it’s a dog’s life in elk, california

Majestic forest kind with antlers high,
Mighty strength belongs to you.
Fill my mind with common sense
To do the things that I must do.

http://www.greenwoodpierinn.com/

Greenwood Pier Inn & Cafe
California & Tex-Mex.
Address: 5928 S. Hwy 1, Elk, Ca. 95432
Phone: 707-877-9997
Toll Free Phone: 800-807-3423
Fax: 707-877-3439
Rates: $130-$300

We stayed in the Loverly Starfish room, double bed, jacuzzi tub, fireplace, ocean view from private balcony, microwave, fridge, cafe, pet friendly, no phone or internet access in room but in office… the next night, we stayed in the East Valley room, with two beds, a real fireplace, Internet access, and no ocean view…

http://www.greenwoodpierinn.com/inn/eastgallery/eastgallery.html

The folks here in Elk are very friendly, feel like we’re back in Oregon again… 🙂 this is a small town about five miles south of the cutoff from Highway 101 to 128 and it is on Hwy 1. You can drive south all the way down to San Francisco along the coast… the weather was delicious and sunny, then rainy and cloudy and warm and cool… very peaceful and delicious food in the cafe… complimentary breakfast was scrambled eggs, country potatoes with toast, orange juice, fresh fruit, and tea or coffee, you could also get quiche of the day, there were three kinds, veggie, spinach and feta, and a tex-mex kind.

Cici met a few dogs along the way down the coast from Westport to here… a lab named Chester on the beach, she was kind of tired from her adventures with M the night before, but she did manage to chase Chester a bit down the sand… there was a couple from Austin, Texas with two schnoodles (poodle and schnauzer mix), who said hello, until cici saw the two kittens running around here, the dogs distracted her a bit…

here’s a few photos of my royal dog lazing on the bed in the Starfish room … pampered pooches, it’s a dog’s life, ya know…

from now on, when I talk about the various inns we stay in, will try to give them a new category such as:

furs class

pampered pooches

farm and country k9

doggone fun

affurdable

pack leaders special

ruffing it

whaddya think?

we think the Greenwood Pier Inn is four paws up, K9 approved and furs class, and special thanks to Mike, Steve and the innkeepers of this inn also have the Sandpiper down the road (not pet friendly), but thanks to Jaci for recommending us to Greenwood and they also own The Inn at 17 Mile in Pacific Grove…

they also do small weddings here, tomorrow is one and hopefully the weather will cooperate…

http://www.greenwoodpierinn.com/

I left my heart in Mendocino, Little River and Westport…

 

 

At Abigail’s B and B in Mendocino… 

 

http://www.whitegateinn.com/abigails.php

 

We had the whole house to ourselves thankfully the way cici was carrying on…  not sure if it’s Mendocino or cici is just whacking out, having a dog breakdown or what but she was pretty crazed yesterday with all of the dogs, cats and people around here. Abigail’s smells very fresh and not chemical like some places do. The feather bed is very comfy and also very fresh.

We stayed in the Drawing room downstairs. A large, very private sunny room with a view of the garden. It contains a queen sized four poster bed, a large closet, sitting area and full bath with shower/bath combination.

The wine and cheese spread at 5 pm was fabulous… there were different cheeses, two wines, olives, salami, rumaki, a hot dip with artichoke that was scrumptious, different kinds of crackers, and cookies. Slept well and so did cici. got her a new halter instead of her collar, which i like a lot.  she also needs a new stronger retractable leash… They have some nice toys and treats for the pups at the gift shop at the Whitegate Inn, bully sticks for $1 and squeaky toys. 

It was a little confusing to get to Abigail’s so here are the directions. Exit Highway One to Little Lake Road. Turn left on the second street which is Howard. Go two blocks to the Whitegate Inn on your left.  Go to the office, and they will check you in and direct you to Abigail’s which is just down the street . 

At breakfast, which was an egg souffle, some banana bread and fresh fruit, I met a family from the Netherlands and several couples from the Bay area.  after I had breakfast, I came back to the car and cici was shaking a lot, so i decided it would be good to walk her around a bit. 

We went to Evergreen Barn which is around the corner and has pet supplies. She threw up at Evergreen, there were two dogs there that she could not play with so we left… the woman there was kind and suggested I get her some rice. Did some errands and drove north up the coast, a bit twisty and windy but beautiful, a little like driving to Big Sur… we stopped at a beach along the way and got out… and cici had a great time running around getting all of her pent up energy run off, so much fun getting all sandy and wet… she finally sat down so then i took her back into the car and we drove the rest of the way up to Westport… it is a tiny little town, smaller than Little River which is saying a lot…

We looked for signs to the Howard Creek Inn and Farm and found it and drove in the driveway passed some sheep grazing along the grass. 

Howard Creek Ranch Inn is an historic, 60 acre, ocean front farm bordered by miles of beach and mountains on the beautiful Mendocino Coast.  Charles (Sunny) and Sally have been working on the Howard Creek Ranch for the last 20 years. They met, fell in love and bought the property from people who had a commune on the land. Howard Creek Ranch is a Mendocino County Registered Historic Site nominated to the Federal Register of Historic Places.

http://www.howardcreekranch.com/history.html

The Ranch has farm animals, nine cats, award-winning gardens, fireplaces/wood stoves, a 75 foot swinging foot bridge over Howard Creek, hot tubs, on-site hiking, sauna, 1000 year old redwoods, and horseback riding on the beach or in the mountains.

Accommodations include cabins, suites and rooms furnished with antiques, large comfortable beds, and handmade quilts with views of the ocean, mountains, creek or gardens. 

Sunny and his wife Sally came here in 1973 and renovated the old building and built new buildings with some modern amenities of Internet and TV videos of old PBS shows and Star Trek… wireless was intermittent in my room… There also is no phone in the room. Atrium B&B and Abigail’s also had no phone in the room. The Little River Inn, Pacific Mist Inn, Surf Motel and Pine Beach Inn all had phones in the room.  If you want to get away from TV and Internet, Howard Creek is a good place to disconnect.

There is a deli in town for food for lunch and dinner, or you can bring your own. The market/deli is not like the one in Little River, I asked for Chicken Teriyaki and got some hot spicy Indian food instead, I did not know until I got back here. I also brought some hot dogs and breakfast is at 9 a.m. in the dining room. 

Breakfast was the heartiest breakfast ever, delicious… eat until stuffed, lots of portions… strawberry banana pancakes, whipped cream, fresh juice, apple granola muffins, turkey bacon, fresh fruit and edible flowers, spinach and cheese quiche, and the best mint tea ever, fresh from the garden… the gardens are spectacular, gorgeous flowers… and it’s soooo peaceful…  the antiques are real, too… 

The ambiance is very peaceful and relaxing and rustic, and very down homey. You can walk to the beach from here and there is a community living room. We stayed in the Walden room.  It is quite large, with a fridge, sink, coffee pot, hanging plants…  deep rich brown wood walls and reddish brown tile floor. 

I had hoped that Cici would be mellow from her run on the beach, but she was up all night, nosing around sniffing everything. We took a few walks and met the other people staying at the farm. It is lovely to be out in the country a hop skip and a jump from the beach. There is a nice grassy area to relax, sunbathe, and barbecue. You must keep your dog on leash at all times so as not to disturb the animals.

If you stay in the Redwood Suite, there is a beautiful view of the ocean from the upstairs bedroom loft and downstairs… if you stay in the Walden room and people are upstairs in the community room, you can hear them walk around up there. There are 12 rooms, four of which are pet friendly. There is a Beach house, and a cabin, which have ocean views, too. 

Visitors come back to the farm on their birthdays, anniversaries and other special occasions. Some notables include billionaire entrepreneurs, celebrities, and regular folks from cities near and far. the inn is non-smoking as were most of the inns I stayed at this trip.

Takes about five hours to get to San Francisco, Tomorrow we will travel to Branscomb Road to go across to the 101 and go south to SF. 

Branscomb Road takes about an hour, you get onto 101 (and don’t necessarily know it) and you are above Willits… it was easier than the 128 and took less time and was nice and scenic… 

San Francisco was a whole other matter… the best thing that happened was I found a way OUT of SF easily and fast, by not knowing where I was going… I got off the 19th and had a stop at Geary and 5th. Afterwards, I got onto 19th Avenue, it dead ended and I proceeded towards the 1, the beach and took Hwy 1 south to the 280… easy… no getting lost and driving along the beach, no traffic either… 

We were supposed to stay by the airport but that did not work out so we went to Gilroy and Monterey beach… now we are at a secret location near Lancaster, CA… it is a very nice place is all I can say…  the Mystery and Adventures continue…

 

Walden room at Howard Creek Inn