Sea Rock Inn

707-937-0926

11101 Lansing St, Mendocino

31 Mendocino Art Center

With the decline of the lumber industry, Mendocino fell on hard times. Then, in 1957, a local mansion that appeared in the James Dean movie East of Eden burned down, and Bill Zacha acquired the grounds with a small deposit. With the help of friends, other artists and townspeople, by 1959 he and his wife Jennie had established the Art Center there, utilizing the still-standing carriage house and outbuildings.

During the ensuing years, the history of the Art Center and Mendocino village became closely entwined. The Art Center grew and became the focal point of a thriving art colony that revitalized the nearly abandoned town. Mendocino, along with the Art Center, has since become a world-renowned haven for artists.

Today the Art Center’s facilities include studios and classrooms that offer over 200 retreat-style classes each year in a wide range of media, and its galleries present monthly exhibits spotlighting the work of local and national artists. The Center hosts popular annual events on its beautiful campus as well as artists’ receptions the second Saturday of each month, and concerts periodically. Its Members’ Gallery offers exquisite locally produced artwork for purchase.

WHERE: 45200 Little Lake St., Mendocino • MORE INFO: 707-937-5818

The Stanford Inn’s Catch A Canoe & Bicycles Too!

Established in 1972, Catch a Canoe & Bicycles, Too! is the Mendocino Coast’s only full-service outdoor shop, providing year-round rentals, sales and service of a wide selection of redwood outriggers, kayaks, canoes, SUP’s and bicycles. The Big River Cruise is a professionally guided tour and departs daily during the summer aboard the Mendoléa Voyaging Canoe. This unique group voyaging canoe is equipped with downwind sails and a solar electric drive for an effortless cruise up beautiful Big River Estuary—be alert for harbor seals, river otters, birds and more.

Redwood Outriggers are their specialty and are made locally from reclaimed old growth. Several configurations are available for one to seven persons, and the Canine Series is made specifically for dogs and their humans. All outriggers are designed in house at Catch a Canoe and are ultra-stable, narrow and efficient, with foot rudder control for easy steering.

For those who prefer bicycles, the 8-mile-long Big River Trail is a close and easy ride. Catch a Canoe designs and distributes the definitive mountain bike trail map for this area, which can be used to explore the myriad of awesome trails in and around Mendocino.

Catch A Canoe & Bicycles Too! is open year-round, daily from 9am to 5 pm WHERE: 1 S. Big River Rd., Mendocino, on the grounds of The Stanford Inn by the Sea. MORE INFO: 707-937-0273, CatchACanoe.com, canoe@mcn.org

33Jug Handle Ecological Staircase

It is likely that you will never experience anything else quite like the Jug Handle State Natural Reserve’s Ecological Staircase. The “staircase” is a land formation that stretches for 2.5 miles over five wave-cut terraces formed by glacier, sea and tectonic activity. Starting in the inter-tidal zone, it ascends through a series of areas that include prairie, pine forest and even a unique pygmy forest with knee-high trees. The nonprofit Jug Handle Creek Farm and Nature Center acts as a private gateway to the area, and offers environmental education programs that are packed with fun and entertaining activities. The Farm also offers hostel-style accommodations in an 1870s-era Victorian farmhouse as well as cabins and camping. An educational brochure is available to explain the changing environments as you travel the 5-mile trail up the slope.

WHERE: In Caspar, located halfway between Fort Bragg and Mendocino on Hwy 1.

MORE INFO: 707-937-5804, www.parks. ca.gov/?page_id=441

Jug Handle Creek Farm and Nature Center, 707-964-4630, JugHandleCreekFarm.org

34 Point Cabrillo Light Station State Historic Park

Construction of the Point Cabrillo Light Station began in 1908, and its lens, a British-build 3rd order Fresnel lens, was illuminated for the first time in June of 1909. The station operated under the U.S. Lighthouse Service and then the Coast Guard before being acquired by the California State Coastal Conservancy in 1991.

Today the light station and its grounds, along with 270 acres of undeveloped coastal bluffs and prairie, are part of the California State Parks system. The light station has been completely restored, and the Fresnel lens, which was decommissioned in 1973, has been refurbished and remounted. Two of the beautiful lightkeeper’s houses and their auxiliary buildings are now vacation rentals for people visiting the Mendocino coastline. They are cozy and intimate, with ocean and headlands vistas all around. The third house is a museum, set up as the lightkeepers would have had it in the early 1900s.

The Point Cabrillo wildlife area has some of the most beautiful scenery on the West Coast. Deer roam the headlands, harbor seals play in the coves, black oystercatchers grace the rocky shorelines, while songbirds, squirrels, weasels and rabbits frolic along our bluffs. During the whale migration season you may even see some of the estimated 18,000 gray whales that migrate from Mexico to Alaska every spring.

Inside the lighthouse and fog signal building is a gift shop and museum. In 2023, the light station was damaged in an extreme winter storm. At press time, the repairs are beginning. Please check their website to check Park and Gift Shop hours. The gift shop is staffed by volunteer docents. The park is open from Sunrise to Sunset. Donations to help the recovery effort can be made on their website.

WHERE: Midway between Mendocino and Fort Bragg, off Hwy 1 on Point Cabrillo Drive, follow signs.

MORE INFO: 707-937-6123, PointCabrillo.org

35 Mendocino Headlands State Park

When visiting the town of Mendocino, take some time to see Mendocino Headlands State Park. The park surrounds the town on three sides with delightful expanses of land perched atop stunning bluffs. From there you can enjoy whale-watching in the winter, wildflowers in the spring, nesting seabirds in the summer and vivid color throughout autumn. Three miles of trails wind along the cliffs, surprising the casual explorer with spectacular views of sea arches and hidden grottos. The park has a beach that is accessible from Hwy 1 or by trails down the bluffs, and offers excellent fishing and scuba diving opportunities.

The park has been in operation since 1974. The town’s south headlands, facing Main Street, remained in timber company ownership until 1972. The threat of development there spurred resident artist Emmy Lou Packard to start a movement in 1969 that led to the inclusion of the south headlands in the State Park. An outgrowth of this effort was the listing of Mendocino on the National Register of Historic Places in 1971, an essential step toward protecting Mendocino’s 19th-century flavor. Now the parkland provides Mendocino with a buffer zone that helps preserve the town’s historical presence, while providing a scenic backdrop of breathtaking beauty. Admission is free. Day use only.

WHERE: Surrounds the town of Mendocino on three sides. MORE INFO: 707-937-5804, www.parks. ca.gov/?page_id=442

Originally established as a military garrison overseeing the Mendocino Indian Reservation in 1857, by 1869 small lumber mills and ranches had become the area’s dominant features. The San Francisco earthquake of 1906, which leveled much of Fort Bragg, also brought prosperity to the town in its wake, as its mills provided much of the lumber used to rebuild San Francisco. Today, Fort Bragg is the largest city on the Mendocino Coast. Much of Fort Bragg’s history can be viewed at the Guest House Museum, located on the corner of Main (Hwy 1) and Laurel Streets. Built for the Fort

things to D o

• E xcellent restaurants, lodging, retail stores, antique shops

• B eaches are nearby for beachcombing, picnicking and surf fishing

• E xplore Noyo Harbor and Noyo Headlands Park

• K ayak, paddleboard, charter a boat for whale-watching or fishing, or both

• Diving, snorkeling, spearfishing

• H orseback Riding — Ricochet Ridge Ranch, Horse-Vacation.com

• M acKerricher State Park — numerous campsites and day use areas including a raised wooden walkway that leads to a seal observation point overlooking a secluded cove. The walkway is wheelchair accessible. The park also features a small lake and miles of unspoiled coastline. Great tide pools.

• T he Skunk Train — takes passengers on a scenic tour of the redwood forests east of Fort Bragg along the Noyo River, Railbike Excursions are also offered

• M endocino Coast Botanical Gardens — 2 miles south of the center of Fort Bragg, contains 47 acres of flowers, trees and shrubs with winding trails throughout.

• C .V. Starr Community Center — swimming pool, Skate Park and more, 300 S. Lincoln St.

Bragg Redwood Company in the 19th Century, the building later became the Union Lumber Company guest house and now houses artifacts, photos and exhibits from the town’s early days.

Noyo Harbor, on the south end of town, is a working port with a commercial fishing fleet, charter boats, fish markets and processing plants, as well as several seafood restaurants. The harbor is also a haven for local seals and sea lions.

E v E nts & FE stivals

MORE INFO: FortBragg.com, Mendocino.com/eventfestival.html

• Symphony Orchestra concerts, Symphony of the Redwoods, 707-964-0898, SymphonyOfTheRedwoods.org

• January: Crab Feast Mendocino, various locations, VisitMendocino.com

• M ay: Annual Rhododendron Show, Mendocino Coast Botanical Gardens, GardenByTheSea.org

• J une: Fort Bragg Quilt Show,OceanWaveQuilters.com

• J uly: World’s Largest Salmon BBQ, SalmonRestoration.org; 4th of July Fireworks

• A ugust: Art in the Gardens, Mendocino Coast Botanical Gardens, GardenByTheSea.org; Fort Bragg Shoreline Riders Rodeo, ShorelineRiders.com

• S eptember: Paul Bunyan Days, PaulBunyanDays.com; Winesong Wine and Food Tasting and Charity Auction, Winesong.org

• N ovember to December: Festival of Lights, Mendocino Coast Botanical Gardens, GardenByTheSea.org

• December: Holiday Lights Parade, NorCoastRodders.com/events.html

RESTAURANT & SPORTS LOUNGE

Fresh Seafood

Steaks & Chops

Seasonal Creations

Magnificent Views

Relaxing Atmosphere

Free Wi-Fi

Full Bar, Beer, Wine Banquets and Parties

LUNCH EVERY DAY 11am-3:30pm

DINNER Sun-Thurs. 4pm-8:30pm

DINNER Fri./Sat. 4pm-9:30pm

(Hours may vary seasonally)

Reservations: 707.964.4283 thewharf@mcn.org