Since we moved to California 3 years ago we traveled to Mendocino Coast twice already, both times on long weekends. My other post, Mendocino Coast family road trip itinerary – Part II, provides a totally different itinerary and you can use Part I and Part II as two separate events or combine them into 1 longer trip. There is no repetition of stops between the two road trip itineraries so they fully complement each other.
We traveled to this part of California twice in such a short period of time because Mendocino coast is wonderfully picturesque and there is so many things to do in Mendocino. There are two main routes that you can take from SF Bay Area: via HW 1 and HW 101. We did both and each of the two trips highlights one of the routes.
This specific itinerary is perfect for a period between Memorial Day and Labor Day weekends because some of the activities are only available in summer.
Mendocino Coast road trip Day 1
We started our trip early in the morning on HW 101 with a goal of arrival in Ukiah at around lunch time because this town is a home of a very unique attraction called City of Ten Thousand Buddhas. It is a spacious Buddhist monastery where you can walk around and enjoy beautiful temples and 10,000 Buddha statues but the star attraction is a lunch to die for…
The monastery runs a canteen where food is prepared by monks on a daily basis using the yummiest Chinese vegetarian recipes I have ever tried in my life. The eggplant alone is absolutely scrumptious. The dishes are very reasonably priced but be aware that they only accept cash here. The canteen has a limited sitting capacity so it can become completely full very quickly during lunch so you may have to wait some time for a table but trust me, the wait is so worth it.
After lunch we took a turn westwards to the Mendocino Coast where we had an afternoon kayaking tour scheduled on the Noyo River. You do not need to have any prior kayaking experience to enjoy the tour. Everybody is seated in a 2-person kayak so that younger kids can ride with an adult and really young ones don’t even have to paddle, they can just sit up-front and enjoy the journey.
Noyo River is perfect for beginners because it is rather shallow with a very gentle flow so you won’t have to struggle peddling up the river. It is very calm, very safe (everybody is given a life vest) and immensely beautiful. We chose a “Noyo Meander” 1,5 hour tour with Liquid Fusion Kayaking (available only between Memorial and Labor Day weekends). This should definitely be at the top of your list of things to do in Mendocino County.
Do not forget your high powered binocular
to take with you on this tour – you will see a lot of wildlife, both in the air and in the water. For more resources that might be helpful on this trip, please, check my Travel Resources page (a book about tide pools will come handy on Day 3).
Mendocino Coast road trip Day 2
We decided to start our day with a train excursion. Skunk Train is one of the most highly debated attractions along the Mendocino Coast. Some people love it, others hate it and I feel that I have to put my 5 cents in on the matter. The main 2 reasons why people give it low reviews because for a 1-hour 7-mile train ride you pay a considerable amount of money ($25 for adults and $10 for kids) and the view may turn out to be non-existent, that is if you sit on the wrong side of the train car.
Here is how you can mediate these concerns. For the view, sit on the left hand side of the car when facing the locomotive at the top of train – you will have some nice views of the creek and a redwood forest; for the price, please, bear in mind that your ticket also includes a visit to a model railroad museum located just behind the train station. So if you add these two together and if you have train fanatics in your family you are actually getting not a bad deal. My kids loved both the ride and the museum and so I am one happy mom.
After lunch we headed to the Mendocino Coast Botanical Gardens. It is not big, totally doable in 1,5-2 hours which is great for a family with kids. There are many beautiful flower displays in Mendocino Coast Botanical Gardens as well as nice hiking trails leading to the ocean.
Finally at the end of the day we had just enough time to visit 1 winery in the area. Mendocino Coast may not be as famous as Sonoma and Napa in terms of wine making but real wine enthusiasts know that it has a lot of good wineries with inexpensive tastings. If you think that may be wine and kids do not mix or you are not too comfortable about wine tasting yet, please, do yourself a favor and read my earlier post about basics of wine tasting. It will give you simple tools you need to learn about wine and make this whole experience very enjoyable.
For this trip we chose Pacific Star Winery. In all honesty the main criteria for the selection of this particular winery was its location – the most picturesque spot on the Mendocino Coast. It has a phenomenal surf break right off the cliffs on top of which the winery is located and you can just sit there and enjoy this violent and mesmerizing force of nature. And the wine tasting deal is great too – just $5 for 6 pretty good wines.
Mendocino Coast road trip Day 3
In the morning we decided to visit the famous Glass Beach along the Mendocino Coast. Word of caution: the parking lot can be crowded and in the end it may not turn out to be what you expect. The beautiful sparkling beach is a story from the past. Thousands of people visited the beach before you and collected a lot of glass samples (which is not allowed, but people do it anyway). So you have to keep your expectations low. Yes, we saw glass pieces all over the beach but not in the quantities to make it look like a mosaic floor. What we enjoyed most here, which we did not expect and didn’t plan for, is tide pools. Out timing was lucky as we came in at low tide, so we spent most of the time hunting for sea creatures in the pools, not the glass. Either way it is a place worth stopping by and it is absolutely FREE.
After the Glass Beach we headed in the direction of home but we had 1 more stop before our final destination. We love to visit Sonoma county whenever we can. Most people associate Sonoma with wine but this region is actually quite famous for its cheese making industry. One of our favorite places is Petaluma Creamery in the town of Petaluma. Here you can grab a tasty sandwich for lunch, do some free cheese tasting and then have a scoop of their homemade ice cream for desert (lavender is my favorite).
Mendocino Coast road trip additional tips:
- For lodging in Mendocino Coast we used The Beach House Inn in Fort Bragg. It is reasonably priced with FREE breakfast with a nice location right across from the ocean.
2. For a great wine tasting card to take with you for tasting (wineries don’t usually provide any), please, visit my SHOP page. I have designed this handy card so that it is easy to use for both experienced wine lovers and beginners alike. You will receive a PDF file which you may re-use as many times as you like.
All in all it was a great trip full of exciting adventures. If you found this family friendly Mendocino Coast road trip itinerary useful, please do me a little favor and share this trip with others, for there’s a good chance that it will help them with their travel plans. 🙂
