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Sept. 9. Back from Sonoma - a diversion from our intended foray into bike-riding. We were headed for the bike shop in Sebastopol. After lunch yesterday at Alice’s Restaurant there (served by Alice herself, aka “She Who Must Be Obeyed”), we scoped out bike rentals in that town and set our sights on a ride today. But the fog that has returned to the coast persisted inland today, with a slight drizzle to boot. So we headed for Sonoma on a more gustatory expedition. We drove through ranches, orchards, and vineyards - in sun!

Sonoma has a pleasing central plaza and garden anchored by a former city hall and surrounded by several historic Spanish buildings dating back as far as the 1820s when Sonoma belonged to Mexico. (Apparently the city declared itself an independent state for all of 25 days—the Bear Republic—after being wrested from Mexico but before becoming part of the U.S.) These included a Jesuit mission and several old houses, now hotels and shops, belonging to the first colonial Mexicans to come there. This old stuff is what I love about the early Spanish settlements—the decrepit single story wooden building with a long veranda, or the two story with the wooden shutters over the windows.

We strolled several blocks out to the huge Sebastiani winery where we sampled a couple of wines which I thought were OK but nothing special. Then back into town to visit the outlet of a winery so small and geographically remote that they hold their tastings in town. Well—this was a different story. By the time we left we had bought several bottles to bring home. It’s a winery that makes only 8 thousand cases a year and has won many awards. But they don’t market much outside California. Robb isn’t a wine drinker—lucky for me, he can be chauffeur—but we bought a fabulous dessert wine that he loved and will find a way to share it with friends once home.

Coleman Valley Road: We have come to love this spectacular two-lane road to the coast. Narrow, with no shoulder in most places, it travels over hugely dramatic terrain. In the lower portions it passes through sections where trees, some of them huge, form a bower over the road and it feels like we’re on a trail through a secret forest. As it approaches the coast, it climbs up into the highest part of the coastal range, at over 1000’, in an area that resembles tundra except that there are ranches up there, cattle that amble across the road, and fog that blows and swirls everywhere. Finally, the horizon opens up to a full view of the ocean in the distance hundreds of feet below. The final descent is very steep—a grade of 12% -- with hairpin turns. Incredibly - amazingly - we’ve met the same cyclist twice at the top. The first time Robb rolled down the window and said, “You’ve gotta be kidding!” and the cyclist, who was standing up on the pedals, actually had enough energy to smile!

Local sights. Coffee shops Coffee Catz and Pony Expresso. Farm sign: Free weeds. Pull all you want. Another sign: TNT Tree Services (Robb’s addition: “Good for stubborn stumps, not good for trimming.”) Yet another: Glory is Fleeting; Obscurity is Forever; N. Bonaparte (???)


Biking. We rented bikes and spent a wonderful Wednesday on bike trails and small roads near Sebastopol. We set out on a rails-to-trails path through the back yards of truck parking lots, housing developments, and retail establishments, then on the other side of the highway, a creek. We came upon a deer there, bashing itself frantically, repeatedly against the fence of the vineyard next to us, a sturdy chainlink with two high rows of barbed wire. We approached slowly, not wanting to frighten it further or be knocked down as it ran. As we came very close, it took off suddenly with great leaps: boing! boing! boing! dashing down the trail, all four legs tucked underneath with every jump. Then far ahead, it stopped again to start its frantic bashing at the fence. Lo and behold, as we came very close, it suddenly gave a mighty leap and bounded over the fence, almost straight up, and disappeared like a flash into the vineyard! “There it goes,” said Robb. I thought: “I wonder how long it will be before it gets hit crossing the road on the other edge of the vineyard…”

When the trail ran out, we continued as much as possible on the map’s thready black roads heading out into agricultural country. We passed through orchards, vineyards and farms with plenty of time to admire both the beauty of the land and the crops and the evidence of the hard work that goes on there. Vineyards look pristine - grapevines may be thick, old and gnarled or baby twiggy sticks emerging from white tubes tied to wires, but the soil underneath is clean and clear of any weeds or grass. They have all been carefully pruned and, within a single vineyard, are the same shape.

Houses were almost all one story, frame, and quite simple, even at wineries with fancy signs. It was pleasant to see a lack of obvious pretension. The largest buildings were sheds or other such for storing or processing grapes or apples, housing livestock, or conducting other such business operations. Occasionally we caught a pungent whiff of something - rich, slightly acidic, winey. Wineries are in “the crush”, we learned, and I imagine that aroma is from crushed grapes, or perhaps apples turning into cider.
We also passed the occasional house or small settlement belonging to the workers - run down frame houses or small RVs, but always with roses or other flowers planted around, and in one place, we heard a rooster crow.

After a brutal hill (we walked up) and a welcome late lunch at a small drive-in, we headed back into town on another bike trail, negotiating the path with a bunch of jogging high-schoolers. Sebastopol is coming to feel familiar to me now.

Thurday was a major triumph for Robb - he rode round trip from Sebastapol to Bodega Bay, taking the Coleman Valley Road out to the coast. Quite an accomplishment: some 40 miles of big and sometimes steep climbs up into the fog at about 1000’, a steep down to the coast, and the ride back on a busier but somewhat less hilly road. He enjoyed the ride greatly. However, post hot tub, his words to me were: “Don’t talk to me about biking for awhile!”

While he was sweating, I visited the Charles Schultz museum in Santa Rosa. Interesting to learn more about him; and the building is very nicely designed, too, with some pleasing garden spaces. I had lunch at the Warm Puppy Café at the indoor ice rink that Schultz endowed (he played hockey) and watched all the little kids and their mommies enjoying the ice. A video in the museum said that Schultz ate breakfast and lunch, every day, at the Warm Puppy. He liked to watch the kids, and I’m sure he was hoping for inspiration as well. Coming up with new ideas, he said, was the hardest part of his job.

Getting around: All the big RVs that I did NOT see this summer in the Midwest are out here. We see a lot of Priuses (Prii?? I took Latin in high school) and small cars. Trucks, of course, because this is essentially an agricultural area. And there are some wonderful old cars, including a surprising number of ancient VW micro- and minibuses. They may be beat up and covered with stickers, peace signs and the like - but they’re still going! We saw some gems driving into Reno. The Burning Man festival in NW Nevada had ended a couple of days before, and we saw some wonderfully battered colorful relics which must have been coming back from Burning Man.

On Surfing: A few miles south of here is a very long, very wide beach that is the surfing mecca of this area. Starting very early in the day we see many bobbing heads in the water that begin to turn into swimming ants as they paddle out to catch a wave. But on Sept. 12, we learned that Robb is not a surfer (see photo to read his feelings about trying it…)! He had to try, of course, with a rented wetsuit and surfboard. He reports having actually caught a wave, but standing up … His seasickness gene was not his friend. He found the upper body exertion exhausting too. But at least he satisfied his curiosity, and I must say - he looks pretty hot in a wetsuit…

I hiked the 4 mile trail along the ocean, the one Robb tramped a few days ago. It’s an easy trail winding through grassland on the cliffs with wonderful views. When I met Robb, he was gazing out at the ocean with binoculars, at whales. What a surprise - this is early - the official season for whale watching begins in December. But he had spotted a spout and breaching action with the naked eye, and sure enough, the binoculars confirmed it. I didn’t see that kind of action, but I did see flukes and some flailing around. It was fun to see. They’re headed south toward Mexico. Perhaps they’re the scouting party. Or worse, perhaps the ocean currents are abnormal due to global warming and they’re confused…

Home Away From Home: On a long trip like this, we need certain amenities or routines as signposts of normality. One of them is music, another is public radio. Here on the coast, a good receiver is essential to play CDs and to catch whatever weak signals exist of public radio. (Also true to for DVDs - we joined the Sebastapol library and took three of them out.) The receiver in this house konked out a few days ago. Given the somewhat lukewarm news from the rental agents that “we’ve got a call in to the owners” about it, Robb smilingly, politely told them that we would be stopping in every morning for a progress report on a replacement. Two days later: a new receiver. Good.

No cell phone contact, or internet, at the house either. We bought a phone card and that’s worked fine. For internet, we’ve settled on a couple of places we find homey and comfy. One is the larger Coffee Catz in Sebastopol, in the waiting room of the old RR station gussied up in artistic fashion (see photo) and home to all kinds of types, from the old grizzled California guys who must have stories to tell, to the working yuppies earnestly discussing projects over two open computers and cups of coffee, to friends or perhaps would-be lovers lounging against the colorful cushions of the settees. It’s a nice place with a hell of a smoothie and a very mellow, congenial atmosphere. The other place that I particularly like is a tiny place right here on the coast next to an RV park, where the surfing is free and they brew just one brand of coffee (and also yerba mate) - $1.50 for a generous cup. The atmosphere is “Beach Beat-Up” and there are always interesting characters lounging around in deep discussion in squashed up old chairs, and a person or two at one of the tiny tables squinting at a laptop. Once - I think I mentioned it in the blog - a guy who looked to be Indian or maybe Mexican was strumming a guitar and singing softly to himself. Two guitars hang on the wall near the corner. The owner is a pleasant gray-haired, unflappable guy (retired, I heard him say) who seems to really like what he’s got, and no wonder.

Art and Relatives: Saturday, Sept. 13, we drove to San Francisco to see a Chihily exhibit at the DeYoung art museum. We met my aunt and uncle, cousin Ann who had flown up with a friend from LA, a childhood friend of Ann’s, and another cousin, Jan. Caught an organ concert later at the Legion of Honor affiliated with the DeYoung. A man next to me read email on his whatever during the concert - rude! We ended with an outstanding dinner at a Vietnamese restaurant. Lots of fun conversation (love, romance, living abroad, travel, families, politics …) and if you are ever in SF, don’t miss La Vie, at Geary and 22nd St. It won’t break the bank, either.

Ann and her friend Karen have I-phones, which they played with intermittently all day. Karen remained frustrated most of the afternoon because no human being answered her whiz-bang gizmo. Ann took a number of photos at the exhibit with hers but couldn’t manage to retrieve them; were they actually “there” or not? (Turns out, yes - Karen figured it out.) In any public place, you can see people squinting or staring at tiny screens and punching buttons. When Robb saw that Ann’s phone not only has a calculator, but that when you turn the thing sideways, the calculator turns into a scientific calculator - let’s just say that I won’t have to do much Christmas shopping…

Now, Sunday, we’re enjoying a visit by my cousin Laura, who is getting ready for her wedding in October, which was what stimulated the idea of our taking this trip in the first place. We went hiking yesterday (see photo) and got a photo of the Russian River (see photo) showing just how beautiful this area is. So farewell for now - who knows where we’ll be on our next submission.

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