 |
| Landmark #939-7 | Sonoma County | Visited: August 13, 2016 | Plaque? YES! 🙂 |
| What is it? | A whole garden of castles and walkways pieced together from stones! |
| What makes it historical? | THE GUIDE SAYS: “Trying to make it look better,” John Medica spent 20 years transforming a barren hillside into a magical garden of plants and creative stone works. Castles were his greatest triumph. A native of Yugoslavia, self-taught, Medica created an oasis for people and animals to enjoy. This imaginative assemblage is one of California’s remarkable Twentieth Century Folk Art Environments.
OTHER TIDBITS: The plaque’s caption was written during the Soviet era. Today, we would call Mr. Medica’s home country Slovenia! |
| How can I Help the Helpers? | HERE’S HOW:
|
| Where is this place? | LISTED DIRECTIONS: 5000 Medica Rd Off Stonespring Rd in a gated community Santa Rosa, CA 95405 ANNOTATIONS: From Los Angeles: ~431mi (694km) — 7.2hrs |
| When should I go? | I got lucky when I visited here, because after twenty minutes of wandering around the outside of the fence like one super suspicious beaver, I was able to ask someone as they were entering the gate if I could visit the garden. They were very nice, but my odds of running into them were very small! You could always try during the hours when folks normally come home from work or on weekends, but even so, there’s no guarantee you’ll get in! |
I have lived in Santa Rosa for over 35 years and have visited Spring Lake Park and Annadel regularly. Recently, with the shelter in place directive, I’ve been cycling around hilly sections of Santa Rosa and I saw Medica Rd. near Howarth Park. Never went up there, but decided to check out on google where and how far it went. What a surprise to find out about this garden. I will try and visit it soon – if possible.
It’s a really neat place if you can get access! I hope you have lots of luck with it!