Manka’s Inverness Lodge in California
I think the perfect vacation would be a drive along Highway 1 in California. I grew up in Southern California, but usually we were headed somewhere fast, so a leisurely drive up the coast is something I’ve never done. Now I have another stop to add to my dream road trip. Manka’s is located in Inverness, California (north of San Francisco). The town was a summer resort for people in San Francisco and Oakland in the early 1900s. Manka’s consists of three properties tucked into the hills of Inverness. The centerpiece of the hotel is a 1917 hunting and fishing lodge. Meghan McEwen of Designtripper (an awesome site for finding hotel gems all over the world) just returned from a stay at Manka’s. She’s sharing a few photos with us today and there are more on Designtripper. Thanks, Meghan! -Amy
I’ve been slow, reluctant even, to write about our stay at Manka’s — a beloved hunting-lodge-turned-retreat in Inverness — perhaps because I want to draw out the experience of being there, or prevent it from being discovered — already a hopelessly lost cause. It’s no secret, this spot. Far from it, in fact, considering every magazine you know by name has piled heaps of praise at its rustic wooden stilts. And yet, tucked into the evergreens along a beautiful slice of Tomales Bay, it still manages to feel secretive, humble and immensely special.
This is a testament to owner Margaret Grade, who bought the property (a hunting lodge and a handful of cabins, including the boathouse where we stayed). It was called Manka’s then, too — a nickname for the previous owner’s wife (it means Little Rascal in Polish). Margaret spruced up the interiors. And by spruced up, I mean totally revamped with just-right amenities like a soaking tub, an outdoor shower and the comfiest twin leather armchairs in front of the hearth made of salvaged wood. The decor is an homage to the structure’s original function: vintage fishing nets, worn wooden oars and a collection of black-and-white photos that link the place to its past.
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