October 10, 2004
It was Sunday morning about 6 am when I popped out of bed. It was still dark and the apartment was quiet. I dressed and slipped out and headed over to the Coffeetopia for some caffeine and the morning paper, expecting Nancy to join me in about an hour. We had decided to head north to Ft. Bragg at about nine, so we had time to luxuriate over breakfast a bit. We figured that it would be a 4 to 5 hour drive, since our route would take us on 101 through San Francisco and across the Golden Gate Bridge, through the Napa and Sonoma wine producing areas and into Mendocino County where we would cut over west and be back to the beach.
Nancy turned up a bit earlier than I thought she would, and by eight thirty we were all packed and ready to go--so we got an early start. It turned into a sunny day, and since it was Sunday, the traffic was light and it didn't take long to cruise past San Jose and hit the outskirts of San Francisco. The 101 route through San Francisco joins old route 1 on the west side near the beach. Sunday morning traffic was leisure bound, and heaviest around Golden Gate Park near the Haight district. We passed through the canopy of leaves in Presidio Park and found ourselves on the Golden Gate Bridge, which on this bright day provided a panorama of sails in the Bay, great views of Alcatraz and Angel Islands, each with a wisp of fog hanging over them , and the skyline of the City. In the distant background was the Bay Bridge, which was like an echo of the Golden Gate, and connected the City to the rest of the world to the east.
The Golden Gate Bridge on Sundays becomes a park, with bicyclists in their tight shorts and bright shirts pedaling across the west side pathway to Sausalito and back, and hikers and joggers on the east pedestrian walkway, weaving through tourists who had the time to park at the Presidio and walk out on the Bridge a ways to take pictures of it all.
We drove past Mill Valley, San Rafael, Novato, Petaluma, and hills covered with manicured vines, barren of grapes, but with leaves turned yellow from the autumn frosts, and finally past Santa Rosa to a stop in Healdsburg for gas and Sunday "brunch"!
Healdsburg is the center of the Sonoma wine region , and while a small town of a few thousand people, it reflects the richness of the area, and caters to the wine lovers who come to tour the many wineries in the area. Once sated with the grape, the wine enthusiasts spend lots of money in one or more of the many art galleries, upscale boutiques and shops, or the many fine restaurants located in the quaint downtown area.
A small square in the middle of the downtown business district, with trees, benches, and grass provided space for R&R. It was early Sunday afternoon and the local knitting store was sponsering a "knit out" right in the park, with a dozen or so knitters busily clicking needles together making scarves, socks or perhaps something more complicated, like a sweater. Nancy was excited to see that group and spent some time talking to the "leader" of the pack, who was sitting at a small table with a "troubleshooter" sign on it . Nancy got direction to the local kitting and fabric shop, and of course spent some time sorting through and picking out something to carry away in a bag, while I hung around outside watching the rhythm of the street. A young guy and his girl friend drove up and parked a completely refurbished 1959 2-door Chevrolet hardtop right in front of me, left it unlocked with the windows down and went off somewhere. It was that kind of town!
We had brunch of eggs and pancakes and toast at a very family oriented restaurant across from the park. Lots of kids, carbs, and more coffee! And we were off northward up 101!
Another 60 miles or so, past Ukiah, we exited 101 to take Rte 20 to Ft Bragg. It was designated a "scenic" route, which I soon decided meant, "a very curvy road up and down and around mountains surrounded by trees." It was 36 miles to Ft Bragg on this road, which basically was a series of "S" turns winding through the coastal range. It was "scenic" however!
We got into Ft Bragg about 4 pm. It was "dead" on Sunday afternoon. We had a couple recommendations for B&Bs from Nancy's guide books, and found an old, slightly beat up, but very large "Rendevous Inn B&B" right at the end of the main street (Old Rte 1). We were ready to park so we swung in the back lot. The owner's cat greeted us at the back door, and reminded Nancy that she all ready missed her cat, Hallie! So this cat got the benefit of her attention before we went in to check out the place. Since it was past the tourist season, there was a room at the inn.
The owner of the Inn was a chef that had been trained in France, and had cooked at some very nice restaurants here and there. He and his wife had bought the Inn as a "project" a few years ago, and had opened a restraurant in the Inn which was well known in the area. It seemed to me that the Inn still had a lot of "project" left in it, and I wondered about the restaurant! But it was getting late, we were newly arrived, nor did we know where to go for dinner that night. Looking at the menu, it looked interesting, but surprisingly expensive!! I hoped that the owner was much better in the kitchen than he was at working on the "project" Inn, which, while an interesting house, was still pretty threadworn in most rooms.
Ah well, we were on vacation!! So we decided to splurge and dine downstairs. The meal was very good, the wine was nice, and the service was ok. But for a small town the meal with wine and tip had a big town price, $125!! We decided that if the weather was good, we would try to camp out for the next couple of nights, and eat out in nature!!
It was Sunday morning about 6 am when I popped out of bed. It was still dark and the apartment was quiet. I dressed and slipped out and headed over to the Coffeetopia for some caffeine and the morning paper, expecting Nancy to join me in about an hour. We had decided to head north to Ft. Bragg at about nine, so we had time to luxuriate over breakfast a bit. We figured that it would be a 4 to 5 hour drive, since our route would take us on 101 through San Francisco and across the Golden Gate Bridge, through the Napa and Sonoma wine producing areas and into Mendocino County where we would cut over west and be back to the beach.
Nancy turned up a bit earlier than I thought she would, and by eight thirty we were all packed and ready to go--so we got an early start. It turned into a sunny day, and since it was Sunday, the traffic was light and it didn't take long to cruise past San Jose and hit the outskirts of San Francisco. The 101 route through San Francisco joins old route 1 on the west side near the beach. Sunday morning traffic was leisure bound, and heaviest around Golden Gate Park near the Haight district. We passed through the canopy of leaves in Presidio Park and found ourselves on the Golden Gate Bridge, which on this bright day provided a panorama of sails in the Bay, great views of Alcatraz and Angel Islands, each with a wisp of fog hanging over them , and the skyline of the City. In the distant background was the Bay Bridge, which was like an echo of the Golden Gate, and connected the City to the rest of the world to the east.
The Golden Gate Bridge on Sundays becomes a park, with bicyclists in their tight shorts and bright shirts pedaling across the west side pathway to Sausalito and back, and hikers and joggers on the east pedestrian walkway, weaving through tourists who had the time to park at the Presidio and walk out on the Bridge a ways to take pictures of it all.
We drove past Mill Valley, San Rafael, Novato, Petaluma, and hills covered with manicured vines, barren of grapes, but with leaves turned yellow from the autumn frosts, and finally past Santa Rosa to a stop in Healdsburg for gas and Sunday "brunch"!
Healdsburg is the center of the Sonoma wine region , and while a small town of a few thousand people, it reflects the richness of the area, and caters to the wine lovers who come to tour the many wineries in the area. Once sated with the grape, the wine enthusiasts spend lots of money in one or more of the many art galleries, upscale boutiques and shops, or the many fine restaurants located in the quaint downtown area.
A small square in the middle of the downtown business district, with trees, benches, and grass provided space for R&R. It was early Sunday afternoon and the local knitting store was sponsering a "knit out" right in the park, with a dozen or so knitters busily clicking needles together making scarves, socks or perhaps something more complicated, like a sweater. Nancy was excited to see that group and spent some time talking to the "leader" of the pack, who was sitting at a small table with a "troubleshooter" sign on it . Nancy got direction to the local kitting and fabric shop, and of course spent some time sorting through and picking out something to carry away in a bag, while I hung around outside watching the rhythm of the street. A young guy and his girl friend drove up and parked a completely refurbished 1959 2-door Chevrolet hardtop right in front of me, left it unlocked with the windows down and went off somewhere. It was that kind of town!
We had brunch of eggs and pancakes and toast at a very family oriented restaurant across from the park. Lots of kids, carbs, and more coffee! And we were off northward up 101!
Another 60 miles or so, past Ukiah, we exited 101 to take Rte 20 to Ft Bragg. It was designated a "scenic" route, which I soon decided meant, "a very curvy road up and down and around mountains surrounded by trees." It was 36 miles to Ft Bragg on this road, which basically was a series of "S" turns winding through the coastal range. It was "scenic" however!
We got into Ft Bragg about 4 pm. It was "dead" on Sunday afternoon. We had a couple recommendations for B&Bs from Nancy's guide books, and found an old, slightly beat up, but very large "Rendevous Inn B&B" right at the end of the main street (Old Rte 1). We were ready to park so we swung in the back lot. The owner's cat greeted us at the back door, and reminded Nancy that she all ready missed her cat, Hallie! So this cat got the benefit of her attention before we went in to check out the place. Since it was past the tourist season, there was a room at the inn.
The owner of the Inn was a chef that had been trained in France, and had cooked at some very nice restaurants here and there. He and his wife had bought the Inn as a "project" a few years ago, and had opened a restraurant in the Inn which was well known in the area. It seemed to me that the Inn still had a lot of "project" left in it, and I wondered about the restaurant! But it was getting late, we were newly arrived, nor did we know where to go for dinner that night. Looking at the menu, it looked interesting, but surprisingly expensive!! I hoped that the owner was much better in the kitchen than he was at working on the "project" Inn, which, while an interesting house, was still pretty threadworn in most rooms.
Ah well, we were on vacation!! So we decided to splurge and dine downstairs. The meal was very good, the wine was nice, and the service was ok. But for a small town the meal with wine and tip had a big town price, $125!! We decided that if the weather was good, we would try to camp out for the next couple of nights, and eat out in nature!!
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