Hi, I'm Eric.

I’m an avid world traveler, photographer, software developer, and digital storyteller.

I help implement the Content Authenticity Initiative at Adobe.

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California Days 2 and 3: Mendocino Coast

19 October 2025 • 326 km / 202 mi (map)

  • Added to Eric Scouten :: Travel on 4 November 2025
  • California 38

Mendocino is my happy place. I know nobody there, need to talk to nobody. I can recharge there.

This was probably my 20th visit in 30 years or so. And I expect to be back on a future trip to California.

A wide view of rolling golden-grass hills dotted with scattered oak trees and rocks, sloping down toward forested ridges and distant blue mountains under a clear blue sky. A weathered wooden fence runs along the lower left foreground.
northwest of Ukiah, California
An empty two-lane rural road with a yellow center line curves over a grassy ridge under a clear deep-blue sky. Golden dry grass lines both shoulders, with stands of evergreen and oak trees and rolling hills fading into the distance.
northwest of Ukiah, California
A hazy, overcast late-afternoon sky in Mendocino with a pale sun glowing dimly through thick fog and clouds. Silhouetted trees frame the scene, with the dark outlines of buildings and a white tent-like structure visible along the horizon.
Mendocino, California
A dirt trail splits into two paths through a grassy coastal headland under an overcast evening sky, with wind-sculpted cypress trees and low shrubs flanking the route at Mendocino Headlands State Park.
Mendocino Headlands State Park, Mendocino, California
A dirt footpath winds through a field of tall golden grass and low brush toward a row of vintage clapboard buildings, including white, yellow, and pale-colored structures and a tall water tower, under an overcast gray sky on the Mendocino headlands.
Mendocino Headlands State Park, Mendocino, California
A foggy coastal headland at dusk, where rocky bluffs topped with windswept cypress trees and dry grasses meet the ocean, with low waves breaking against the cliffs and a hazy sun glowing through clouds on the horizon.
Mendocino Headlands State Park, Mendocino, California
Mendocino Headlands State Park, Mendocino, California
A misty field of dry golden grasses and low shrubs in the foreground, with silhouetted houses, a water tower, and wind-shaped pine trees along the horizon under a hazy, glowing sky at dusk.
Mendocino Headlands State Park, Mendocino, California
A fog-shrouded coastal cliff topped with wind-sculpted cypress trees and dry grass, with waves breaking on a dark beach below and a rocky sea stack barely visible through the mist.
Mendocino Headlands State Park, Mendocino, California

Not so long ago (a few years, tops) taking this photo handheld would have been unthinkable with any camera.

But on my way back from dinner, I just casually took this photo. Handheld for something like 4-5 seconds and only a tiny bit of post-processing in Lightroom afterwards. 😎

The modern iPhone is a *#($ing amazing camera.

A small coastal town street at dusk, with a large silhouetted cypress tree on the left and a historic wooden water tower beside a Victorian house in the center. Streetlamps cast a warm glow along the road while the deep blue sky fades to orange near the horizon, streaked with thin clouds and contrails.
Mendocino, California
San Jose to Mendocino, California · 326 km / 202 mi
(Mouse over or tap on the markers to see the photos there. Use the button to adjust the map’s position and zoom.)

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