Kathy's Mendocino Cottages, Mendocino CA

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Information about Kathy's Mendocino Cottages...

The Myers family first came to Mendocino over 40 years ago when Kathy was a child. Her dad, Jim Myers, purchased the family home (100+ years old) which included the end of the block with frontages on three streets. The Barn (a small one by barn standards) was at the rear of the property with its back toward Little Lake Street. It was remodeled as a living space many years ago and has recently been completely redecorated as a guest cottage. With the exception of the bathroom, The Barn is one room (it's a barn).

In the images below, we've tried to convey the inviting warmth and tranquility that has served the Myers family so well for decades. But, to truly appreciate this special place, you'll probably need to stay here a few nights.

The kitchen area of The Barn is complete with plenty of storage, full-size refrigerator, stove, microwave, coffee maker, toaster, and the usual assortment of pots, pans and utinsels. If anything has been overlooked, just ask Kathy or her son John and they will do their best to supply it from the main house.

Light from the windows, skylights and vaulted ceilings during the day gives The Barn a bright and cheery feeling even in the winter. From the cooking area, windows to the left look out onto the gently rolling hills of the Mendocino Headlands State Park. The DVD/VCR player is also to the left of the kitchen. Movies may be easily viewed from the sitting or food preparation areas.

The view to the right is of the interior northwest corner of The Barn. Littlelake Street passes by The Barn, changes it's name to Heeser Drive one block away, and continues around Mendocino Headlands State Park for a little over a mile. If you are a birder, The Barn receives regular visits from ring tailed kites, white kites, marsh hawks, blue herons, osprey, Canada Geese, and, as it starts to get dark, bats and owls. In the spring and early summer, the window on the right looks out over a pond to the Pacific. The geese stop by the pond each day for lunch.

If you like to get out for a walk or hike, just step out your gate and you're on your way. You can either head north along the headlands for a mile to the Cypress Grove and Jack Peter's Creek, or head south past the bellows bouy, the blow hole (there are several), stop for a break at Point Beach, or, continue along the headlands trail to Big River Beach and Big River. You do not need a vehicle, but if you brought your bike, you can bike the same route.

From this corner of the barn, sunsets in the summer are truly spectacular. They make you realize what Mendocino is all about.

The sitting area is just off the hallway as you enter The Barn. In this view, the entry door is just a few steps down the hallway on the right. At the end of the hall is the bathroom with shower.

If you are a book reader looking for the perfect day, build a little fire in the woodstove which faces the sitting area, curl up in one of the big reading chairs, and read a little, doze a little. Open up the windows over the dining table and you'll have an unobstructed view of the Point Cabrillo Lighthouse a couple of miles away over the headlands and Russian Gulch Bay.

What a wonderful place to have breakfast. Start a small fire in the woodstove to take the morning chill off, whip up a little something in the kitchen, maybe a cup of tea or coffee, and the day is off to a great start. The window shutters were closed in this picture for photographic reasons. But the shutters-open view from the dining area is of the Mendocino Headlands and the Point Cabrillo lighthouse. The view is unobstructed. Russian Gulch State Park (one of the five State Parks within 10 miles of Mendocino) is to the right, east, as you look north from The Barn towards the Pt. Cabrillo Lighthouse.

At night, with the shutters open, the light from the Lighthouse slightly brightens the wall opposite the dining area windows with each light rotation even though it's about two miles distant. An especially nice way to wrap-up a perfect day.