Finding Southport Landing: Our Victorian Restoration Journey Begins

Like many families during the pandemic, our story begins with a search for something different. We were living in the Santa Cruz mountains, raising chickens and goats, trying to balance the demands of Silicon Valley life with our dreams of a more connected way of living. Our days were filled with long commutes, the mounting pressure of Bay Area costs, and the delicate navigation of our daughter's epilepsy diagnosis. Something had to change.

The Search for Home

We had a clear vision of what we needed:

Affordability in an increasingly expensive world
Space for our growing menagerie of animals
Opportunity for income generation
Land for gardens and sustainable living
A community that shared our values

Before the pandemic, I had found joy in hosting visitors through Hip Camp and teaching people about raising goats. This taste of agritourism had planted a seed – could we build a life around connecting people with the land?

Enter Humboldt County

I'd never been to Humboldt before, but throughout my life, people had told me I would fall in love with its rugged beauty. The Lost Coast called to us like a siren song, promising adventure and possibility. During a long weekend visit to see friends and family, we discovered everything we'd been searching for:

A vibrant arts community
Rich architectural history
Bustling farmers markets and farm stands
Deep connection to both land and sea
And perhaps most importantly, affordable living

The Great Migration North

We moved quickly after that. Our house was listed, belongings packed, and difficult decisions made about which animals would make the journey. Soon we found ourselves in Ferndale, a charming town that welcomed both us and our horses while we searched for our forever home.

The House Hunt

The search for our perfect property became a roller coaster of emotions. Offer after offer was outbid, often by others fleeing the Bay Area with similar dreams. Southport Landing kept catching our eye on the market, but it seemed too grand, too ambitious. Yet as rejection followed rejection, we began to think differently. Could this historic bed & breakfast be more than just a home? Could it be the business opportunity we'd been searching for?

We crunched the numbers. They were tight, but doable. Sometimes the best opportunities require us to think bigger than we initially dared.

First Days at Southport Landing

November brought us to our new home, and what a time capsule it was! Our first nights were spent in the Colonial Room, surrounded by moving boxes and years of accumulated history. The house came with not just its own furniture but its own stories, its own character, its own life. Our first project became clear: sorting through years of artifacts and memories, deciding what would become part of our story and what needed to be respectfully retired.

We found ourselves with doubles of everything – a fitting metaphor for the life we were building. One foot in the past, one in the future, creating something entirely new from the beautiful bones of what came before.

This is the first post in our journey of restoring Southport Landing. Follow along as we bring this historic Victorian back to life while creating a sustainable future for our family. Subscribe below to receive updates on our restoration progress and upcoming opportunities to visit the property.

Introductions