On The Road – Mawado – Sea Ranch, Take Two

The original plan called for buildings tucked in next to the wind breaks. You can see the row of houses alee of the cypress trees. The plan allowed all of the houses to have a diagonal view of the sea and leave a common meadow.

The variations in ageing of the redwood siding cause the assorted colors in these houses. Some houses in the development are stained.

Later construction required different strategies to deal with the wind. This house looks a bit like a ship. Its prow faces into the prevailing wind from the west.

It leaves an unusual triangle-shaped room that comes to a sharp point.

From some angles the homes are distinctly square. Many of the houses are built in “modules” (my word, not the architects) around an enclosed courtyard.  The practice leaves space around and between the houses.

The practice leaves space for wildlife. This doe led her two fawns away from a group with a dog on the bluff trail. (A public access trail along the coast the entire 10 mile length of the development.) The two fawns disappeared into the meadow grass while she kept an eye on me. It’s not a trick of the photo, I couldn’t see them from about 20 feet away.

I had to admire this one not afraid to show their scars. Because of the redwood siding, repairs take a while in the sun and rain to match the rest of the house.

In the 1980s, Robert and Betty Buffum contributed a tract of land and the resources to build a chapel. James Hubbell, a local artist designed the chapel with a sea snail as an inspiration. The design included sketches and a model, but no blue prints. A team of artisans lead by Thamby Kumaran built the chapel. The perfect place if you want to keep your wedding small, it only has space for about a dozen people.

I felt sorry for the poor roofer who had to cut all those shingles to fit over the double curves.

Dibs on the chair on the left.

For our gardening commenters, and this being California, there must be poppies. This is the California Costal Poppy (Eschscholzia californica var. maritima). It grows close to the ground, has bluer foliage, and blooms bright yellow as opposed to orange. Some blossoms have an orange center.

And the original photo from the first post, so all the Sea Ranch photos are together.

The ranchers and shepherds of the nineteenth century planted rows of Monterey Cyprus (Hesperocyparis macrocarpa)  as wind breaks. They have grown into impressive, if a bit eerie, corridors.