Caitlin was the nicest tour guide. She had us walking through nature and explained a lot about mushroom hunting, and made the experience magic. read more

We went on the short hike adventure. This hike is perfect for someone who is a beginner who hasn't thought about foraging in a forest before. We all learned something new. The guide was very nice and informative. Meeting at one location, then meeting at another 5 minutes away seemed like a time filler. I would recommend just giving a meeting location and starting on time at the location. People should be able to handle going pee and getting coffee on their own before a hike. Seriously, I would consider dropping that part of the tour. For the price I would have hoped for a location that was a little more remote or wooded. We walked 0.5 miles and could see the parking lot the whole time. A great addition would be to make a little helpful hints guide for all of the participants so they can look back and remember the tips. That would make the price seem more worth it. read more

I'm so glad I was able to participate in one of Mountain Sea Adventure's events. Caitlyn was an inclusive guide, who was very knowledgeable about the local trail and ecosystem that we visited. I'll definitely book another adventure again, soon! read more

Caitlyn ran a fantastic foraging workshop for myself and some friends and kids that were in town. I really can't recommend it enough! You'll change the way you walk through the woods and the meadows and give you and your friends terrific memories, and kids new and different things to complain about at the time, and remember forever later. Just fantastic, way beyond anything any of us expected, and something we all keep talking about. Highly recommended! read more

I was randomly looking up for things to do in Santa Cruz for my friend's bachelor party when I came across the Bikes & Brews tour. It turned out to be a perfect fit, especially for people who are from out of town to experience some famous Santa Cruz Breweries (first beer was on them!) as well as stopping at some beautiful vantage point along the shore. Tad (our tour guide) was so welcoming, funny and informative. He gave us a lot of insight into Santa Cruz's natural history and was happy to answer any questions that we had. He was also super chill and extremely flexible in regards to our tour, he offered to stop by Wineries (if you're into that) and even got a chance to visit the Monarch Butterfly Natural Preserve. To reassure any non-avid bikers like myself, I want to just say that the tour is relatively flat (no lie), it has a sufficient amount of stops (the vantage points) where you can catch your breath too. I also appreciated the fact that Tad would always debrief or go over our route throughout the tour. He would tell us what was to be expected coming up and what are some precautions to look out for. TLDR: 11/10 would highly recommend! read more

So we booked and paid in full for my 10 year old son for the floating camp trip. The booking was clumsy and so I called the office. I was given vague confirmation that 'maybe' they got my payment and would call me back. Never happened. I had to follow up getting the info packet multiple times, the admin person Nikki claimed she sent it, but there was no email from her. Long story short, my son showed up at the dock this morning as per the camp instructions only to find another distraught parent calling the MSA to find out what was going on as no boat, no crew in sight. Nikki informed us then, the morning of camp, they had moved the camp to the following week. I checked my emails. Nothing. I checked my voicemails. Nothing. I called the office and Nikki told me she had called the wrong number despite me emailing my contact info on several forms, typed, not handwritten, including dad's number. No email, no voicemail, nothing. We had planned for this camp trip for several months to coincide with me having cancer surgery during this time. Nikki is incompetent and disorganized at best, lied to me at worst. The manager Chad Wycoff is cowardly not answering my calls despite me asking for a full refund. I would not trust this company and their so called camps as far as I can throw a Beluga whale. I'm still waiting to see if I get my refund before taking legal action. I am thankful that my son didn't actually set out to sea with this fly by night organization. I dread to think what may have happened. They need to be shut down as they are a danger to children and the parents who trust them. read more

Caitlin made our hike and foraging tour interactive, hands-on and fun. She is knowledgable about the area, the eco-system and plants. It was a pleasure to spend time learning with Caitlin and experiencing the outdoor with new eyes. read more

Caitlyn was amazing!! We did the mushroom hike with her today and it exceeded our expectations!! Caitlyn is so generous sharing all her knowledge and information. There was so much to learn from her. She taught us about so much more than mushrooms. Foraging is a lost art and she is keeping it alive. Every school should be hiring her for field trips. It was such a sensory experience, the sites, the smells, the tastes. She obviously knows these trails like the back of her hand because she guided us to the most picturesque spots that we would have walked right past. My whole family was amazed by the experience. Thank you Caitlyn. We will be back for another hike. read more

This popped up on Facebook for me. I would not recommend this business at all. I paid a donation for 2 to attend the full moon hike on September 13th. The directions that were in the invitation to the event turned out to be a generic direction to Santa Cruz, not the event itself. I arrived in Santa Cruz around noon and realized I did not have directions to the event so I contacted mountain sea adventures. They didn't call me back until 5:40 and told me it was too late to give me directions because they were leaving at 6. No apology, I know offer to refund While we ended up enjoying our trip to Santa Cruz, I was quite disappointed with missing the hike. Their communication needs work. read more

Rusty and Kirk did a fabulous job with our Company's team building event! We were a group of 20 and they taught us the fundamentals of building extraordinary Sand Castles. We then broke up into teams and had a great competition! I highly recommend Mountain Sea Adventures for your next team building event or group party! So much fun, and now I know how to build epic Sand Castles! read more

We went out on a foraging hike and absolutely loved it! Caitlin was incredibly knowledgeable and had an awesome energy. I will definitely be back to do some mushroom foraging when the season allows! read more

Caitlin helped plan and organize an offsite for me and my team and we had an amazing time! I manage a team of programmers who flew into San Francisco from around the country for a team offsite. Caitlin helped coordinate transport for 13 of us to and from Santa Cruz for a fun day of activities. A few of the people in our group wanted to experience the epic mountain biking in Santa Cruz and she helped arrange for a separate trip for them. For the rest of us, she met us at a bike shop, helped get everyone fitted with beach cruisers and helmets and led us on a beautiful route through the area. We stopped at a few breweries and along the way we saw sea lions, watched some surfers, went by natural bridges and just generally had a great time. The whole day and the route were well thought out and everyone had an awesome time. Thank you Caitlin for the great day! read more

I was invited on a private backpacking trip with 8 other women and the loving hands of Caitlin, our guide. I had never done anything like this before. I thought I was going to cancel ( out of newness, fears of the unknown). Caitlin patiently answered all my questions and sincerely reassured me that I could do it. I work a desk job and definitely had to push myself physically. As my calves were screaming and my body pouring sweat I found myself sweetly tricked into singing, talking with friends and looking around at the beauty of wildflowers and nature all around me. birds, water, trees, camp fire.....The quality of being outdoors, away from everything was a true gift. Caitlin's calmness and love for the outdoors made it so comfortable. I am very grateful for this chance to grow. Caitlin, Thank you for honoring where I was in this new experience and feeding my courage. Your work is so important and beautiful for the soul. read more

Foraging seems intimidating at times, which is why we really valued our hike with Caitlin. She showed us edible plants and techniques for harvesting them. She also brought along prepared dishes from her forage treks. The stinging nettle pesto and candy capped mushroom cookies were divine. Caitlin welcomed all our questions and was overall very approachable. A very relaxing and informative hike. I would definitely go again. read more

Nice weather, new hiking path, lots to look at and eat along the way. Guide was personable and knowledegable. A really pleasant time!

Our Creative Team had an amazing offsite with Caitlin and Mountain Sea Adventures. They arrived on time and in style with a 10 person Sprinter Van to take us to Pie Ranch and ended with hiking and foraging in Butano State Park. Excellent food, adventure and so many laughs. Caitlin is a talented and educated guide who can handle large groups with ease and humor. We learned so much, filled our lungs with beautiful mountain air and had an incredible adventure. OH - and the mushroom cookies. To die for. A perfect treat after a long day. read more

Caitlyn and Sarai create such an amazing container for re-wilding. The 5 day backpacking adventure was so epic and healing. I was able to encounter "non-ordinary reality" with only fasting, nature and solo time in the woods. The river, trees and butterflies spoke to me. I had so many songs and epiphanies come through me simply by being able to rest and just be with the earth. The group of women that went were incredible, the bonding was instant and the transformation that occurred was legendary. Being from Santa Cruz already, I can be sensitive to the amount of "woo-woo" that can be overdone in this town, but it was the perfect amount of intentional ceremony, nothing felt forced, and there was plenty of time for joking around and singing songs about the sillier side of life. I highly recommend the backpack adventures!! The business of life can be so taxing. Everyone needs to remember the connection to nature, to remember who we really are. read more

This is my second time going on a foraging adventure with Caitlin. I just love it! She is the perfect mixture of earthy-crunchy and hip! We learned so much! I took my three kids and everyone had a blast! read more

A really cool experience learning about foliage and mushrooms in northern California. If you're looking for something different and want to connect with nature, this is a great option. read more

It was a fantastic experience hiking in Big Sur on a beautiful sunny day. Caitlin was an awesome tour guide: she is friendly, considerate, and has extension knowledge of wild plants and flowers. We look forward to manh hiking trips with Caitlin in the future. read more

So lucky to have Caitlin giving these foraging tours of our beautiful area! She is extremely knowledegable on plants and was such a joy to spend the afternoon learning about our eco-system and the numerous edible plants that surround us. read more

Caitlin hosted a weekend camping, hiking and surfing trip in Big Sur that I booked for my husband's birthday (as a surprise). He was so happy and had such a great time. We surfed, ate, rambled around finding secret spots with Caitlin, ate some more, and did a big hike and a couple of smaller waterfall hikes. She taught us about edible and medicinal plants and had an infectious thirst for exploring and discovering trails into the Ventana wilderness. Caitlin's cooking is amazing and our son who joined us Saturday night didn't even realize that it was vegetarian We feel so lucky to experience the joy and beauty of getting away from it all and sinking into the deep redwoods with Caitlin. read more

Caitlin was an amazing guide for our mushroom foraging and hike. Knowledgeable, friendly, and able to answer all of our questions and make the day truly enjoyable. I would not hesitate to use Mountain Sea Adventures for any future team events and would highly recommend it to anyone looking to do something different and fun with colleagues, friends, or family! read more

I thoroughly enjoyed my time with the relaxed and enthusiastic Caitlin and Tad on our Forest Foraging excursion this past weekend. Caitlin is super knowledgeable about the fungus among us and other edible/non edible plants. also she was able to say "i don't know" if she was unsure and make a note of it to find out later. i appreciate that honesty...Oh yeah, and she made us some food from her own foraging trips and treated us like old friends. it was a great way to spend my day, and i would hop on the next M. S. A train any day. Thank you again Caitlin and Tad! lots of love read more

I truly enjoyed my adventure day with Mountain Sea. The guides were great, courteous and friendly while being totally professional. We learned a ton about the Santa Cruz area, we explored redwoods, beaches and even foraged for some wild food along the way. Caitlin's (owner) enthusiasm was contagious...it was so fun, highly recommended! read more

I attended a Mountain Sea Adventure as part of a department offsite. Our group had an AMAZING time. The quality of the trip is what made the difference - from the people we learned from, right down to the chilled Perrier in the car on the way back. And, I can't say enough about Caitlin - she is an expert at what she does (not to mention hilarious!) It was the best offsite in my professional life. read more