—Our Story—
And Why We Made This Site ...
Our friends call us a vibrant, loving couple. I’m a Midwesterner and my wife hails from Spain. We’ve both grown up surrounded by natural beauty. Forestry, meadows, fresh water. After a decade in southern California we became disenchanted with the hustle and traffic of it all. It’s a nice area, but everything east of the ocean is man-made; and if you want to get back to nature, it’s an hour drive and a tourist trap once you get there.
A dear friend shared his experience with life in Sonoma County, so we took a holiday to find out for ourselves. Turns out, we found it was exactly the slice of sanity we had been missing. Something about wine country just spoke to us… and we knew we’d found our new home.
We came up a second time, map in hand, looking for where we wanted to live. Cruising north on the 101 one day, I suddenly realized I was out of my favorite elixir and punched in our GPS for the nearest Starbucks. Surprisingly, it told us to take the next exit. That seemed odd, because our map showed nothing along this stretch of 101. We slid down a smooth exit ramp and soon found we had discovered an amazing little town. A subtle gem nestled in the midst of vineyards. It was so picturesque. And the people seemed so happy and friendly.
Once we had our refreshments, we drove a few blocks and found ourselves in its beautiful Fountain Square plaza. Parking, we strolled around and discovered the more we saw the more we fell in love with this quaint little village. So clean, so lovely, so charming with its Italianate stone architecture, vibrant greenery and sentinel redwoods. So elegant… and yet so relaxing.
We soon realized, this was our town… we had discovered our one and only Healdsburg.
So Why This Site?
As newly engrafted residents, we couldn’t help but notice how while driving we’d spot fun escapades happening we had no idea were going on. Some, we’d only hear about in the days after. It was almost as if you had to be here awhile, as if learning of social events was by osmosis. Well, it sort of is. Some of the information was out there, just not easy to learn about.
We also noticed how most of the blogs, articles and magazines had an odd ring. It was as if most of the ‘top ten’ (or so) ‘favorite things to do’ in Healdsburg were always the same things. Kind of like businesses paid to be listed in those articles and posts. Turns out, our hunch was right. Most do. And, many of the articles and websites showcase businesses and attractions which are now closed and gone. We still remember walking around one day and having a small group of tourists ask us, “What happened to The Shed?” Well, it’s gone now. It closed. They were so disappointed.
After living here in Healdsburg for eight years, we’ve discovered a lot of fun stuff to do and fun places to go that are off the beaten path. You know, what locals know.
Our Promise To You
Our heart for this site is simply to share what we’ve found – the special places, hidden activities and local gems – without allowing anyone to purchase their way onto lists like our hidden gems.
You can’t buy your way onto that listing – you have to be selected. And simply being listed there is free. When we write an article or share some insight, it’s because it’s our actual experience – not because someone paid us. Now, businesses can run ads; after all, we have to pay for this site. However, any ads will always display clearly, openly and subtly. And we’ll always ensure everything on our site is as accurate and up-to-date as reasonably possible. After all, we live here… we know what’s going on. We’re not writing this from some distant latte-scented cubicle.
So, the spirit of our site is dedicated to you – our guests and residents – who make this such a special place and simply want to know what’s happening, and some fun things to do around Healdsburg. We’ll gather and share all we’ve discovered over our eight years here and new things we continue to find ‘round Healdsburg, with its pleasures, leasures and treasures. And if you notice something special you’d like to share, please do drop us a line by way of our contact form.
Now, on to some adventures!
“Clear, crisp candor on Healdsburg’s hidden novelties and nuances.”
2020
Healdsburg is Heavenly opened on January 1st, 2020