“With the four of us (2 teenagers) we had a very good time in the comfortable home of Charles and Susan. We stayed for 2 weeks in the quiet mountainside, with San Francisco and the Pacific nearby. We made several trips with the car (necessary) and tours with a rented racing bike. The dog Sally is very friendly and happy with attention. The tomato plants in the big garden provided us nearly every day with a fresh salad. Around the house you can see the deer grazing and grey squirrels climbing the trees. We were happy to be able to meet our hosts before our departure.”
Comfortable Two-Story House near Coast and Mountains -- Santa Cruz/San Francisco
Comfortable Two-Story House near Coast and Mountains -- Santa Cruz/San Francisco
Charles
Joined
Nov 2005
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- 3 Bedrooms
- Sleeps 7
- 2 Bathrooms
About our home
Ours is a comfortable, two-story house on in the Santa Cruz Mountains offering privacy and a sweeping view of Monterey Bay. The property covers about one and a half hectares (just under four acres) and includes outdoor areas to relax in, vegetable gardens, fruit trees in two orchards, and a number of majestic redwood and oak trees. The house is old, for California, built in the 1890's and remodeled numerous times since. It has rustic charm, surprising hidden spaces, many unique features - as well as all typical modern conveniences. On the main floor there is a living room, kitchen, dining room, bedroom, bathroom, and sun room. Upstairs there are two bedrooms and a second bathroom. We often have our meals on the large side deck. One favorite spot is the hammock at the edge of the woodland that extends down below the property. We have a dog, a cat and chickens that need feeding. The dog and cat are outdoors all the time during summer, except that they come indoors at night. Parking is available in the driveway. We would be willing to consider a car exchange.
Features
- Main home
- Central heating
- Cable TV
- Dish washer
- Washing machine
- Dryer
- Balcony
- Equipped for kids
- Parking
- Garden
- Car optional
- No smoking
- Wifi
Charles's reviews
As a host (1)More about us
-
We are Susan and Charles, in our late 60's. We moved 5 years ago to this rural home from Santa Cruz city, and almost daily we discover anew how much we enjoy country living. Our two children are now adults and living on their own, one in San Francisco and one in Washington DC. After working 17 years as a labor and delivery nurse, Susan completed a PhD program in nursing and has been teaching at at San Jose State University for the past 8 years. She's now technically retired but still teaches part-time. Charles retired (fully!) as the manager of a municipal water district several years ago and now spends most of his time working on the property and engaged otherwise non-productively. We both love travelling, and we've now had twelve very successful house exchanges (10 outside the States - Tuscany, London, French Alps, Norway, Pamplona, Lake Como, Ireland, Vicenza, Verona, and the Loire Valley). We've also traveled some in South America, Asia, and north Africa, and we're definitely open to exchanges anywhere in the world. Typically we like "long" exchanges of 3-4 weeks, but we are also open to shorter exchanges for several days to a week within California, nearby states, or the East Coast.
Swap availability
- White
- Open to offers
- Green
- Available
- Red
- Not Available
Where is it?
Neighbourhood
Our house is in a rural area in the low mountains separating the cities of Santa Cruz and San Jose. It is just over an hour's drive north from here to San Francisco and 30 minutes to either downtown Santa Cruz or downtown San Jose, 20 minutes to Los Gatos. Monterey is another 45 minutes south beyond Santa Cruz. A well-stocked local market with butcher and fresh produce is about 5 minutes away, but you have to go to town for other services. A car is advisable (make that necessary!) for getting around.
We do most of our shopping and dining out in Santa Cruz. Santa Cruz is known in some circles as "Surf City" for its place in California surfing lore. With a population of just over 50,000, Santa Cruz is a major tourist destination with numerous beaches, a long coastline, and world-class surf. Tourists also know Santa Cruz for its Boardwalk roller coaster and amusement park. Redwood forests surround the community and offer unlimited hiking and mountain biking opportunities.
Weather on the Monterey Bay coast is mild year-round. Sometimes mornings are foggy but it almost never rains during summer. At an elevation of 650 meters (2,000 feet), our property has summer weather similar to that of San Jose -- much warmer and sunnier than Santa Cruz, Monterey, or San Francisco. The coastal fog rarely reaches us here, though we sometimes see it blanketing the wooded valleys below us.
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