Hitchcock’s heroine Tippi Hedren made Bodega Bay famous. Instead of being host to aggressive man-eating birds, it is known as a haven for animals, only a flap of a wing from Hedren’s Shambala Preserve.
Thanks to Alfred Hitchcock, one can never think of a flock of birds in the same way. No longer beacons of peace and serenity, his infamous movie The Birds made fear of the feathered and winged creatures an epidemic. It is the stuff of which nightmares are made. The film was set in Bodega Bay, and today, year round it attracts visitors to the location of its most infamous scenes. Two noteworthy landmarks are the Potter’s School House and St.
Theresa’s Church in Bodega 5 1/2 miles south east of Bodega Bay. As Graceland is for Elvisites, for Hitchcock buffs, this is the promised land.
To celebrate the 40th Anniversary of the film, The Bodega Bay Lodge + Spa is part of a year-long fund raiser for The Roar Foundation/Shambala Preserve, an animal refuge foundation founded by The Birds’ leading lady, Tippi Hedren. Honoring the beautiful actress who made the community famous, the lodge pledges a donation to the Preserve each time Ocean Club Suites are booked at published rates.
Shambala’s bird sanctuary reaches across to the Bodega Bay Lodge. According to Blake Drescher, Executive Director of the Chamber of Commerce, Bodega Bay has a very unique environment. The Audubon Society has reported that the endangered snowy plover and many other migratory birds have been spotted in the area, including egrets, brown pelican, quail, great blue heron, long-billed curlew, snowy egrets, hawks, Falcons, raven, and wild turkeys.
The Preserve stretches 60 miles from the Mojave Dessert to Doran Beach, and is where seventy animals call their home, including African lions, Siberian tigers, Bengal tigers, leopards, snow leopards, mountains lions, lynx, Florida panther, cheetah, and one African elephant.
Animals abound in the community of Bodega. Bodega Head is popular for whale watching from January through April, and during the Spring months, sea lions and seals can be found barking in the bay all day long.
The internationally known UC Davis Marine Facility Lab has public tours 10-2 on Fridays. They permit people to go through their preserve as long as stay on the trail. Other popular hikes are along the coast of Bodega Head up through Bodega dunes.
Although the feel is Mediterranean, Bodega Bay is located on the Pacific Coast 68 miles North of San Francisco. This terrific town has tons to offer the traveler who loves the outdoors. Any day on the waterfront you can participate in fish-ing, kayaking, surfing, and sailing. The town motto: Relax, rejuvenate, play.
Bodega Bay Lodge and Spa is the only Four Diamond Resort in the area. The lodge also offers full service spa, heated outdoor pool and panoramic views of the coast.
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