Mendocino

Mendocino was founded in the 1850s on redwood logging, and many of the settlers came from New England, so they built what they knew: white clapboard, water towers, a Gothic Revival church, all on a headland over the Pacific. That resemblance is why the television series Murder, She Wrote used it as Cabot Cove, Maine, for twelve seasons. The whole village is a historic district. Mendocino Headlands State Park wraps around three sides with a bluff trail over sea caves and blowholes. Water is a real constraint - the town runs on shallow wells, and when they run dry water comes in by truck.

Highlights

• New England clapboard on a Pacific headland - built by transplants.
• Wooden water towers - a village signature.
• Headlands bluff trails - over sea caves and blowholes.
• The stand-in for coastal Maine - on screen for twelve seasons.

When to go

April to October; fog is heavy in summer. Half a day.

Good to know

It is a long drive from anywhere - four hours from San Francisco on a winding road. Summer fog can obscure the coast entirely. Lodging is expensive and limited. Water restrictions affect services in dry years.

Nearby

Russian Gulch and Van Damme state parks are either side; Fort Bragg is north.

Key facts