Glass Beach is located in Fort Bragg, California, on the shores of Northern California, near MacKerricher State Marine Conservation Area. It's a short walk from the town center, less than a quarter mile away, and has free admission and parking.

A scenic drive along California's Pacific coastline offering beaches, historic lighthouses and old-time fishing villages.

Open year round with free admission. Built between 1908 and 1909, and extensively restored, it is one of the most complete Lightstations in the U.S. There is a parking area inside the gate off Point Cabrillo Drive, adjacent to the restored Kearn farmhouse with its public restroom. Enjoy the half mile downhill walk to the Light Station buildings.

There is parking for vehicles with Disabled placards at the bottom of the hill.

There are two paths to the Station. The dirt path begins at the north end of the parking lot and takes you through the introduced grassland and coastal prairie. The paved access road to the south is an easier walk.

The Light Station includes the Lighthouse, which is an active duty Aid to Navigation, containing the original Chance Brothers classic 3rd order Fresnel lens. There are three restored Lightkeeper homes; the first is a period museum of a lightkeeper house in the 1930s; the other two houses are comfortable vacation rental homes, the restored Blacksmith & Carpentry Shop houses the Marine Science Exhibit with its 240 gallon saltwater aquarium and two lovely vacation rental cottages. Public restrooms are located by the lightkeeper's houses and another in the Kearn farmhouse.

THERE IS NO FEE to tour the Lighthouse museum/giftshop or the period museum lightkeeper’s house, although your donations are welcome.

The Lighthouse, 1st Assistant Lightkeepers House and Marine Science Exhibit are open to the public from 11 am to 4 pm year-round, including holidays. The State Historic Park grounds are open from sunrise to sunset daily

Just two miles north of Mendocino, Russian Gulch State Park combines a three-mile leafy canyon with windswept headlands and pristine beaches along the park’s rocky coastline. Inland, a 36-foot waterfall plunges down into a bower of redwoods, mosses, and ferns. Along the coast, waves crash into a collapsed sea cave called Devil’s Punchbowl, and the photogenic Frederick W. Panhorst Bridge rises gracefully 100 feet from the bottom of the gulch.

Russian Gulch State Park has 15 miles of trails, with a satisfying mix of shady forest and open coastal hikes. Currently a portion of the Russian Gulch Fern Canyon trail is closed, see alert information above. The park’s beaches, coves, and tide pools are great for a variety of water activities.

Mendocino Headlands State Park with its unique blend of gentle trails, rugged coastline, secluded beaches and timeless history surrounds the picturesque Village of Mendocino on three sides. Miles of trails wind along the cliffs, giving the casual explorer spectacular views of sea arches and hidden grottos.

The Historic Ford House is a museum located on Main Street in Mendocino and is the Visitors Center for the Mendocino Headlands State Park. The Ford House provides current and historic information about to Mendocino visitors. It has a scale model exhibit of the Mendocino in 1890, built by local craftsman Len Peterson and the Museum offers a number of videos for viewing with topics ranging from the great migration of the gray whales to the steam whistle logging era of the early Twentieth Century. All videos are presented upon request and at no charge. Jerome B. Ford had the house built for his bride, Martha, in 1854. Ford was the superintendent of the first sawmill in Mendocino and is credited by many as being the founder of the city.

This trail takes the visitor on a tour of the geological updrift from the coast to the Pygmy Forest two and a half mile inland. This marine terrace sequence illustrates a successional story unparalleled elsewhere in California.

Jug Handle State Natural Reserve is a special place. Few places on earth display a more complete record of ecological succession. Each of the five terraces represents one stage in a progression of successional environments. Jug Handle, then, is one of the few opportunities to interpret this aspect of the coastal spectrum of ecological succession and landscape evolution.

The structure of the terraces at Jug Handle is a result of the movement of the earths crust (plate tectonics) and the fluctuation of sea level during the Pleistocene. In the last several million years, the continent of North America has moved northwest, and the coastline along the Mendocino coast has risen slowly in relationship to the increase of the sea level brought on by the melting of the continental glaciers. These two factors are massive agents in the shaping of land forms and are rarely seen so clearly outside the desert regions of the world.

Located on coastal Northern Pomo land, the Mendocino Art Center is a place for artists to retreat, gather, develop our crafts, and practice using our art to serve our communities.

In 1959, with the help of many friends, artists, and townspeople, Bill and Jennie Zacha founded the Mendocino Art Center. The Zachas acquired the property, the site of a mansion that had burned down, with a $50 deposit. The remaining carriage house was converted to the nucleus of the art center, while other outbuildings and animal sheds became the first studios. During the ensuing years,the Mendocino Art Center became the focal point of a thriving art colony which revitalized the nearly abandoned town. M

Sea Cave Nature Tour

Launching on the protected bay at Van Damme State Beach, this 90-minute on-the-water trip takes us through two open and airy tunnels to the north, around headlands and rock outcroppings, and finishes at a colony of seals. We double back or venture further north or south if conditions allow.

No waves to go through. We often get glimpses of sea stars, sea urchins, mussels, barnacles, and the black oyster catcher and pigeon guillemots.

This trail is about 0.5 miles long and leads hikers to the awesome Little River Blowhole and beyond to the bluff edge. The Little River Blowhole is actually a punchbowl, or sinkhole, and is an actively eroding area; almost every winter, full-grown trees fall into the abyss. Hikers and leashed dogs are permitted, and there is an interpretive panel telling the story of the geology of this cool feature. The trail winds through a Bishop pine forest, around the north side of the punchbowl/sinkhole, and out to views of the coast, ocean, and offshore islands. The trail is managed by the Mendocino Land Trust.

This punchbowl /sinkhole is very dangerous- watch your step on this trail, and don’t try to climb into the punchbowl, as a fall would likely be fatal. There is also a lot of poison oak just off the entire trail- which is another reason to stay on it, and out of the punchbowl.

**As you can see this picture is from inside the punchbowl. Joshua and I climbed down and we survived. There is a rope that leads down however when I was there with Stephen a month ago I took him to the site and it did look as if a tree had collapsed over the rope that we belayed down on. Fair warning to all who go. Please be careful.

Spring Ranch is at the northern end of Van Damme State Park just across the road from our venue. This is a lovely spot, offering spectacular views of the Pacific Ocean as well as trails that wind past historic barns and above a rocky intertidal shelf. There is good wildlife viewing here, especially at low tide, when the seals haul out onto offshore rocks. Watch for whale spouts and tails during the California grey whale spring and fall migration.

There are many memorial benches here, where you can rest, talk and enjoy the view of this wild place. Please be safe, as bluff edges are unstable due to ongoing erosion, so you need to stay on the trail and away from the bluff edge. Coyotes and mountain lions have also been spotted here, so please keep your dogs on leash.