MaryGo

Downton Abbey Fans…

…get your tickets today, they are going fast. OK, I admit it, I watched every minute (some more than once) of the most popular television drama in history. Everything about the series was “brilliant,” as the Brits would say. My favorite part are the costumes. The craftsmanship, fabrics, and fittings are excellent. The designs are romantic…

2017- My Favorite Photos

Prolific doesn’t say enough when it comes to my photography. I take 1000s of pics in a year. 2017 was photo-op filled from my travels around the country. California, Oregon, Florida, Washington DC (twice), Chicago, New York City, and all the states between Chicago and San Francisco filled my travel card in 2017. I traveled…

Choose Your Route to Machu Picchu

In 2018 I’ll begin featuring guest writers & photographers from time-to-time. My first guest writer is Mila Whitman, Editor of Travel Belles, mountain climber, trecker, and adventure traveler. Enjoy her article below, on choosing the right trek to Machu Picchu. Choose Your Route to Machu Picchu Towering over the Peruvian Andes since the 1450s, Machu…

Top-10 Stories For 2017

What a year. 100s of photos, 1000s of words, 12,000 miles or more, and lots of adventure. 2017 has been my best journalist year, life-changing in fact. I didn’t see my work in any of my publishers 2017 top story lists. I decided to review my efforts for the year and name ten of my…

Ridin’ the Rails

The most interesting people travel by train… …I know, I met them on the trip of a lifetime, coast to coast on Amtrak. Four nights and four days. Jacksonville Florida to San Francisco California aboard three remarkable train routes; Silver Meteor, Capitol Limited, and California Zephyr. The trip was my return home from a week…

The Original American Beach – Daytona Beach Florida

A Weekend in Daytona Beach… Since the 1920s, it’s been a vacation destination for folks escaping frigid northern winters. Today it hosts visitors year-round that come for sun, nature, and beach-life. Cars on the beach, NASCAR, amusement piers, buzzy bars, condos and hotels. That’s one side of Daytona Beach. Another is plantations, grand winter homes, empty……

Wavey Days

I can hear the surf from my house. I can see it from my yard. But I don’t need to see the Pacific to know when the surf is big. I can hear it. It booms and roars. Have your own wavey day, enjoy the slideshow. –MaryGo All photos along the Mendocino Coast in northern California….

Share Our Coast

We love to share our coast, especially in Fort Bragg California. Come visit the Mendocino Coast. Thanks for stopping by, MaryGo

Meet Steve…

Tucked into a corner of a seven-acre, blimp-hanger, Steve Schramm’s lifetime collection of WWII battle scenes is the newest exhibit at Tillamook Air Museum. A 20’x80’ space with three levels, is home to Steve’s mesmerizing collection. Last spring, I spent five weeks in Oregon. I wandered, explored, photographed and tasted. I love Oregon and…

OREGON’S TILLAMOOK BAY, A WEEKEND SEAFOOD SAFARI — Short Weeks – Long Weekends

“The seafood is so fresh, some call it hook-to-mouth!” Oregon’s Pacific coast produces extraordinary food. Fish, meat, dairy, fruit and veg are plentiful. The Oregon Coast food world is tasty to explore. Tillamook Bay is celebrated for seafood. The region harvests oysters, crab, shrimp, salmon, albacore, halibut, steelhead, lingcod and more. These delights can be caught……

Going to OZ…

“We grow food for the community. We grow ourselves. We grow farmers.” My first instinct was to pick an apple from the fence where they were trained to grow. A thousand shades of green, an earthy sweet smell, the sound-track of birdsong echoing slightly in the woods; all were punctuated by saws sawing, hammers hammering…

Prime Weekend Territory…

…Tualatin Valley Oregon Mt. Hood peaks between the hills from time-to-time. Along two-lane backroads, you’re occasionally slowed by a tractor. Barns, livestock, orchards, farms, and vineyards dress the rolling hills. U-pick fields, farm stands, tasting rooms and cyclist pop-up along the way. You’ll easily forget a busy city is a few miles away. Less than…

My secret beach house stay…

…on St Augustine Beach Florida. White sand dunes and sea oats, sea turtle nest and gentle surf, afternoon clouds swelling across the Atlantic horizon. All are standard on NE Florida’s coast. The uncrowded beaches are just a bit quieter, especially in summer. I stayed in one of St Francis Inn’s secret beach houses. Located on a beach trail…

Paddle or Peddle…

…explore Mendocino Coast Stanford Inn’s Catch A Canoe and Bicycles Too, have rented and sold wind-powered, people-powered and solar-powered transportation options since 1972. At their store and docks on Big River, you can find a trail guide, bicycle, kayak, canoe or outrigger. They’ll give you expert help for exploring Big River, Mendocino coast, inland trails…

JAX

Jacksonville Florida is a big city… …in fact, geographically, it’s the country’s largest. Located on St. Johns River and the Atlantic Ocean, it’s one of America’s major seaports, hosting two US Naval bases. Water surrounds three sides of Jacksonville; ocean, river and wetlands. Beaches, boating, fishing and watersports are some of the best ways to…

A1A sunrise…

Put the top down, slide on your movie star shades, let your hair fly. Your mission, road trip, 100-miles of Florida’s coast. A1A meanders down Florida’s Atlantic coast. It zigzags frequently, crossing the Intercostal Waterway, jumping between the mainland and narrow islands sitting like dots and dashes just off-shore. It links towns and cities to…

Best Hotel Ever

Hotel Palms is one of the best places I’ve stayed – anywhere. If you’re headed to Jacksonville Florida, stay at Hotel Palms in Atlantic Beach. It’s unlike any place you’ll ever stay. The night I was there was neighborhood movie night. Guest and neighbors watched a movie in the Palm’s courtyard. Local made food, coffee,…

Afternoon on the pier…

Crabby Joe’s is an eatery and fishing pier on Daytona Beach Florida. In June 2017, I spent an afternoon there, eating fresh grooper, drinking seabreezes and chatting with the folks fishing off the pier and waiting out the building thunderstorm.

Aquarium

Oregon Coast Aquarium, Newport Oregon

i Flew at iFly

April and May were filled with my Great Oregon Road Trip. I spent five weeks immersing myself in Oregon, its people, food, history and nature. It will take months to write about it all. Here is one little bit I just had to share… Thanks for stopping by, MaryGo

What I learned in Buenos Aires (and why I’m going back) — John Bechtel Writer

I’m pleased to share this story from fellow travel writer, John Bechtel. He’s living the dream. Maybe you’d like to follow his adventures. This writer, recording observations from travelers from 42 countries that he met over six months in Puerto Limon Hostel, barrio of San Telmo, Buenos Aires, Argentina. He returns there in three weeks…

Going to the next level…

I write for this exciting and ethical magazine. It’s a privilege to have my community and my work featured. Clare and crew are ready to take the publication to the next level. They need a little help. Learn where ITM is headed and how they’ll get there. Give them a hand if you can at ~ Immersion Travel…

Sail Through History

Sailing Through History with TSCA Published May 23, 2017 by Immersion Travel Magazine

Down by the river…

…it’s the morning of day 11 ~ Great Oregon Road Trip. The first sound I hear is a songbird welcoming sunrise. The Nehalem flows silently past my door a few yards away. The glassy water wears a mirror reflection of the old bridge crossing the Nehalem. A pair of Mallards glide past, breaking the surface with…

Early morning Elk…

…Elk California

Great Oregon road trip

My great Oregon road trip needs a list for my lists… I’m headed north on April 22, 2017. I’ll be driving to Oregon where I’ll spend five weeks roaming and wandering, getting to know the people and places that call my neighboring state home. My solo trip will take me to a writer’s conference in Salem,…

“I’m just stringing along.”

Yesterday, I became a stringer… The Independent Coast Observer, published in Gualala California, asked me to replace a retiring reporter. I’ll be researching, writing and photographing feature stories. Wow, I feel like I’ve finally earned the journalist badge I wear. April 2017 will mark 48-years this small town weekly has served Mendonoma coast. (Mendonoma is…

I love this magazine…

…Word of Mouth Magazine, a Mendocino County homegrown treasure. To publish a print magazine in this ‘send it to my screen’ age we’ve created, takes nerves of steel. Giving unbiased coverage to the many, many sources of sustainable, organic, clean and local food is genius. Holly Madrigal and her team of magazine-producing heroes keep us in…

Travel Hack – Cold and cough therapy

Cough and cold relief when traveling… What could be worse than a cold or cough on that vacation you’ve waited all year for? Or the business trip that you couldn’t cancel? My favorite treatment is mint inhalation for a cold or cough. At home, I get a large bowl of steamy water, add mint oil,…

Become a part of the art…

…people needed for A Portrait of Mendocino Village San Francisco based projection artist, Ben Wood, will be working in Mendocino California on March 3rd & 4th. He’ll be creating and prepping for, A Portrait of Mendocino Village, an after dark, projected art installation celebrating the community, its people and spaces. Ben is working with Mendocino Art Center to…

Hospitality + Hospital + Haunted

Grey Whale Inn Offers History Tours By: Mary Charlebois Originally published by Fort Bragg-Mendocino Coast Packet, February 1, 2017 Once a hospital, the Grey Whale Inn now welcomes visitors to thirteen spacious and distinctive guest rooms. Made entirely of old-growth redwood, the 3-story, craftsman-style building still sports all original hand-crafted interior walls, woodwork and ramps…

10 Surprising things to do on the Mendocino Coast

Over 100-miles of coastline form the west side of Mendocino County. Most is remote, skirted by CA Hwy 1 and inhabited only by Mother Nature. It’s said you come here for wildlife, waves, wilderness and wine and you return for the people. On the Mendocino coast, you’ll unplug, unwind and slow down. There’s lots to…

Riding a skunk to glory…

“All aboard for Rodgers, Summit, Crowley, Clare Mill, Burbeck, Shake City, Irmulco and Northspur.” On a cold and rainy January morning, in Willits California, I boarded the Northspur Flyer, otherwise known as Skunk Train. Diesel locomotive #64 pulled out of the depot with 11 passengers, one engineer, one conductor and one hostess on board. The…

Tour America’s Greenest Wine Region

A tour of six green, Mendocino County wineries… I’m extremely honored for my work accepted by Immersion Travel Magazine. My first story with IT, ‘Tour America’s Greenest Wine Region’, was published December 22, 2016. My second story, ‘California’s Mendocino Coast: The possibilities are countless’, goes live in January 2017. I hope you enjoy my story…

Eat a neighborhood…

Only 3-hours in San Francisco? Eat a Neighborhood… Published in ByWAYS Magazine, December 19, 2016 – Words and photos by Mary Charlebois Food is the key to knowing any city. Submerge yourself in one of San Francisco’s 27 diverse neighborhoods and eat your way through. In three hours, you will learn about food, history, culture,…

Get your Masters in Bourbon…

Where do you start with over 250 bourbons to choose from? “Start with the A’s”… Click below to see the full story. Get a Masters in Kentucky Bourbon Tasting in New Orleans Published by Travel Post Monthly, December 1, 2016. Story & photos by Mary Charlebois, MaryGo

Eden

We truly live in Eden on the Mendocino Coast…

Have this garden for lunch..

Redwood Coast Senior Center’s Kitchen Garden produces over 3,000 pounds of fruit and veggies each year… Thanks Fort Bragg-Mendocino Coast Packet for publishing my story and photos in the November 2016 issue.

A Great American Road

ByWAYS Magazine just named Hwy 1 along California’s Mendocino Coast, a ‘Great American Road’. Working on this story was a true labor of love. I worked on it for years without even knowing I’d be selected as its writer. I moved to this area in 2005. Since then I’ve spent untold hours photographing and…

The Park Has Art III

Armstrong Park ~ New Orleans Turn up the volume and click the video. The music is pure New Orleans. Just off the French Quarter, across Rampart Street, in the Treme neighborhood, lies Armstrong Park. New Orleans has dedicated this stately common to Louis Armstrong, the great jazz trumpeter. Louis isn’t the only musician honored here….

Under the radar on Mendocino coast…

Wildlife, waves, wilderness, and wine. That’s why you go to the Mendocino Coast… Click below to enjoy my story published by GoNOMAD October 1, 2016. The story contains my words, photos, videos, sounds, and maps. I’m especially proud of this story, it’s my hometown. –MaryGo Mendocino Coast ~ Three Adventures In Nature Thanks for stopping by, MaryGo

Eye to eye with giants…

Thank you, Fort Bragg-Mendocino Coast Packet, for publishing my story about B Bryan Preserve in Point Arena, California. Locals can take the day and go for an African safari near home. Visitors to the area – make the spectacular B Bryan Preserve one of your stops. Here is the text of the story in a bit…

See you at the Fair…

89th Mendocino County Fair and Apple Show Sept 16, 17, 18 This story appears in the September issue of Fort Bragg-Mendocino Coast Packet. I’m pleased to use Debra Eloise’s photos to illuminate my words here and in the Packet. Each year this wonderful photographer focuses on a different part of the fair. Her photos are…

Arena Cove

A hoist is necessary to launch a boat into Arena Cove… Boats are driven to the hoist on trailers. The hoist lifts them up, swings over the water and lowers the vessel. Reverse to take a boat out. I loved watching this precarious looking operation from the deck of the Chowder House. It was good…

Now that’s a bridge…

Albion River Bridge crosses Albion River on Mendocino Coast, carrying Hwy 1 on its back… Built in 1944, it’s the last remaining wooden bridge on California Hwy 1. The bridge is scheduled to be replaced between 2018 and 2021. Some folks don’t want to see it go. A campaign to place the wooden deck truss bridge on…

Which do you prefer…

Two vehicles passing on Hwy 1, Mendocino Coast. Which would you prefer for a tour? Thanks for stopping by, MaryGo

Along Hwy 1

Summertime often brings fog to the Mendocino Coast… Fog moving in along Hwy 1, between Navarro River and Elk California. Photographer: Mary Charlebois, MaryGo When the temperatures soar in the valleys to the east of the Coastal Range, our temps drop and the Marine Layer moves to shore. Some days are an ever-changing coastal…

10-Mile Bridge…

Mendocino Coast has many, many bridges. Old, new, scenic, and barley noticeable… 10-Mile River enters the Pacific about 10 miles north of Fort Bragg California. Hwy 1 crosses the bridge and meanders on to the north along the coast. This is one of the newest bridges in Mendocino County and one of the most scenic….

Mendocino County, America’s Greenest Wine Region

Mendocino County leads the nation in organic vineyard acreage. We are often called America’s greenest wine region.

GoNOMAD, Info Traveler’s Use

GoNOMAD is a traveler’s information hub. You’ll find well written, informative stories about global destinations. The authors have been there and know their subject well. Photos and videos are used to illustrate each feature. GoNOMAD recently published a story by one of my favorite writers, Kurt Jacobson. I hope you enjoy… A Mid-Winter Adventure In Japan…