Schooner - Binker Barn retreat with private hot tub, dogs welcome

Redwoods, a lawn that wraps the house, and a hot tub set back in the trees are what you'll remember about Schooner, a Binker Barn on the forest side of Sea Ranch with the ocean showing through the branches in the distance. It sleeps 8 across two bedrooms, two lofts, and a study, with three full baths and room for two dogs. Black Point's headland is about a quarter mile away. You'll read by the fire, cook, and end the night outside.

You'll know Schooner by its shape first: tall wood walls and the steep roofline of a Sea Ranch Binker Barn, standing in a yard of redwood trunks and grass with a path that circles the house. The ocean is out there through the trees, a distant band of blue on clear days rather than a wide bluff window, and the forest is the view you'll actually live with.

Inside, the living room gathers around a gas fireplace, and a reading nook lined floor to ceiling with books sits off to one side. Morning light comes in across the wood walls. When the fog settles into the branches, you'll find this is a house for staying in, with the shelves, a smart TV, and board games waiting.

The deck holds a dining table and a gas grill. Beyond it, the hot tub is tucked among the redwoods, and the lawn is where two dogs will spend their afternoons. Black Point is about a quarter mile through the trees when you want the bluff.

KITCHEN & DINING
You'll cook on an electric range with a dishwasher, drip coffee maker, toaster oven, toaster, and blender on hand, and eat at the table inside when the deck turns cold. A washer and dryer are in the house for the long-weekend crowd. Three full baths mean a group of eight isn't waiting in line for one shower.

SLEEPING ARRANGEMENTS
Schooner sleeps 8 in 2 bedrooms, with 3 full baths.
-- Bedroom 1: queen bed
-- Bedroom 2: double bed
-- Loft 1: two twin beds and a sofa bed
-- Loft 2: twin bed
-- Study: sofa bed

PROPERTY AMENITIES
-- Private hot tub among the redwoods
-- Gas fireplace, forced-air heat
-- Dog friendly (up to 2)
-- Gas grill, deck dining table, lawn
-- Reading nook, smart TV with streaming apps, board games, WiFi
-- Washer and dryer

COMMUNITY AMENITIES (Sea Ranch Association, rec pass provided)
-- Heated pools, saunas, tennis and pickleball at the Ohlson (about 3/4 mile), Moonraker, and Del Mar (about 3.8 miles) recreation centers
-- Bluff and forest trails; Black Point about 1/4 mile, Shell Beach about 3/4 mile

The Sea Ranch keeps its exterior lights low, and under the redwoods it gets properly dark. Settle into the hot tub, let your eyes adjust, and the gap in the canopy fills with stars.

The reading nook is the room guests write home about. The shelves are full, and the living room is where people end up with a book.

The ocean from the house is a distant glimpse through the trees, so whale watching belongs on the bluff. Gray whales pass from December through April, and Black Point, about 1/4 mile away, is the place to look.

Up to 2 dogs are welcome. The Sea Ranch asks that dogs stay leashed on the trails and in the meadows; the deer and quail were here first.

The three recreation centers are shared with the whole community, so a holiday afternoon at the pool means company.

Exterior lighting is kept low to protect the dark sky. Pack a flashlight for the walk out to the driveway.

Mornings on the forest side start cool, often with fog, and the gas fireplace takes the chill off the living room.

Cell service drops in and out along Highway 1; the house has WiFi.

The smart TV's streaming apps run on your own accounts.

Two bedrooms carry the queen and the double. The two lofts and the study hold the three twins and two sofa beds that bring a group to eight, which is the house cap.