As time wears on, this sanctuary for sharing the outdoors nestled within the Mendocino mountains is becoming a California open secret that’s too good to remain hidden.
Three hours north of the Golden Gate Bridge and 10 minutes from Highway 101 is the hidden-yet-burgeoning campground Mendocino Magic. The site is charming campers with its calendar of peculiar events hosted in a majestic setting.
For the Perseid meteor shower in August, I joined hundreds of campers to watch the celestial event on a mountaintop nicknamed Methuselah’s Observatory. An Oakland named Michael Uyttersprot passionately shared his insights and offered glimpses into his telescope to view the rings of Saturn and more.grows, the variety of events offered organically evolve. Weddings are frequent, as are private events. Companies, particularly from the Bay Area tech sector, rent the space for retreats to spur team bonding under the canopy of oak trees and stars.where players reshape the entire estate, including a former airstrip from the area’s bygone logging days, into a private battleground.Courtesy of Rex Hazard The near 600-acre private property welcomes campers to cannonball into its fresh water reservoir or crisscross trails that connect canyons with mountain ridges near the quaint town of Laytonville. The cost for campsites range from $60 a night for two-person car camping, $150 a night for five people to have their own secluded camp spot, and the most popular site, Cannonball Camp, adjacent the reservoir, is $180 a night for five guests. Indoor lodging is also available for a few hundred dollars a night.for tents, car camping, RVs and lodging spread across 283 acres in a valley that was whittled by Cahto Creek. The front gate leading into Mendocino Magic officially opened to the public in 2015 and since then, owner Mackenzie O'Donnell has assembled a recreation destination that caters to Bay Area campers who seek a respite in close proximity. Mendocino Magic’s reputation escalates following each special event and summer season, but the campground has remained somewhat arcane. As time wears on, this sanctuary for sharing the outdoors nestled within the Mendocino mountains is becoming a California open secret that’s too good to remain hidden.O'Donnell works to keep Mendocino Magic both accessible and educational for all. She invites schools in Mendocino and from the Bay Area to visit for outdoor education. She designed the camping experience to subtly ease visitors into accepting a renewed sense of responsibility for protecting their environments. “There’s a gradual change that has happened in the last 10 years about the impact on the environment,” she said. “People in their 40s now remember McDonald's Styrofoam getting thrown out the car window. My generation and in between have been teaching recycling and are understanding the impact. We’re keeping in mind how everything is relative.”O'Donnell received her MBA in environmental management and sustainability from the University of San Francisco in 2015. Part of her background is in waste management, which she has centered as a key responsibility when visiting the campsite. Waste and recycling issues have recentlyMendocino Magic offers campers access to water, showers, first aid essentials and portable toilets but the rest is up to the individual. Everyone must dispose of their trash and recycling on their own after their stay. A garbage collection service is conveniently located a few minutes down the road. The property offers the conveniences of glamping with an underlying nudge toward self-sufficiency. Campers are guests in the Mendocino watershed, therefore they’re stewards of it, if only for the weekend.Courtesy of Mackenzie O'Donnellfor bringing anything made of polystyrene foam, colloquially known as styrofoam. The penalty is part of the campsite’s mission for promoting a less wasteful way of living long after the visit. “I’m shocked that styrofoam is still for sale,” O'Donnell said. “When you see a $250 fee for literally any Styrofoam on site, it gets people’s attention. ‘Why the Styrofoam fee?’ They start to talk about it. Our watershed is very much next to the campground and there can’t be any pieces of Styrofoam floating in the creek.” The abolition of polystyrene foam, along with a $5 penalty for every cigarette butt discovered, are communicated ahead of every event. There's also a fastidiousthat each camper signs prior to visiting. O'Donnell is transparent and direct, updating the waiver every year. “The Burner term is that you ‘read the ticket,’” she said, referencing Burning Man. “It’s a mutual indemnification.”Poking around for ideas in the Mendocino hills, the name caught me and I quickly explored the website. The sixth annual Perseid meteor shower campout was slated for August on the same weekend as my girlfriend’s birthday. Her last name is Starkey, and she’s infatuated by space. I earned major points by pitching this camping trip to celebrate her day. We invited a dozen of our friends and had to explain that we had little information about the camp since neither of us had yet to visit. The website and emails from its management answered basic questions, but we were still unsure of what to expect. On a Friday afternoon, some friends arrived early and secured our spot at the Great Oak site, which was central and massive. It could fit up to 20 tents and was shaded from the sun under the lumber limbs. We excitedly set up camp. It took a second, but we came to understand we were essentially on our own out here. The camp’s management had greeted us at the front gate and we knew where to find them in the event of an emergency, but the rest of the weekend was up to us.Courtesy of Meggie Rose/@meggierose All around us were diverse campers. Some were families with children running by the nearby briar patches, while others kept to themselves in their RVs. I heard multiple languages, but the congenial spirit of our collective makeshift community prevailed. We met two campers who set up close to us and invited them to eat off our camp stove. Our new friends were also from San Francisco and were so amiable that they harmoniously blended into our camp for the remainder of the weekend. Saturday afternoon was spent in the Holland Reservoir. There were kayaks available for anyone to borrow and most of us laid on a floating dock like the sea lions off Pier 39. Strangers were easy to meet and even the awkward naked guy was respectful enough to keep a fair distance. When night fell, we were told that we could hitch a ride on the back of a flatbed truck to Methuselah’s Observatory for the meteor shower. A wooden art structure adorned the hillside and Uyttersprot, our astronomy guide, spoke through a bullhorn to let us know of his latest coordinates of the telescope. We lay on our backs looking up as the Perseid meteor shower presented a natural, wondrous show. We counted a total of six 10/10 meteors and several other flashes of burning brilliance. Eventually, a full moon appeared to spoil our vision, but we were not greedy. We had our fill.I started the trot down the hill using the moonlight as my guide and discovered that the Mendocino Magic organizers had prepared a miso bar with a chicken broth base for a late-night snack. My evening ended with a full belly and illuminated heart. On our way out of the campsite the next morning, we spotted a colorful floral mural on the back of a structure with the camp’s motto: “Don’t forget the magic.”
United States Latest News, United States Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Hidden camera found inside fake smoke detector in UTSA student's apartmentThe university is urging students with suspicious smoke detectors to contact its police department. SanAntonio SATX SanAntonioTX hiddencamera UTSA Texas CrimeNews
Read more »
New-look Saskatoon Blades hope to continue winning ways with beefed-up lineupSaskatoon Blades have added Josh Pillar and Conner Roulette from NHL camps as well as newly\u002Dacquired overage defenceman Blake Gustafson.
Read more »
Former restaurant co-owner arrested after hidden cameras found in bathroomA restaurant co-owner in Georgia has been arrested after authorities say he had hidden cameras in the restaurant’s restroom.
Read more »
‘We don’t have a place to go’: Clearing out the Bay Area’s two largest homeless encampmentsHundreds of residents are being displaced as Oakland and San Jose crack down on camps.
Read more »
Former restaurant co-owner arrested after hidden cameras found in bathroomA restaurant co-owner in Georgia has been arrested after authorities say he had hidden cameras in the restaurant’s restroom.
Read more »