Embrace Rain! Winter Adventures on the North Coast

Change does not come easy for me. But when my kids were 3 and 10, I spontaneously uprooted them and moved from San Francisco, where I had lived for twenty years, to Fort Bragg, a remote coastal town on the north coast of California. We’d visited a handful of times since my parents moved there a few years prior. The quiet, the natural beauty, the friendly locals, and the slow pace all acted like a drug on us when we’d leave our harried urban lives and spend the weekend with them. But Sunday would eventually come and we’d head back to the city, our car snaking along the Redwood forest floor, the trees taunting us with their beauty and wisdom. Three hours later we’d be looking for parking in my SF neighborhood, where the sickly tree I’d planted on the sidewalk out front of our house was the only natural beauty on the street. Painted ladies notwithstanding, my beloved city lacked the color green.

We moved in the Fall, and by the Spring of the following year I’d had my first taste of SAD: seasonal affective disorder. It rained FOUR times as much on the coast as it did in the Bay Area, something I didn’t think was possible. I still subscribed to the San Francisco Chronicle then and I will never forget the front page on March 31, 2006: above the masthead they’d reprinted a calendar for March with the rainy weather symbol on every single day for the entire month. I was homesick for SF, kicking myself for leaving a place where you could easily entertain two little kids indoors at any number of discovery centers or art museums. When I asked other parents here what they did when it rained, their reply, “we go the library and we stay home and play games” made my heart sink. I was not the most patient game player. And thank god for libraries, but with all the cutbacks in their funding, ours was not open much. Not to mention young children in quiet places has a very short expiration time.

Thankfully a good friend advised me the homesickness would wear off by year three, and he was right. After 14 years, I’m still here, and I’ve learned a few things about what to do in winter, which I am happy to pass along to stir crazy visitors.

First a few pieces of advice. Our fancy apps are convenient for forecasting storms, but as often as not we’ll get a drizzle rather than the predicted downpour. That doesn’t mean you shouldn’t prepare accordingly: check road conditions, pack rain gear, good shoes/boots and spare clothes, bring games and books! But don’t let the forecast dictate your fun, embrace the rain and discover a new kind of fun.

• Head to the redwoods. Unless the rain is torrential, the redwood canopy is high and dense so getting out on one of the hiking trails won’t be too wet and will reveal the magnificence of the forest in the rain: water droplets acting like magnifying glasses on rich green foliage, the sounds of rain falling or water rushing in the creeks is hypnotic, and the fresh smell of the soil decomposing and nourishing life all around, will engage all your senses.
• Puddle jump. Our trails and dirt roads become small swimming pools especially appealing to young ones. Let kids splash to their hearts’ content, then bundle them up and take them somewhere for hot chocolate.
• Coastal walk with umbrellas. Discover the winter gardens in the stunning Mendocino Botanical Gardens (they have umbrellas for you!) and if you pack a thermos and a snack there is a warming hut out on the bluffs which will give you a chance to sit and dry out, while watching the surf through the glass window. Fort Bragg’s Coastal Trail is paved so less prone to puddles, making a great option for rainy walk
• Learn something. The Noyo Centerfor Marine Science is a great place to spend a rainy afternoon learning about coastal marine life. Checkout the amazing marine mammal specimens, including an Orca skeleton, plus a 3D dome that streams footage from under the water. The GuestHouse Museum is great for local history, and you can spend hours pouring over art from every corner of the earth in the Triangle Tattoo Museum.
• Watch the surf from your car–we have plenty of pullouts along our coastal roads: they are a great way to watch big waves pound the coastline during a storm. In Fort Bragg, grab a coffee and head to the south parking lot on the Coastal Trail. In Mendocino, Heeser Drive offers plenty of pullouts. And Hwy 1 offers many a scenic overlook. Look for whales if the sea is not too rough.
• Dine or Drink with Delightful Views. Many restaurants along the coast give you a front row seat to nature’s show, while you stay warm, dry, and fed. The Noyo Harbor in Fort Bragg sits along a river full of cavorting seals (my favorites place to eat: breakfast at the Noyo Harbor Inn and lunch at Silver’s at the Wharf). In Mendocino, you can’t beat the view at Flow, perched on the second floor overlooking the bay, accessed by walking up through an old water tower. Venture up toward Westport and have a drink or tea at the Old Abalone Pub.
• Swim or exercise. There’s something for everyone and the world-class CV Starr Center: an indoor aquatic center with a water-slide and large recreational pool, a lap pool, a gym, and all types of exercise classes.
• Let the kids run. We don’t have many here, but when you have small kids that just want a place to run around under your supervision, these two placed were godsends for my kids. The Company Store in Fort Bragg has a few businesses inside (including the Mendocino CookieCompany, perfect for a hot beverage and a treat), but its large open space gives kids a great runway space. Just down the street the old Depot building which houses Laurel’s Deli also has a teeny mall with a half dozen businesses and old trains for admiring.