What To Do If It Rains During Vacation?  

Winter Rain

California has endured atmospheric rivers over the years that has let to intense storms, rainfall and high wave conditions on our coastline. But while these may give cause for worry many of us choose to celebrate the rainy days. Though the meteorologist may promise non-stop waves of rain and wind that threaten our coast and vacation plans, we know there’ll be plenty to do when our vacation spot is at Sea Ranch Abalone Bay!

Climate Change Means We Must Adapt

For good or bad…rainy days are not a sure thing in California. Unfortunately, annual precipitation can vary greatly from year to year and region to region. Climate change, as a causal effect on our weather, changes the amount of rain and snow we get. But what if that rain storm happens to fall while you have booked a week at Abalone Bay 😳?

So Many Rainy Day Activities to Select

Don’t let rainy days at Abalone Bay get you down! You need not fret nor let the rain spoil your dream vacation at the coast. Instead choose among these rainy day activities to make the most of a rain-drenched holiday.

Below are our recommendations for enjoying a rainy day at Sea Ranch Abalone Bay.

1. Celebrate the rain!

We count on the rain to nourish our plants, help squash the threat of fire, and provide sufficient water to refill our hot tubs. That for us is great reason to celebrate and do the happy dance to the rhythms of our Rainy Day Playlist

So raise your cuppa of tea, coffee, or a glass of wine then set back to watch the meadow grasses turn from dusty brown to a luscious green. Toast to Sea Ranch’s good luck for having a bit of that sorely needed and nourishing wetness. Then nestle into the easy chairs and as you watch the waves leap up to great you.

 2. Snuggle and cuddle and make it romantic 

• Turn the lights down low
• Put on a romantic tune from our Waves of Love Spotify playlist

• Or stream or play a romantic movie 
• Take out a warm cozy throw, wrap it around you and then…💖

3. Read a good book

If you did not pack a vacation novel then please help yourselves to one of ours in the bookcase.

Pictured above is our copy of Sea Ranch~”The blazing saga of a proud California dynasty, battling ruthless enemies to survive, consumed by secret passions from within.” There are many other novels and short stories for a rainy day read.

You’ll find a wide variety of books on the history and development of Sea Ranch as well as everything you need to know aut our beautiful coastal zone.

For the children there are leveled readers and young reader books on our natural, and now wet world.

Or visit Sea Ranch’s Free Children’s Library always available rain or shine.

4. Journal or draw on a rainy day

Let the rain inspire great art projects for you and your children. Watercolor pencils, coloring book pages, and paper are available for rainy day artworks. 

Take-home pocket journals provide all a mini-diary of how everyone made the best out of a wet day.

5. Play board and card games

Our game room, a favorite rainy day hang out for Jorge and our son makes the perfect escape for a rain day. The tops of the two leather ottomans flip over to provide a wooden tray perfect for a rowdy dice game, chess, or a couple of drinks. 

There’s plenty of card games, board games and other activities available too.

Gather the group together for a rousing game of Bingo. 

Or challenge a loved one in a game of Scrabble, chess, or another of the board games we have stored for you in the game room. 

And Now We Have Good News- Lights Stay On!

As much fun as it was over the years to endure game play in candle light, we now have you covered with our newly installed whole house generator. Now you have the choice to play in candle light.

6. Solve puzzels

Select from a great assortment of jigsaw puzzles and make it a team activity as you enjoy the newly added game room

7. Build a blanket fort

And if the little ones (or big ones) need a special activity while the lights go out, feel free to build a blanket fort! We provide plenty of extra blankets and flashlights to make your lights-out adventure a memorable one.

8. Bake a rainy day treat

Abalone Bay’s well-equipped kitchen has just about every cooking appliance and tool need for a rainy day bake-a-thon. We also have cookbooks including some for children if needed. Gualala Market or Surf Market are great resources for any missing ingredients needed to make those chocolate chip or snickerdoodle cookies.

Click here to find recipes for Toll House chocolate chip cookies.

Bake a Traditional Bundt Cake 

Our first bundt pan was actually gifted to us by a guest who, not wanting to bother us for one, gifted a traditional pan as a thank you for sharing our home with her and her family.

She also provided us with her favorite recipe inscribed in our Guest Book below that she prepared for their family celebration while at Sea Ranch Abalone Bay.

How About an Octopus for Dessert?

Since then we’ve added another bundt pan in the shape of a friendly octopus. We’re so pleased that guests have had fun with it too!

From a guest’s review of Abalone Bay, September 2023:

I love to cook but seldom can in rentals. At this rental I found everything I needed and more. There was even an octopus mold which we had to use. It was a blast! There are great stores nearby in Gualala, so don’t worry about ingredients.

9. Surf the internet

 Plugin your computer or iPad or other electronic device using our free WiFi then explore the world wide web. Or perhaps Skype with your friends and relatives sharing what a terrific place Abalone Bay is.  Abalone Bay provides multiple locations perfect for working or studying remotely with internet strength of up to 1 Gig. Our internet service offers the fastest connection available with over 900 Mbps upload and download speeds (average speeds are around 920 Mbps). But we must also add we warn against any illegal downloading during your stay.

Jorge’s favorite remote work location is at the desk strategically placed for stealing a moment to check for whales or deer passing by.

Jorge also enjoys using the Laptop Stand, our Minder by obVus Solutions. 

Game Room workplace options

The game room with its sliding barn door provides a table with four chairs plus a wheeled computer tray table that can be moved to other locations in the house. 

10. Jump into the hot tub

Why not jump into the hot tub while it’s raining? You’ll be wet anyway and this way you’ll be toasty warm while doing it!

And now the run back into the house is a bit shorter!  You’ll enjoy the added access to the courtyard and hot tub with the addition of a sliding glass door into the principal bedroom.

 11. Take a walk in the rain

With 40 miles of trails in the Sea Ranch including the coastal bluff trail that is right outside Abalone Bay, what better way to enjoy the rain than to take a walk in it?  We recommend walking the Salal Trail to marvel at our little sag pond as its waterfall fills it up.

Or get lost in the dream-like ethereal presence of the coastal views.

Breathe in deep the wonderful smells of the moist meadow and the salty ocean spray splashing up in the air.

Listen to the crashing of the waves upon the rocks below as it breaks the hush around it.

 But do be careful in case the rain includes lightning. I was at the house a few years ago and was lucky to witness this electrical storm captured by Paul Kozal dancing across the horizon.

12. Challenge your partner to a game of table tennis

You say Ping Pong, I say Table Tennis… If you need to burn off some steam why not challenge each other to a game in the garage! Best thing is with the garage door down it morphs into a hybrid of racket ball and table tennis.

At least you don’t have to go far to find the ball. And if you DO lose there are extra balls (just let us know to replace them for the next guests).

Enjoy rainbows over Sea Ranch

This remarkable double rainbow was viewed from Abalone Bay’s front yard.

Rainbows over the coast are another treasure that rainy days bring.

14. Visit Gualala and the Gualala Arts Center

Gualala’s community arts organization, located in Gualala, California, is dedicated to promoting public interest and participation in the arts since 1961. Here you can find art exhibits, workshops & classes, classical & popular music performances, theater, lectures and much more. Visit their Events Calendar for a complete listing of events, exhibits, and festivals. 

15. Go to an historic theater 

If you find there are no movies to your liking on TV or in our DVD collection, then drive about 15 minutes north to Point Arena and catch a movie at the Arena Theater. Built next to the burned remains of Scott’s Opera House, Arena Theater opened in 1929 as a vaudeville playhouse. In 1930 it was equipped for showing motion pictures, however after many years of service to the community, in 1995 it was condemned for structural shortcomings. The non-profit community group, Arena Renaissance Company, rallied to the cause of earth-quake retrofitting by rewiring and otherwise restoring all aspects of the building to modern standards. In 1997, through the tremendous fundraising efforts and coordination by ARC, our community of builders, organizers, artists, generous financial contributors, and volunteer workers of all skill levels, rebuilt the theater into the extraordinary gem it is today.

16. Tour the Point Arena Lighthouse

A little further north you will love visiting the Point Arena Lighthouse. Climb to the top of the tallest Pacific Coast lighthouse as keeps have done for over 100 years. Then be sure to access the balcony for one of the best views on the entire Pacific Coast. Admission includes access to the renovated Fog Signal Building – the new home of the First Order Fresnel lens and a trip to the top of the tower. The hours for the Point Arena Lighthouse and Store are 10:00 am to 3:30 pm every day in Winter and until 4:30 between Memorial Day weekend and Labor Day weekend. The lighthouse is closed Thanksgiving Day & Christmas Day Only.

Just Simply Enjoy the Rain

No matter which of these rainy day activities you select during your visit to Abalone Bay be sure to be thankful that it is indeed raining, and with luck, our California drought will be relieved.