Emandal-A Farm on a River…..
located on the Eel River, 16 miles northeast of Willits, California, about 140 miles north of San Francisco, is a mountain home, a diversified farm, a family camp, a retreat for art folk and friends, a country get-a-way, a space for special events and a purveyor of award winning jams, jellies and preserves. For Directions to the farm, click here.
Emma Byrnes, 2nd from the left, and Alfred Byrnes, 3rd from the left, circa 1913.
In 1908, Em and Al Byrnes
acquired property along the Eel River, 16 miles from the nearest town of Willits. Soon thereafter, they offered the country experience to friends and relations who wished to get away from the hustle and bustle of city life. They built their home, a barn, numerous out buildings, cabins, furniture… planted pasture, orchards, gardens…. created an oasis in the oak, fir and madrone clad hillsides.
In 1946, Clive and Jessie Adams bought Emandal Farming Resort from them, and brought their family of three sons to the farm from southern California to continue their traditions, while adding many of their own.
Once grown, their youngest son, Clive, Jr. opted to stay, marry, and raise four children, at Emandal-A Farm on a River. Today Tamara Adams, following in the footsteps of her in-laws and her late husband, continues at the helm, ably assisted by her daughter Kashaya Adams. Tamara and Clive’s other children and their families, Buffalo, Zarya and Malanyon, return periodically to augment year-round and seasonal staff with various projects and special events.
Now, instead of just summer occupation, we encourage people to come at other times of the year as well, to stay in unique self-contained houses…. to experience the roiling river, the spring wild flowers, the colorful autumn leaves, the occasional snow storm. Register for off-season House
Not just as guests, but as Willing Hearted Workers….. off-season weekends geared towards people who have been here before and want to pitch in…… and summer time weeks or partial weeks for former staff/friends/relatives/etc. who would like to come to the farm for a working retreat.
Emandal is more than a place on a map,
a destination to which families journey in the summer. Emandal is an attitude. Emandal goes beyond playing in the river or putting on campfire skits or triumphing in Trivial Pursuit. It’s a community… it’s sharing the load of everyday life… acknowledging the struggles and pitfalls, embracing the joys and the milestones.
Emandal has been, and still is a gathering place. Generations of families and friends have been coming to Emandal each summer for over 100 years, always learning just a bit more about the other, finding out, perhaps, why we are the way we are… Family Camp ArtStays at Emandal
We are here so that others may come to experience time with friends, family, neighbors, co-workers……writers, artists, musicians, quilters, crafters, birders, nature journalists, dyers….. all who enjoy sharing their time and passions with others.
We preserve, provide, nurture, pursue, orchestrate, care for, sustain, prepare….. so that people can come and revel, reflect, regale and/or regenerate.
To secure your time(s) on the farm, register here. Summer on the Farm ArtStays on the Farm
Pizzas and Wreaths! On Saturday, November 28, 2026, join us on the farm for PIZZAS AND WREATHS! We’ll have pizza to eat from 10am until 3pm…… the same time frame in which we’ll have greens and rings and our wreath-making machines set up for you to create a unique holiday beauty! Click here for more information!
Contact Us
with questions, ideas, thoughts. If you’d prefer, email: tamara@emandal.com