La costa di Mendocino è il paradiso degli haute hippie

Have you ever wanted to experience a truly magical weekend? A weekend where you feel like you’re literally living in a fairytale? A weekend where you experience not just luxury, but raw beauty. Not just romance, but genuine adventure. Not just an escape, but a transformational awakening. Then look no further than Mendocino, a secret bohemian getaway nestled between the rugged cliffside coast and the imposing, yet inviting, redwood forests of Northern California.

I was recently whisked away to Mendocino, described by the New York Times as the #1 place to visit in North America. During my trip, I discovered some hidden treasures that you simply must experience for yourself. The mysterious forests, roadside 50-foot sandstone cliffs, and a rustic aroma will make you feel as though nature itself conspired with the angels so that, at least for a moment, you could feel an uncorrupted kind of love for this area.

In fact, as you drive up Highway 1, along the California coast, from San Francisco to Mendocino, you’ll start to feel as though you’re leaving America and entering New Zealand. The natural beauty is shocking.

Whether you’re an indoor glamorpuss or an outdoor she-explorer, the dreamy subtropical county of Mendocino has something for you. Here are but six reasons you should visit the whimsical locale home to James Dean’s “East of Eden” and Angela Lansbury’s “Murder, She Wrote”:

The Inn at the Newport Ranch

With panoramic ocean views, the recently completed Inn at the Newport Ranch was named one of ‘America’s Best New Hotels’ by Conde Nast Traveler. But it didn’t achieve this distinction by being like any of the other ultra-luxe vacation properties; it achieved this distinction by being uniquely unlike them.

The first thing I noticed when I arrived at this gracefully austere abode after driving up the one-way country roads was that the hotel is literally a ranch built above a spectacular ocean cliff, completely secluded on 2000 private acres. I mean — WOW! Here’s a quick video I made of The Inn at Newport Ranch, to give you a fuller picture:

Once I put dropped jaw back, I wandered through the freshly cut grass which faintly smelled like light perfume. There was just so much natural green everywhere, I felt like I was a minor character in a John Steinbeck novel. I proceeded to go inside the main ranch house, which looks like a custom-designed dream house, made especially for the modern urban girl looking for a different kind of vacay.

Once I ventured further, it was obvious that designers had artisanally handcrafted exotic hardwoods –mahogany, cherrywood, ripple sycamore, red cedar– to create not only a breathtaking interior aesthetic, but a functional confab to emphasize that you are truly “adventure lodging.” The obsessive attention to detail in this intimate residence –which is quite literally like a luxury bed and breakfast– is evident in every aspect of The Inn at Newport Ranch, from the first floor living room, to the rustic library, to the elevated hot tub and its spectacular views. As I found out, nearly everything used in the construction, and every piece of furniture was sourced sustainably and locally, to support the community.

But it gets better.

When we checked into our suite –appropriately named “The Grove”– there were massive, ancient redwood trees everywhere. Inside! Ascending from floor to ceiling. In the organic-posh living and dining room, and near the cozy fireplace, redwood trees function as both support beams and works of pristine art. The headboards are also made from fallen redwoods, and each room has a stunning ocean view.

Is this for real? I pinched myself.

This is what our two-bedroom suite (The Grove Suite) looked like:

In our suite, the only thing that interrupted the power and presence of the redwoods, was the equally eye-catching view of the Pacific Ocean seen through the 25-foot-high floor-to-ceiling windows, leading to the outdoor grill and private hot tub (from which we watched the water glisten as the sun set).

That evening we enjoyed chatting with the other guests (one couple had met on Tinder and were planning to host their wedding there!) during their daily 6-7pm beer, wine and snacks hour, held in the stocked ‘guest kitchen’ in the main lodge:

Many who stay at The Inn at Newport Ranch opt to buy fresh seafood at the nearby Noyo Harbor (which is the largest fishing port in Northern California, with 175 fishing boats), and cook in their suite’s fully-stocked kitchen, or BBQ on their deck. Instead, we decided to see what vegan meals they could whip up for us in the main lodge (a delicious tempeh and veggies dish with a homecooked feel), and meet some more of the other guests.

The next day we had a delicious and fresh home-cooked breakfast (with many of the ingredients coming from their own organic gardens) and chatted with our new friends. The 34′ locally-custom-made longboard table was outfitted with fresh lavender and denim cloth napkins. All meals are at a communal table (unless you want to cook in your suite), which I loved.

The owner was there, telling stories about his Wall Street days in NYC in the 80’s, and enlightening us about the history of the Inn and Mendocino county. We were pleased to hear that the Inn will soon be getting their chicken coop, so that guests will be able to enjoy fresh eggs from happy hens instead of carton eggs from unhappy hens. I learned that all the logs used in the making of the hotel were from fallen or terminal trees salvaged from the surrounding 2000 acres, and that every effort has been made to be as eco-friendly as possible. Will Jackson, the owner, is as well-read as I am about plant’s feelings and intelligence. That’s why he didn’t clear a single healthy tree. My kind of place!

That afternoon, we set out on an ATV tour of the property. It’s hard to explain what the 2000-acre property looks like without actually being there. It was so lush, and so diverse, that it made me feel like I was in the original Jurassic World movie, and a raptor was about to pop out at any moment. The property has an 18th century graveyard on it, along with many streams and winding ATV or horseback riding pathways. As much as I loved the ATV trip, I think next time I’m going to do the route by horseback so I can see more animals and hear more of the life in the forest (ATVs are so loud!).

Here are a few more attractions that can’t be missed, all within a quick, beautiful drive from The Inn at Newport Ranch:

Dinner at Ravens Restaurant

On day two, after I settled in and finished hugging the trees (hey, I live in New York City and climate change is real, so don’t judge me for being a tree hugger–you know you are too), Mike and I peel ourselves away for dinner. I had heard of a great little restaurant over at the Stanford Inn, a gorgeous eco-resort that uses the energy of Mendocino’s native habitat to provide cleansing and healing food, treatments, and rest, to over-worked urban souls and a litany of artists who would love to call it home.

As we arrived, we were greeted by one the Stanford Inn’s founders, Jeff Stanford. (The Inn was co-founded by his Canadian wife, Joan Stanford, in 1988 on a $22k loan.) As he gave us a tour of their organic gardens and animal sanctuary, it started to sprinkle rain, and he stopped to pick up a stranded worm on the walkway, and gently placed in back in the grass (something I used to do as a child walking to school). We talked about meditation and health, and he told us about how they use potato chip oil as fuel for their trucks, and how their research garden is doing experiments with carbon, energy and calorie farming.

Inside the Inn, I browsed through their impressive collection of books before sitting down for wining and dining at Ravens, the Stanford Inn’s vegan eatery. And it did not disappoint.

The menu was sublime, with food and ingredients picked from Raven’s carefully curated on-site organic garden. Even if you’re not a vegan, the freshness of the produce and the serenity of the surroundings is enough to allure you into this meatless enclave.

It’s hard to pick a favorite dish, even though I tried about six! Definitely try the mouth-watering Portobello Sliders, served up with delicious grilled portobello mushrooms, house-made focaccia, pickled red onion, avocado, arugula, tomatoes, roasted fingerling potatoes, and pan-seared snap peas. OH – and the vegan sushi. So yum.

And let me not forget: the wine, stocked exclusively from Mendocino and named one of the best wines in the world. And their cocktails are some of the best I’ve ever tasted. Seriously. I choose The Canadian (obvi!) martini, which is made of honeysuckle, melon, kiwi, and caramel should be on every girl’s to-drink list. In fact, I convinced them to give me the recipe, so I could share it with you:

Ravens Canadian Martini

While you’re sipping on that, I’ll tell you about a few more amazing reasons to visit the area:

Essere tra gli alberi di sequoia

E a proposito di liste: dopo essermi ripreso dal mio pasto da nirvana, ho potuto mettere a segno un'altra esperienza imperdibile a Mendocino: perdermi facendo escursioni e andando in bicicletta sui sentieri e sulle valli misteriosamente nascoste tra una cattedrale di sequoie.

Mentre attraversavo la magica foresta di 2.000 anni piena di fiori di campo, eucalipti e querce della California, non potevo fare a meno di sentirmi di nuovo una ragazzina. Come la ragazza che una volta credeva nei film Disney. Come la ragazza che sentiva che gli animali – e la natura intorno a lei – potevano in qualche modo capirla e inconsciamente inviare dardi di tranquillità e amore alla sua anima. Non sentivo il bisogno di essere qualcosa: né una moglie, né un capo, né una giramondo; Avevo solo bisogno di essere me stesso, Hilary.

Ma l'escursionismo fuori dai sentieri battuti non è l'unica avventura che ho vissuto con i miei rossi incantati. Ho anche imparato che puoi prendere i famosi "Skunk Trains" a 5 stelle, treni restaurati dell'era della ricostruzione che ti trasportano attraverso estuari selvatici, salgono per spettacolari viste sull'oceano dalla cima delle montagne e scendono in canyon oscuri e proibiti dentro e fuori la foresta. . Se ciò non bastasse, il treno offre anche degustazioni di vino e birra, nonché attività sociali, così potrai vivere uno dei posti più belli della terra con un po' di divertimento liquido.

Oh, e se sei un amante degli animali, contatta Alloggio e Lama per un'escursione accompagnata dai lama e un picnic gourmet tra le sequoie. I lama trasporteranno il tuo carico e potrai camminare, fare escursioni e avventurarti al loro fianco. Il mio unico grande rammarico in questo viaggio è che non abbiamo potuto provarlo, poiché i proprietari erano fuori città durante il nostro soggiorno. È situato in una posizione comoda, a soli 10 minuti di auto dall'Inn at Newport Ranch, ma prenotate sicuramente in anticipo.

Ma non è tutto!…

Luoghi Turistici Lungo la Costa

Di solito non vado nei tipici scali turistici, ma questa zona offre alcune esperienze uniche sull'oceano che semplicemente non volevo perdermi. Come il Giardini botanici della costa di Mendocino, per esempio.

Mentre passeggi nel clima perfetto di 70 gradi con il vento che soffia dolcemente tra i tuoi capelli, puoi passeggiare tra i giardini sulla scogliera, dove vedrai farfalle dogface, bellissime piante grasse e un assortimento di piante e insetti originari della zona; andare in una riserva di api nella vita reale, dove le api vengono diligentemente protette; ed essere cantato da un minuscolo coro di tweet durante una normale passeggiata organizzata con gli uccelli. Il tutto mentre sei ancora sull'oceano, in un territorio privilegiato per l'osservazione delle balene.

Tuttavia, Mendocino migliora. Una delle tappe più famose della zona è Glass Beach, una spiaggia la cui "sabbia" è letteralmente composta da rocce di vetro colorate su cui puoi camminare e con cui giocare. La storia di come ciò sia avvenuto è lunga, ma basti dire che è un piacere speciale che non vorrai perderti. Anche se è illegale “prendere il vetro”, le rocce a volte finiscono per essere ricreate come gioielli intelligenti per chi è incline all'agricoltura biologica.

Puoi anche osservare le balene, giocare con le foche, andare in kayak e vivere numerose altre avventure di sport acquatici disponibili su richiesta nella zona.

Se vuoi passeggiare un po' più a sud, puoi anche salire in cima Faro di Point Arena- uno splendido ritorno al passato. Potresti dire: "un faro, Hilary?" Sì, un faro! Innanzitutto, quanti di noi sono mai stati in cima a un faro? Secondo, puoi nominare qualcuno che conosci che sia mai stato in cima a un faro?

Non ho niente da aggiungere.

Oltre alla pura novità e al diritto di vantarti, potrai vivere l'oceano da 150 piedi sopra il livello del mare e imparare come i capitani hanno navigato tra pericoli e naufragi per centinaia di anni. L'area è nota per la migrazione delle balene grigie e dei grandi squali bianchi, quindi tieni gli occhi aperti. Ci sono anche foche e cervi maculati dalla coda nera che si nutrono delle alghe sparse sulle rocce sottostanti. Puoi anche visitare il museo lì, andare nell'incantevole piccolo negozio di articoli da regalo e persino dormire la notte per vivere un'esperienza completamente coinvolgente, con Chenin Blanc e cioccolatini gratuiti forniti nella tua suite.

E a proposito di prodotti locali e deliziosi…

Degustazione di vini

E, naturalmente, nessun viaggio a Mendocino sarebbe completo senza visitare alcuni dei loro vigneti, cantine e cantine di fama mondiale. Che tu sia in una fuga romantica per due o in un fine settimana in cui non sono ammessi ragazzi con gli amici, le 90 aziende vinicole di Mendocino rendono possibile una giornata di dolci libagioni lungo la Route 128. Puoi sperimentare una cantina completamente guidata dal vento e indulgere in Gewürztraminer in stile alsaziano, il tutto senza spendere una fortuna. Il vino qui è così divino che molti vigneti di Napa e Sonoma acquistano le loro uve da Mendocino perché non sono “secondi a nessuno”.

Non vuoi avventurarti lontano da The Inn at Newport Ranch? Nessun problema: c'è un'azienda vinicola e una sala degustazione sulla scogliera, chiamata Pacific Star Winery, letteralmente a due minuti lungo la strada. Accomodati sorseggiando un petit syrah biodinamico e osserva le onde che si infrangono contro le scogliere.

Quindi ecco qua, signore, cinque ragioni divertenti, romantiche e rigeneranti per visitare la contea di Mendocino. Se hai voglia di perderti in splendide foreste, abbaglianti corsi d'acqua, sistemazioni mozzafiato, attività avventurose, nuove esperienze e delizie liquide, allora inserire questo moderno Giardino dell'Eden nella tua lista di cose da vedere è assolutamente essenziale.