I was driving down the coast and I NEEDED to make a phone call and I was under the gun. I soon…read morerealized that my cell battery had died. Oh dear, oh dear, what to do? This stretch of Highway 1 was country. I was at a loss as to what to. Then I noticed the Point Arena Fire Station and thought, why not, they are there to help people. I drive in, didn't see anyone in the fire house to I went to the back building and called out. Two fireman responded immediately and I informed them of my situation. They sprung into action and helped me out right away. It took a few steps and the call was underway. They were happy to help. Soon after, a conversation ensued. It turned out to be a "visit" at the station. They are absolutely the nicest guys and most helpful. We were talking about my travels and they told me about the City of 10,000 Buddhas; how cool is that. They offered to take me on a ride/tour of Point Reyes, with one of their vintage trucks. I wish I could have but I was on a time line. I even left with parting gifts;stickers, bracelets, magnets, coloring books, pencils and a story book on how to prevent fires by Smokey the Bear. I just had to start the review process because they absolutely deserve commendations and good press.

One of NorCals best kept secrets is the quaint town of Point Arena, home of Arena Cove! The…read moreabsolute most picturesque, gentle, calm and natural water views you'll ever see! Arena Cove is home to a pizza parlor and coffee shop as well as a fishing pier and if you come at low tide, the most amazing tide pools with fish, sea urchin, sea star fish, crab and countless water plants. Beautiful hiking on the shoreline and the best sunsets! I love visiting when I need a time out from the hustle and bustle of life; a quick trip is always humbling and helps me to refocus on the finer things in life... like nature!!!

I hate it when people Yelp landmarks instead of businesses. Just a personal pet peeve of mine…read more There's an exception to every rule, and I happen to be exceptional, so based on three exceptions to the rule I believe a review of Point Arena Cove is worthy of Yelp. First, this is an obscure little town and it needs Yelp reviews to encourage people to stop and experience all it has to offer. Second, this cove is not visible from Hwy 1 so you might drive right past it. Third, there are hours associated with the pier (open for boat launches from 7am to 4pm), so it's like a business. I'm not an expert on coves, but I've seen quite a few in my day. I think I'm a pretty good judge of cove character. La Jolla Cove, in San Diego was my favorite. Until I visited Point Arena Cove. There is so much going on here. I visited on a Saturday morning and ended up having great conversations with the very warm locals. A few showed me the abalone they had just hauled in (the Fish Police were right there to make sure every one was legal) and another showed me pictures of an albatross that visits the cove (very rare!) surfing with surfers. There are dogs galore (please leash them on the pier) and nice owners to go with them. This is a working cove, but people also go to talk and drink coffee. The cove is the best place to capture the local flavor of Point Arena. You absolutely must visit it.

Incredible, magnificent part of the California Coast. Do not miss this amazing place! Very easily…read morewalkable.

In 2005 title to the Stornetta Ranch, which meets the Pacific Ocean, was transferred to the Bureau…read moreof Land Management to ensure its long-term protection & provide accessibility to the public. This translates into expanding the California Coastal National Monument to 1665 acres, with 12 coastal miles of undeveloped federal- & state-managed public land. A vast open space to hike & enjoy the rugged cliffs, & view the sea rocks, islands, blowholes, dunes, tide pools, & waves during daylight hours. Public privileges like nowhere I know of. Locals said it's never crowded. Tourists wouldn't necessarily know about it unless they studied up on the purpose & meaning of "Point Arena ~ Stornetta Unit of the California Coastal National Monument." If you google it, there is a dozen interesting articles tracing the history & significance.

I went out to the light house but parked outside the gate. Beautiful scenery and view of…read morelighthouse. Grounds look nice and clean. Ample parking inside and outside the main gate. Views of the oceans and lighthouse. I had my dogs with me and they needed to run. I'm confident the light house and grounds are just as spectacular inside the complex as they looked from outside the gates.

A wonderful place to spend time! We stayed at the lodging…read morehere for 3 days last year. Highly recommend that as well! After closing the entire place is yours! You can chill with the lighthouse cat or explore with flashlights under the moon. During our stay we went to the top of the lighthouse many times.. it's a quite few steps but worth it! The gift shop is also cool! We went home with a shirt and a magnet. Although the need for this lighthouse is no longer, it still works and is magnificent as is the whole park! Complete with rocky cliffs and a labyrinth by the sea.

Pier Review While…read moreplanning our visit to Pt Arena we had heard/read that the pier/harbor area was a "must visit." We actually planned to make it our first stop here at Pt Arena, as we'd Yelped a coffee shop here at the Pier that had amazing reviews but upon our arrival we were saddened that it had closed down and all that greeted us was a small pack of "fisherman" that were all on their 3rd Coors® Light by 0800... o_0 The Good: *Nice views of the ocean and some nearby cliffs. *Waters are calm enough for kayaking, surfing and diving. *I'm guessing you can charter a boat to go kill some fish. *There's a family of sea otters that lives here. Saw them too late to take a pic, tho... :( The Meh: *Most of the shops at the Pier have closed and, judging by the lack of activity, the rest will most likely follow suit. *This place has def seen better days, as all the surrounding buildings are not only mostly empty but in pretty bad shape. The Ugly: *On two separate visits this place was completely dead. Curious onlookers would stop-by have a peek and then bounce after a few minutes. I know because we decided to kill 1.5hrs there while we waited for our tour at the local animal preserve. *Quite frankly, this place is just plain boooring. Normally at a pier I'd have a blast doing street photography but after 30min here I wanted to hang myself out of depression. TLDR: Probably OK if you're going to out fishing or some other nonsense, but for the rest of us that just want to have a gander this place is a hard pass.

Unfortunately most of the existing businesses were closed at or near the pier when we went. We were…read morethere for sunset though and the views didn't disappoint! While we were there, we played in the area, climbed the trees and the hill nearby. Tranquil and fun with the family.

What a great community library, it's a popular place. Many "friends of the library" that help out,…read morevolunteers make this place friendly and happy. There is a group of backpacks to Check Out!! Why?? They have a whole experience inside, hiking, Memory backpacks, cooking, GF (gluten-free) cooking for kids! What a Great Idea. We are here on Saturday Festival day in December- the library is having a big book sale, and a Craft table to make gingerbread houses and ornaments- color the pages and glue them together. What a great library!

The library's own Website says it will be open today, Tuesday, from 10 am to 6 pm. No, that is a…read morelie. They do not ensure correctness. The librarians do not care about the public. The official holiday was Monday. They took the same holiday yesterday that everyone else got, but the narcissists want their own holiday, so took another day off with no regard or respect for the public. Please hire better and more respectful librarians, not these totally lazy, self-centered narcissists. No other library in California closed down and took off all day Tuesday. If you want to take three day holidays no matter what then find another job. The public has rights.

Cute small post office in a cute small town, this was particularly useful for sending off my Point…read moreArena lighthouse post cards. It is located on the hill as you pass through the small Point Arena downtown area. I did not spot a mailbox or a mail slot outside but the lobby was open and I was able to use the one inside. [Review 17643 overall - 433 in California - 1164 of 2022.]

Picture yourself on the third day of a road trip, and having just stopped by a lighthouse to write…read moresome postcards, and you come across a Post Office. Of course you stop. Not only is this Post Office everything you would imagine from a picturesque small town, it probably already already featured in story written about it by at least a dozen novelists. Good, friendly service, and just a real hometown feel to it. So lets say you've mailed your postcards from the road to loved ones across the country then you hop back in the car. Transaction done, right? Wrong! Wrong because you've left your pencil case (for lack of a better term) behind but you don't realize it until you're outside San Francisco and you really can't go back. So you call. And guess what, they have your pencil case that holds all your pencils and that one super special pen that you "don't leave home without." How do they get it back to you? Well using their very own US Postal Service, of course. So that was my experience. The experience of a post-card writing nerd who left some pencils behind and had them mailed back to my home.

Ukiah social security office the two security officers up front as soon as u walk in were very rude…read moreto me.first the lady looked at me with a dirty look when Ismiled at her she gave me a dirty look. U

quick & clean ;) came in to get a replacement card. first time in Ukiah, super cute townread more

One of the magical places on the Mendocino coast. Cabrillo Lighthouse Station has been on the north…read morewestern shore for over 100 years. The Fresnel lens of the lamp make this lighhouse a special one as these types are rarely used any more and are disappearing. Restored and maintained, this facility is opened daily at 11:00 and the grounds are open from sunrise to sunset. It's a popular spot for whale watching (Nov-Apr) as well as exploring the rugged coastline, including the site of the Frolic shipwreck from 1850. The lighthouse was damaged and flooded in January of 2023 when a series of high waves from the storm crashed through the buildings ocean side doors. Making it a part of the storm history of this lighthouse, which had been only hit with waves ever on two other occasions, December of 1928 and February of 1960. The grounds are dog friendly, on leash. The lighthouse staff are knowledgeable and friendly. The lighthouse museum is free to enter. Donations are encouraged and welcomed. We spent about two hours there reading the local history inside the museum, which there is a lot and exploring the lighthouse and outside grounds. 4.5 Stars rounded up for the spectacular views 01199

To get to this lighthouse it's about a mile walk from the parking lot. I'm all for walking and…read morehiking but that could be a dealbreaker for some just wanting to swing by and see it. The background is beautiful and there is lots of room for photos of the ocean. The lighthouse is quite small but has a little gift shop inside. Tours up to the lens are a couple of times a month. Before the lighthouse there's a little compound with the old keepers' quarters which you can walk into and check out. If in the Mendocino/Fort Bragg area and only time for one lighthouse I think this one is better for being closer to town (Point Arena is about an hour drive) and for available trails to go on a walk after the lighthouse. If you want something more of a tall statuesque lighthouse where there are tours throughout the day to the top and you don't have to walk a mile from the car I'd recommend Point Arena.