Notes from the host
Aristotle's Retreat
A comfortable, well-located one-story house w/large living room, kids play corner & 40' deck w/great view of the Pacific & King's Peak. 5-min drive to the beaches. Lived in part-time so our things are there. We do charge extra for over 2 people. Fully equipped kitchen. Large fridge & range. Quality beds. Dresser drawers, closet space & large dining table. End of road privacy. 2 of 4 sleeping rooms are detached from house--all very private. Pls. write why you're visiting Cove to ensure a good fit. Due to Covid, we rotate blankets, pillows, throw pillows, mattress pads, spray with disinfectant & more. Please read entire description & full disclosure at the end.
The space
Aristotle's Retreat with WiFi Internet. 1/2 acre lot allows room to spread out a bit with privacy in the back yard, deck & wooded area. Two of the four bedrooms are detached (and private) though just a few feet from the house and its facilities. Walk 1/4 mile downhill to the Pacific! Incredible ocean view faces West for sunset every night and ocean sounds to rock you to sleep. Great for personal rejuvenation or board retreats. Lots of private sleeping space including: 4 very private sleeping room featuring a king, 2 queens and a full size bed, w/ two full baths; and sofa bed in the living room. Plenty of blankets, pillows and clean linen and towels. Gas heat in main house. Living/great room is 20' x 35' with attached full kitchen on one wall, vaulted ceilings with with large dining table that seats 8 easily. Extra single mattresses are stored in the garage for larger groups. It's also perfect as a solitary retreat or for a romantic getaway.
It's a 1/4 mile walk steep downhill to the Ocean (and then back uphill) or drive 1 1/2 miles to trail heads at magnificent Shelter Cove Beach to the south where the surfers gather or Black Sands Beach to the north. There is ocean fishing and a free 9 hole golf-course. We're near the ocean trailhead of the BLM managed King Range Conservation Area so you can do a day or multi-night hike in the heart of the legendary Lost Coast.
Fully equipped kitchen with all appliances, plates, glasses, utensils, pots, pans, coffee machine, 4-slice toaster, toaster over, blender, can opener, coffee grinder, microwave, etc. We provide coffee, sugar, salt, pepper, random herbs/spices, shampoo, soap & toilet paper. There is cul de sac privacy, room to turn your boat trailer around, and there's no traffic whizzing by. We have no TV/Cable reception; however, you can watch one of the hundreds of in-house DVDs and VHS's on our four flat screen TVs (two 55 inches, one 42 inch and one 32 inch) in the bedrooms and the living room, each with a dvd/vhs player and remote.
Neighborhood Overview: There are only 3 houses on our street and we are at the end. The neighbors are great but everyone in Humboldt appreciates and expects privacy. So we don't allow loud parties. Also, there are chickens and a rooster next door. For that reason we do not allow dogs but have been known to make an exception. Keep the bathroom windows and doors closed at night and you won't hear the rooster in the morning!
Cell phone reception is OK for Verizon and US Cellular (we use it all the time) and gets better toward ocean. Carriers that are weak include AT&T;, Sprint and T-Mobile. We have a landline for local or incoming calls only. We have three new restaurants, a coffee house, a pizza shop, a deli with Fish and Chips. Fishtank Coffee house, 8 am to 2 pm for breakfast and lunch. There is an incredibly well-stocked and reasonably priced General Store a mile and a half uphill.
Full disclosure: The house is 42 years old and not perfect.This is the original kind of airbnb--someone's home that they've invited you into--as opposed to a professional, no-one lives there place maintained by an outside agency. So while there is more than enough room for you, you'll still find my family's clothes in designated drawers and closet spaces, with some family ornaments and photos on the shelves. There are plenty of hangers, closet and drawer space for you. It's like staying at a friend's house without them there.
Everything is washed, counters wiped, floors vacuumed. But we don't use an iron, so towels, sheets, etc. can have creases. You'll find an occasional bleach stain, a teeny hole or thread sticking out here and there. Towels pillow case colors, dishes, glassware & silverware don't 100% match. But there are more than enough towels, dishes, utensils, and appliances, all clean and ready for you. The living room is spacious and the deck is large, even if an old redwood board might creak here or there.
Our reviews are excellent (except one guy who didn't realize we live there half-time and that our things are there) and the house is set up to allow you to feel comfortable. You can re-arrange any of our twenty or more pillows for your comfort. Same with the seven fans we have--reposition them as you wish. There are many extra blankets. There's one portable air conditioner on wheels in the house, but I never use it. I use the black out curtains in all the rooms in the afternoon to keep the sun out while I'm outside in the summer, if it's hot. It's been a bit warmer in the Cove these days, but while it's been 90 inland it's often 65 or 70 at the Cove. But we face almost due west so we get sunsets every single night but it can warm the place up though the large windows.
And while there are two bedrooms are inside the house (with 2 sofa beds in the living room) two of the four bedrooms are detached--one in the garage and one in the "outbuilding." Both are clean, newer, and comfortable. All beds are in good condition. Each is a 5-second walk to the main house.
The fridge is large and has a some condiments but is yours to use. You'll find mustard, ketchup sugar, mayo, Braggs, and more inside. I provide plenty of organic coffee, black tea and usually some milk. I keep the sugar in the fridge to keep the tiny sugar ants away. Keep the counters clean and you won't see any ants. As we're in the country, there's always something I work on, along with keeping the raccoons out of the recycling bin, which I keep inside the garage until the night before pick up. There are branch piles--all out of your way--all to either improve the view or take out dead trees. We wait til winter to burn them.
The bathtubs are not large and the faucets must be tapped gently to regulate our nice hot water. You might come across an occasional spider web but we remove them as they appear. It’s the country. This non-smoking house is lived in half time so it could have the scent of the last coffee brewed. It's not a pit stop for northward travel, as we're 26 miles of windy road off the beaten path, unless you are hiking the King Range. This is a perfect place for hikers to sleep one night before they embark on their big trek.
Hosted by Darryl R Cherney