a romantic stay at mankas inverness lodge

mankas - a beloved hunting-lodge-turned-retreat- is a place i've dreamed about staying ever since i heard about it over 4 years ago. being that it's only about 45 minutes north of our home in sf – it was hard to justify splurging on this little cozy oasis for a spontaneous romantic getaway. because the whole place really is a splurge. but, splurge-worthy if you're celebrating something special. 

after tying the knot in october – we figured it was finally time to treat ourselves and see this magical little pack of cabins tucked back in the woods of tomales bay. everything was perfect– from the just-rustic-enough decor, the clawfoot tub, the outdoor shower, the roaring fireplace, the gentle but epic tunes constantly playing in the background, and the slender wooden box delivered on our doorstep in the morning filled with breakfast treats. it was the most loving way to spend our first night together as married folks.  

sebastopol & guerneville

after having this amazing wine in LA at bestia, we tracked down where we could buy it in the bay area: wind gap. sebastopol was such a pleasant little surprise and we ended up having so much fun during this pitstop. the town is tiny, but jam packed with cool spots like this little coffee shop and much more. we'll definitely be back. next stop: guerneville, a cute little town that we haven't been to since back in the day. 

some must do's here include: pop into the bank club for shopping, ice cream, pie, or just epic browsing. grab dinner at boon or seaside metal. grab breakfast at big bottom market. the boon hotel is pretty cool place to crash, too. 

the perfect girls weekend in south lake tahoe

SUMMER IN SOUTH LAKE TAHOE:
earlier this summer i drove over to south lake tahoe with my 7 besties [to celebrate my bachelorette]. it was truly one of the most perfect weekends – warm weather, a bad ass house, blue water, tons of laughing, good food, good vibes ... tahoe might almost be better in the summer than in the winter!

WHAT TO DO:
some memorable moments from our weekend include: our amazing might be my favorite ever– airbnb, our leisurely hike to chimney beach [where we found the coolest picnic and swimming spot – this is a MUST], all of the epic #celeKate gear, drinks and burgers at basecamp hotel, our boating and tubing day [renting a boat and getting out on the water is another MUST!], an epic dance party at the hard rock hotel [go here if you want to gamble], and laughing uncontrollably pretty much the whole weekend. 
 

half moon bay

this weekend we popped down to half moon bay for some surfing and exploring. our typical city-escape is north of the city, so it was nice to try something new for a change. we stopped at moss beach distillery for lunch – fish and chips by the fire pit – followed by some salmon jerky from creekside smokehouse, and cocktails at the ritz. 

why don't we do this more often? it was the perfect getaway, and only required 45 minutes in the car. there's something about that chilly sea breeze that i truly love so much. 

memorial day in the redwoods @ standish hickey campground

for memorial day we packed up the car and drove north for about 3+ hours into the redwoods. it was a hilarious and loving weekend, some memorable moments being: SHED pitstop in healdsburg, drive thru tree, sleeping 5 to a room at the haunted riverwood inn, dancing at the peg house, our cozy campsite across the street – standish hickey, chimney tree grill, lost coast brewery, skipping rocks and riverside naps, wandering the weird little towns, milkshakes, deep quotes and climbing all over the massive redwoods. this might be the start to an annual camping adventure....