Architects' Paradise - Sea Ranch -

I didn’t know well about Sea Ranch until my close friend from Utah sent me the pictures of her vacation she took with her parents. I have lived in the Bay Area for about 6 years now and I thought I have explored most of the places in NorCal. Sea Ranch was a hidden gem.

Sea Ranch is situated along the Pacific Coast, about 100 miles north of San Francisco, covering the 10 miles stretch of the Sonoma County coast line. The place is beautiful, scenic, and has this indescribable mystical feel.

The beauty of this place is preserved by the strict building code and well thought out urban planning. Architect and planner, Al Boeke, purchased the land in 60s and recruited American architects; Charles Moore, Joseph Esherick, and many more to build modern vernacular style houses, which were designed to unobstruct the natural landscape of Sea Ranch.

Today, many houses here have turned into vacation rentals. We rented this 684 feet MiniMod, originally designed by Esherick, on Airbnb. The cabin was recently renovated by the new owner, who is in a creative field.

MiniMod is filled with some iconic modern furniture (We suspected some of them were copies but I don’t blame for the purpose of renting the house.) and has a tiny but fully equipped kitchen. There’s an outside jacuzzi, where you can see the stars at night and mingle with wild racoons (We saw one on the night we arrived but we didn’t get to mingle...)

We enjoyed the hike along the coast, the beaches, and into the woods. Something about this place is so mystical and poetic. Uni especially got excited with the vast hay field, where she ended up getting two ticks from. We also visited the strange and whimsical nondenominational Sea Ranch Chapel.

After coming back from the adventure in the nature, we fired up the fireplace, made hot chocolate, and rested our mind, which has been over-stimulated from looking into the screens.

At night, we heard frogs, owls, and different kinds of mystery animals. I searched for cabin recipes before the trip. We cooked different dishes for all three days; beef stroganoff, meat pie, and cheese fondue, which all came out pretty well and tasty.

I think Northern California has three different types of nature; cold oceansides, dry mountainsides, and gloomy redwood forests. I felt Sea Ranch was something new and one of the rare places in the US, where you can enjoy simple modern architecture.

Greetings in Japanese

少し前に、この辺りではあまり知られていない、シーランチというサンフランシスコの北に位置する海沿いのリゾート地へいって参りました。なんとも不思議なおとぎ話のような場所です。

私たちは海沿いから少し離れた森林の中にある、小さくてモダンなキャビン、通称MiniModをAirbnbでレンタルし、３日間自給自足をしながらシーランチの大自然を楽しみました。

シーランチは、デザインと自然保護を中心に考えられたモダン建築の宝庫であり、デザインマニアにとってはうってつけの場所です。

朝にビーチをお散歩し、昼は暖炉とホットチョコレート、そして夜はカエルとフクロウの鳴き声を聞きながらのホットタブ。温泉はないけど、アメリカならではのコウジーなバケーションが楽しめます。詳しくは本文で。