I first happened on Stillwater Cove Ranch late one night in 1988 driving on the coastal highway. I have been back 3 more times over the years, last there in June 2006. I always get the same cabin, walk out to the same beautiful view of the Cove and Pacific, wait for sunset, enjoy a barbeque on my porch, light the fireplace, read and fall into a peaceful sleep. This is my favorite place to get away in the whole world. The place had only gotten better with time, while not really changing at all.

I've been back twice and just scheduled a forth visit. It isn't a place you take room service people. Its a place you take your bohemian friends. Its a rustic winner. and by N. Calif. coastal prices a great deal. We booked the West and East room. The basic kitchen works for easy meals. I've also stayed in the milk barn - good for a crowd.

Yes, the location is beautiful, if a little hard to get to (it is actually 20-30 minutes past Jenner on Hwy 1). Views of the ocean are terrific. However, we were disappointed by: the filthy, fly-infested rooms (literally hundreds of flies swarming around our cabin); the screaming peacocks and the feces they leave everywhere; the roosters and chickens that beg at your feet for food; and the management, some of whom were very friendly, but the owner was surly and aloof. It is definitely a great place for a rustic family vacation if you don't mind waking up with the birds at 5 am, but at the prices they charge, we expected better. Or rather, for what we got, we expected camping prices, not hotel prices. Also bear in mind that if you need to make a call, your cell won't work here, and there are no pay phones around.

My companion and I simply loved our all too brief stay at Stillwater Cove Ranch. The accommodations are not posh but extremely charming, and much more affordable than I would have imagined. It's really a ranch!!! With hundreds of lovely white pigeons, plus the dozens of irridescent peacocks and countless chickens -- and a real live herd of sheep!!! OK, so peacocks and chickens squawk loudly, maybe I'm just a sound sleeper, but for us, the animals were one of the most enjoyable things about the place. There is a trail from the Ranch along a stretch of creek which hosts many native species of plants -- a relatively unspoiled native California ecosystem. And the access to breath-taking Stillwater Cove Regional Park is excellent. We loved every moment and look forward to staying there again.