adjacent state parks—Russian Gulch, Van Damme, Point Cabrillo Light Station—conjure pygmy forests, fern canyons, sea caves and canoe adventures up Big River where the harbor seals lounge on shore in the sun.
It’s the type of place that renews as it astounds (the B&B helps big there), where you feel a world away just several hours north, and you can pack in a lot of life without a lot of logistics.
For Four Sisters CEO Tamara Mims, that’s part of the point.
“Travel is being able to get away and explore,” she says. “California is so amazing with all the different and unique experiences it offers. There’s a lot of adventure in that.”
NOURISHING NEWS
Homeless Garden Project, the growers behind Santa Cruz County’s first community supported agriculture, is readying for its 2024 season May 17-October 18. Reminder: Purchasing a HGP CSA share supports its work employing, training and transitioning individuals experiencing homelessness into meaningful roles in the community. Meanwhile HGP’s annual Cesar Chavez Day of Service is coming up quick, 9:30am-2pm Saturday, March 30, with lunch provided and a presentation by Dr. Ann López, executive director of Center for Farmworker Families too, at the HGP Farm. homelessgardenproject.org
NIBBLE ME THIS
Pebble Beach Food & Wine hits April 4-7, with 25% off for the Tasting Pavilion event on Sunday, April 7, discount code LOCALS, pebblebeachfoodandwine.com…The schedule for Outstanding in the Field’s al fresco spectaculars is out, including June 1 at Everett Family Farm in Soquel with dinner by chef Santos Majano, outstandinginthefield.com…After a roller coaster ride that started in 2018, Alderwood executive chef Jeffrey Wall quit via Instagram this month to focus on private projects, chefjeffreywall.com…Yes, it’s true: San Francisco’s Dogue does pastries and “dogguccinos” during the week and a $75 three-course tasting menu on Sundays when it transforms into Bone Appetit Cafe. Woof.
a small but mighty roster of world-class winemakers like Goldeneye, Husch and Navarro vineyards. Fresh cracked crab, oysters and Philly fish sandwiches star at spots like Princess Seafood in Noyo Harbor. Fort Bragg taps a wonderland of quirky shops, magnetic art studios and murals with outsize personality, and from there the Skunk Train rumbles off into the woods for exclusive views of the wilderness. A proliferation of
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