Since this was a short house sit, I am writing our experiences as a “Completed House Sit” post.
A couple of months ago, Mark and I came across this one-week house sit in Fairfax while living in Rocklin, CA. While the assignment was much shorter than we prefer, Fairfax is an attractive, up-scale town about an hour north of San Francisco, there were a cute dog and chickens involved and the owners happily selected us as their sitters. Then, about a month later, we received the devastating news that 10-year-old dog Xander had unexpectedly passed away (from the same symptoms as our dog Darwin in 2010). We were shocked about the sad event, but considered the impact and how we would feel if this had happened on our watch. It is the nightmare of every pet sitter! The owners still preferred our involvement, to take care of their seven chickens and have a presence in the house. We obliged.
These chickens are pretty and soft!
Without a “real pet” to attend to, this was one of our easiest house sits, once we climbed the narrow road in our Prius, snaking up to the top of the hill, where the comfortable, renovated home was located. In the mornings, we filled the bird feeders with sugar-water, which was much appreciated by the flock of hummingbirds that frequented the yard and the porch. One evening, during a storm, we counted over 20 at once!
We visited the chickens a few times a day. They were surprisingly soft and social, but, unfortunately, do not lay any eggs this time of the year. We put out food and changed their water in the mornings, brought some of our compost down for a change in diet and swung by to give them love and attention. I really enjoyed petting them. If we were around the whole day, we would let them out of their enclosure to run free. They voluntarily returned to their roost before sunset.
Other responsibilities involved picking up the mail daily, setting out the garbage, compost and recyclables once a week and keeping the house tidy – just what you do when you live a life on land. The owners being tasteful artists meant that there were a lot of gorgeous paintings, creative photographs and interesting books scattered about the house. One of the owners is a writer and her little studio in the yard had a lot of appeal to me. She had a fascinating library in there and it was my hope to lock myself up and don’t come out one day. Since Mark and I are so busy with our jobs and projects, it took me until 3pm the last day, before I entered the cute ex-playhouse for a submersion into fascinating literature. A one-week house sit is way too short!
Cute studio aka playhouse
It rained a lot while we were in Fairfax, which made us a little stir-crazy at times. One afternoon, we decided to walk down the hill to the center of town and walk back up for exercise. This way of traveling revealed a lot of greenery and waterfalls all around us. We also met friends for sushi in town one evening and drove up to Sebastopol, an hour and a half away, to meet the owners of our next long-term house and dog sit. Time flew.
Since we only had one weekend in the area, we needed to make the best of it. We arrived on a Saturday and after settling in and organizing our stuff, Mark and I walked out the front door in the afternoon and followed the last part of the road up the hill. It turned into a trail, winding through the forest and ascending towards a flat and open area at the top. We made a loop hike with nice views and returned home after a couple of hours. It was so nice to just start hiking without needing a car to get there! Being in nature so effortlessly provided a breath of fresh air, literally and figuratively, after three months in the suburbs.
On Sunday, we did use our car and drove to Point Reyes National Seashore. We had a late start because of things out of our control and once in the park (free entrance), we needed to use shuttle buses ($7 per person) to reach the most popular sites. This meant waiting in line and not being totally free to decide where and when to go, but winter is high season here, because of the migration of the gray whales and the presence of many elephant seals. During the week, it is still possible to visit the park everywhere in your own car. We had a nice time watching wildlife, descending and ascending hundreds of steps to the lighthouse and exploring a bit near the Lifeboat Station. There is a whole section of the park we had to skip, so we hope to be back one day for some more hiking and beach walking.
(Little known fact: Drakes Bay, where Point Reyes National Seashore is located, was one of the few anchorages Mark, Darwin, Kali and I visited in 2005, when we had our first boat, a monohull called “F/Our Choice/s”.)
Best feature(s): The location of our temporary home. It allowed us to walk some great trails just outside the door! The presence of this many hummingbirds was special as well. And we developed a new appreciation for chickens.
View from the house
Best gadget(s): Modern appliances. There were some automated systems that tricked us, but we got used to them, as well as the intricate lighting options.
Surprise(s): A cozy, comfortable studio with a wealth of books and character.
Studio
Downside(s): No eggs from the chickens, bad weather and the wooden box with Xander’s ashes. 🙁
To conclude this post, here is a video of some of the elephant seals we encountered at Point Reyes:
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January 27, 2017 at 16:22
What a magical location for a house-sit and so sad they lost their beloved dog. Run free sweet Xander ?
January 30, 2017 at 11:24
It was so sad indeed, Xenia, especially since we felt his presence everywhere. He looked like such a sweet and mellow creature and we wish we could have met him. Hopefully, he is playing with all those dear ones we have lost over the years.
January 27, 2017 at 18:12
Too bad you didn’t get to stay there longer – it looks magical! I’ve always wanted to have chickens but, like other animals, they would present a challenge when we want to travel. I’m so sorry about Xander, but thank goodness it happened before you got there. I want that green studio!
January 30, 2017 at 11:25
Yeah, that studio is a winner! I do wish we had more time on the hill, and in the studio. Mark and I keep saying that if (haha) we ever have a house we would like chickens as well. It appears that neighbors gladly take care of them during trips in return for some fresh eggs. If there are any. 🙂
January 27, 2017 at 19:28
Sounds like a relaxing week. I’ve always wanted to visit Pointe Reyes. Looks lovely.
January 30, 2017 at 11:26
It is a nice – but very touristy – place, any time of the year by the looks of it. We only scratched the surface and want to go back to do some hiking. The views are the nicest part of the park!
January 27, 2017 at 22:58
This really looks like a beautiful location with interesting amenities! Loved the chickens and hummingbirds and that little studio. Sorry to hear about the dog 🙁 Beautiful photos you shot as well! You must be on to your next location!
January 30, 2017 at 11:28
The sit was definitely too short, especially since we had some extracurricular activities planned. We are in Costa Mesa now for two weeks, with two hummingbirds in the yard. These guys don’t seem to be interested in the sugar water, though. 🙂
January 28, 2017 at 00:16
Great photos. Sounds like an excellent assignment…although much too short!
January 30, 2017 at 11:37
Yeah, the short ones feel very different than the long ones. I rarely can get much work done and should approach it more as a “vacation”. 🙂
January 28, 2017 at 11:29
How heartbreaking to have to say goodbye to Xander. Looks like a great location… how lovely to have a garden studio and chickens! I had no idea that chickens didn’t lay eggs all the time.
January 30, 2017 at 11:54
I had no idea about the “chicken seasons” either, Lucy. It is all good experience, though. Taking care of chickens that don’t lay eggs and of a pool in winter, without being able to use it. 🙂
January 28, 2017 at 11:53
This all looks gorgeous. Love the hummingbirds and the chicken.
January 30, 2017 at 11:54
And all are so easy to care for. 🙂
January 28, 2017 at 12:40
Amazing to have hummingbirds in your garden! They’re incredible 🙂
January 30, 2017 at 11:55
They seem to be around quite frequently in California, Jo. Very nice, indeed! We have two in the small yard right now.
January 28, 2017 at 16:24
Beautiful photos and great video! Thank you so much for sharing this lovely tour! 🙂
January 30, 2017 at 12:10
You are so welcome, Linda. Stay tuned for “tours” of other house and pet sits in the future. 🙂
January 30, 2017 at 10:31
Wow what a location! I can see why staying there for a few months would be a lovely option. Perhaps the owners will invite you back one day. Loved the video of the elephant seal. Point Reyes looks like an incredible place to explore.
January 30, 2017 at 12:12
The location was pretty nice, with many interesting things to do in the area. And nice restaurants. 🙂 Maybe we will be back, but knowing us, we like to mix things up a bit and – so far – have not done any return sits. We still hope to make it to BC over the summer…