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The Mendocino Coast is one of Northern California’s most soulful landscapes, shaped by dramatic cliffs, Pacific fog, and ancient redwoods that tower like living monuments. I traveled here in search of a reset, a chance to slow down and reconnect with nature in a place where time stretches, and the land reveals its stories in subtle, powerful ways.
My journey led me to The Inn at Newport Ranch, a 2,000-acre preserve where wild coastline, forest, and history converge in a rare retreat designed for quiet presence and deep appreciation of the natural world.
Arriving on the Northern California Coast
I flew into San Francisco and began the two and a half hour drive north, a journey that becomes an initiation into the region’s rugged beauty. Highway 128 winds through vineyards, orchards, and pastures before opening onto the Pacific. Fogbanks drift across the road as ghostly curtains and redwoods rise in cathedral-like formations. By the time I reached Mendocino County, the modern world felt far away.
This is a place shaped by its past. Once home to bustling logging towns, Mendocino County supplied San Francisco with firewood during its boom years. Today, those timber settlements have faded into the landscape, and tourism, winemaking, and cannabis farming support the region. But the connection to the land remains fierce. Locals speak about their home with pride, reverence, and a sense of guardianship.
Perched above the ocean, The Inn at Newport Ranch reflects that same devotion. Built on the site of a former logging property, the inn is the vision of Will Jackson, who discovered the land through a classified ad in the mid-1980s. What began as a single parcel grew into a large, protected coastal preserve and a ten-room retreat shaped by history, nature, and a love of spectacular views.
Exploring the Land on a UTV Tour
To understand the property’s scale, I joined a UTV tour with my guide, Otis, a lifelong resident whose knowledge of the land runs generations deep. He introduced me to the area’s past as we rode along cliffs, fields and forest trails.
We began at the site of Newport, a Victorian-era logging town that thrived from 1860 to 1900. At its peak, more than 2,000 people lived here, making it one of the earliest and largest communities on California’s Lost Coast. Today, only fragments remain, including a Monterey cypress tree near the lodge that has grown into the inn’s iconic symbol.
As we continued toward Council Bluffs, the coastline opened into sweeping views. Offshore, a massive rock known as Kibesillah rose from the water. It shares its name with another long-gone logging community nearby.
While walking along the bluff, Otis noticed something in the soil. A carved projectile point emerged from the earth, evidence of the Yuki Indians who once inhabited this region.
“If you have a sharp eye, you might find an arrowhead or artifact here,” he explained. “This one is thousands of years old. The stone isn’t native, so it was likely traded from the Eel River Canyon about 50 miles away. The Yuki were masters of trade.”
He shared the sobering story of the Yuki’s disappearance, one tied to the Gold Rush, forced labor, and the collapse of the reservation after Fort Bragg was abandoned during the Civil War. His voice carried both reverence and grief for a people whose presence lingers only through artifacts like the one we held.
Secret Beach and the Marine Life of the Mendocino Coast
Our next stop was aptly named Secret Beach, a secluded cove framed by rock formations and sea caves. The water glowed in shifting shades of turquoise and deep blue, clear enough to see the movement of kelp forests below. More than 150 species of marine algae thrive here, some harvested locally for food or natural skincare.
“My wife is an herbalist,” Otis told me. “She uses the light green seaweed up on the rocks. It’s rich in natural sunscreen compounds.”
The cove is ideal for kayaking, offering gentle water, arches to paddle beneath and passages that open to the north and south. Standing there, surrounded by sandstone cliffs shaped by erosion, I felt the raw energy of the Mendocino Coast. This stretch of shoreline is also a whale-watching corridor, especially in November and February when thousands of whales migrate past, sometimes close enough for locals to identify them by the scent of their breath carried on the wind.
Life on a Working Cattle Ranch
The Inn sits on a working ranch with 300 grass-fed cattle, including Black Angus bulls. Spring rainfall can reach up to 60 inches, turning the land into lush meadows of emerald grass. I had been charmed by the sound of cowbells each morning until Otis shared the truth behind them.
“A belled cow is a bad cow,” he laughed. “Those are the ones who wander into the woods instead of staying in the grasslands. When we catch them, we bell them.”
The ranch leads directly into redwood forest, where the trees grow in circular clusters known locally as fairy rings. These rings form when new shoots sprout from the roots of a felled tree, creating genetically identical sister trees.
“Redwoods grow so readily here,” Otis said. “Even a piece of firewood left on the forest floor can sprout roots.”
The fog is their lifeblood. A single redwood can absorb up to 500 gallons of water a day from fog, much of which drips to the forest floor and replenishes the ecosystem.
We stopped at a massive stump with two springboards still embedded in the wood, remnants of the lumberjacks who cut the tree down around 1900. Otis walked me through the intricate method of felling redwoods in the era of double-bit axes, crosscut saws, and wooden wedges.
Standing beside the stump, I could almost hear the echoes of the men who worked here more than a century ago, shaping the region’s economy and landscape.
To honor the forest’s resilience, I planted a young redwood sapling. In twenty years, it will likely match its towering neighbors.
Rare Wildflowers and Bluff-Top Views
The property is home to rare plant species, including Clarkia whitneyi, known as “farewell to spring.” This delicate wildflower blooms on the ridgetops in the summer and exists only in a few small populations on the property.
“There are four little groups left,” Otis said. “We protect them and help them keep growing on this mountain.”
Before returning to the inn, we paused at a high bluff overlooking the Pacific. It was a moment of pure stillness, a place where the land’s scale and beauty felt almost overwhelming.
Inside the Organic Garden
Next, I visited the garden tended by Felicia, Otis’s wife, who grows ingredients used in the inn’s farm-to-table dishes. The coastal climate produces leafy greens year-round, and her beds overflow with lettuces, radicchio, chicories, kale, and edible flowers.
“The ocean is like a desert for bees,” she explained. “So I plant flowers to bring them in. The bumblebees love it here.”
Guests are encouraged to wander the garden’s winding paths, designed intentionally to slow one’s pace, and even sample greens for a room-made salad. Benches tucked among the beds invite visitors to sit and watch the bees at work.
A Landscape Designed for Quiet Encounters with Nature
Walking the property, I noticed how many places invited reflection. Steps lead down to cliff edges for intimate views of the ocean. Benches sit at scenic overlooks, placed not as decoration but as invitations to pause and breathe.
Every element reflects the stewardship of owner Will Jackson, a man who fell in love with this land decades ago. I met with General Manager Blair Foster to learn more about his vision.
“He collects views,” Blair told me. “While others collect art or wine, he collects land that speaks to him. He knows every nook and cranny.”
Jackson acquired his first parcel in 1984 and expanded over time, restoring the land and designing the inn to honor its history. Many architectural features are crafted from fallen redwoods and repurposed materials sourced on-site or from within Mendocino County.
“Everything we do reflects the bounty of the region,” Blair said. “The rock, the timber, the layout, all of it is tied to this place.”
The Restorative Spirit of Newport Ranch
My time at The Inn at Newport Ranch reminded me of the healing power of nature. The land pulses with vitality, yet soothes in equal measure. It is a place that invites presence, reflection, and gratitude.
I left feeling renewed, inspired by the people who steward it and by the landscape that holds so many layers of history.
The Meaning of the Mendocino Coast
The Mendocino Coast teaches a quiet truth. When land is cared for with intention, it becomes more than scenery. It becomes a sanctuary. At Newport Ranch, the past is honored, the present is cherished and every trail, cliff and grove encourages you to be fully alive to the moment. It is a retreat shaped not by luxury alone, but by reverence for nature and the desire to share its beauty with others.
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