California's North Coast

° California Wines ° Marin ° Museums
° San Francisco (Sailing and Kayaking) ° The Giants
° Napa and Sonoma ° The Peninsula: Half Moon Bay
° Mendocino County ° Shasta County ° Yosemite National Park

Sea Ranch, Mendocino County, California

I had the pleasure of working with Castle & Cooke in San Francisco when they owned The Sea Ranch during its opening phases -- around 1964. Castle & Cooke offered me a job as Office Manager on site at Sea Ranch. With the exception of a few staff and roughly 350 people in Gualala to the north, there was no one there. I lived in demo houses and ocean-front condominums such as those below.

The condo was built along the cliffs staring directly at the Pacific's powerful waves coming straight at you. Amazing. And we HAD to ride the horses at noon to exercise them 'cause few guests or homeowners were there at the time.

The architects, Charles Moore, Joseph Esherick, William Turnbull and landscaper Lawrence Halprin won every award there was for that development.

Interesting to note that the designers were so caught up in aesthetics that they forgot to put closets in the bedrooms; and, if I remember correctly, the kitchen was sans kitchen drawers. When I called my boss, Joseph McClelland, to inform him of this lack of necessities, they came right over. I'm not sure they believed me until they tried to find closets and drawers and could not.

Other than that, it was stunning. Building guidelines were strict as to color, size of home, scales, plantings, etc. No fences were allowed; a herd of sheep grazed to control grass. Given that the land was originally a sheep ranch, the supply of grass-cutters was plentiful.

At the time, California's coast was only open to the public along 100 of its 1,300 miles. Because of restricted accesses to beaches, the Sea Ranch development offended every existing environmental group and a few new groups were created as a result. Opposition that led to changes in California law.

I could have purchased 3 acres ocean front for about $36,000, which is where the condominium above is located. That was a fortune at that time. If only . . .

Gualala

In the early 1960s, the only places with any type of development were Gualala, about 10 miles north of Sea Ranch, and Pt. Arena, 25 miles or so up the road. The towns were -- and still are -- extremely small so it was not an ideal place for a 20-something-year old from San Francisco. It is still a peaceful area that has changed little due to building restrictions placed by the California Coastal Commission. Some of the more exciting days during my stay at The Sea Ranch consisted of whale watching during the annual migrations from Alaska to Baja and back.

Gualala's name--given by the Pomo Indians who lived in the area until the 1800s--means "water coming down place." With a rich logging history, the town's main industry became tourism after logging declined in the 1960s. Several hotels and rentals pepper the main drag, but no serious threat to the view exists.

The town's 15,000-square-foot art center, Gualala Arts, is housed in a light-filled structure next to the Gualala River, was built with community-raised private funds. It showcases local artists' work and offers adult and children's classes--from music and theater to photography.

Northern California's Coastal Towns

If you're up that way and have the time, take a few days to visit other towns along that coastline, we suggest taking time for:

Little River enroute to Mendocino with tucked-away lodging, excellent restaurants, fern canyons and camping along the river. Van Damme State Park (three miles south of the town of Mendocino) is favored by abalone divers. The Pgymy Forest is in this area; due to poor soil fertility and wetness, mature cone-bearing cypress and pine trees grow six inches to eight feet tall. For whatever odd reason, with a group of a dozen friends from San Francisco by way of Chicago, Illinois. (They walked out of their college dorms during a blizzard with the goal of California sunshine. I don't think they ever returned East.) We camped in the Pgymy National Forest one New Year's. It didn't seem that camping there is legal, and I have no idea who chose the spot or why, but we treated the land lightly, had a great time, and I'll never forget that trip.

Mendocino is a small town built on a peninsula jutting into the Pacific surrounded on three sides by cliffs that plunge sharply into the ocean. It's a stroller's town full of charming restored Victorian buildings, art shops and small excellent restaurants. Mendocino County is also known for its range of grape varietals and wines that merge traditional farming traditions with cutting edge and old-world winemaking techniques. The county is one of California’s largest, and oldest wine making regions. Established in the late 1800’s, Mendocino reaches between Sonoma, Humboldt, and Lake Counties. The lineage of the county is rooted long and deep, resulting in an array of exceptional grapes and wines.

Fort Bragg's history includes whaling and lumber. During San Francisco's formative years during the mid-1800s came from California North Coast cities. Some of those stories are on The Maritime Heritage site.