Hotel California

The weather remained lovely (sunny and warm) as we drove down the California coast so we made numerous stops for short hikes out to lighthouses and sightseeing. The sea lions and surfers were also enjoying the moment, especially in the Port Arena and Salt Point beach areas. We stopped staying in State Parks once we arrived in California because the daily rates jumped from $12-17 to $35.........with the state nearing bankruptcy Arnold wanted to close some of the parks to save money but protests started and the decision was made to hike the rates at all state parks in order to increase revenues that would then offset the losses. Unfortunately, it has had the opposite effect.......people like ourselves don't see much point in paying more to stay in a state park when they can stay in a RV park where you also get all the services that the state parks don't provide (electrical, water, cable, wi-fi). We can get by without those extra services, and did so in Washington and Oregon in order to appreciate the nicer scenery and hiking that is often available, but Arnold has found the breaking point where it seems to be a lose-lose situation. He has fallen out of favour (with the locals we talked to) and people seem to be looking forward to the end of his term a year from now.
We have spent the last 4 days in wine country. The Russian River and Sonoma areas continue to be our favourites, moreso than Napa. The wineries are smaller and the conversations with the hosts are more sincere which seems to make the wine taste even better........at least for Rhonda on this trip as I continued in my role as DD with some tastings of the sweeter varietals (and perhaps a few others for a taste bud sense check!). Our best experiences were at:
- Family Wineries, near Healdsburg, a co-op venture of 4 smaller family wineries, where we had a very entertaining time with our host Sean and a pair of lifelong buddies from Atlanta (Eddy and Dan). The wines were lovely and we had lunch in their picnic area which had a great view and included a bocci area and a garden where guests were encouraged to pick the flowers.
- Chateau St. Jean in Sonoma, a return visit to one of our favourites. After keeping Rhonda under control for a few days (buying several bottles a day), the Cinq Cepages Cabernet won her heart (I was even able to get a little enjoyment out of a brief taste....an encouraging sign), and a half-case of the 2005 vintage was purchased.
- Jessup in Yountville, a very small winery in the Napa area. Our complimentary tasting, becoming more rare all the time, included a tray of cheeses and dried fruits to pair with the $30-60 wines we sampled, and some chocolate to go with the 2 port style wines that they produce. A bottle of the zinfandel port was acquired to help me along with my taste bud journey.
We have settled in for the night at an RV park a few miles north of the Golden Gate bridge. On Saturday we will drive into San Francisco for the day and walk around the city before heading to the Stephen Kellogg concert in the evening which we are looking forward to. Our next post will likely come from the Death Valley area where we hope to do some hiking (to help work off the chocolate and port).

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