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| Sonoma Coastal View |
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| Russian River and Highway 1 Overpass |
Stone and Jake got engaged 35 years ago in San Francisco, so when the chance came up to visit this seminal (so to speak!) part of the country it was impossible to pass up. Their trip to the best of the West Coast would center on a three-day family event based out of Guerneville, California, a small town of pleasure, wine and fun on the Russian River in Sonoma County. But before and after the family event, they had plans to see an old Army pal in St. Helena, soak up some California mist and coastal views around Bodega Bay, and spend their last night in the city where their life together came together.
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| The Head at Bodega Bay |
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| Majestic Window View |
The car rental went well, as did exiting the airport(!), and soon they were driving northward on 19th Avenue in the Sunset District of San Francisco, then through Golden Gate Park, then through the Presidio, and then, with a seeming visual Bang! -- The Bridge appeared. To drive over the Golden Gate Bridge on a clear day is not unlike seeing the Rockies from on high. "Wow" doesn't do either one justice.
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| Stone at Sunflower Caffe |
The drive from Sonoma to St. Helena seems rather easy on the map, and the shortcut of Trinity Road looks inviting -- on the map! In reality, Trinity Road is a harrowing/fun experience not for the faint of heart. Jake grew up in Colorado driving many a twisting trail in the foothills of the Rockies, but this thin ribbon of seriously-up and then seriously-down asphalt, with never the hint of a shoulder, was like nothing he had ever experienced. Rarely was it possible to see more than 150 yards ahead before the next turn, and on-coming traffic was often apparent thrill-seekers in sports cars. For a taste of things see this video, aptly titled: Trinity Road in my Miata, scaring my girlfriend.
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| B&B Front Door View |
Judy is a charming proprietress of senior status, whose life goes back long enough that she has personal mementos from Red Skelton when he used to play to the tourist crowds in Reno, Nevada -- years before Las Vegas became Las Vegas. St. Helena is a small town, so it was of little surprise that she remembered Jake's old Army friend when he was but a boy playing in the neighborhood and occasionally helping out with the fledgling family winery.
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| Expensive Drinks but a Free View |
From their perch on the railing they got in touch with their inner ornithologists and spotted several odd looking small woodpeckers they had never seen in Jersey. Later Googling revealed that these birds were Acorn Woodpeckers, who are notable for living in large groups, hoarding acorns (often by the hundreds) in holes they make in trees, and the fact that they "cooperate in their breeding." (The ornithologists' polite wording here should be noted by rogue Mormons seeking societal approval of their breeding.)
Dinner that first night in St. Helena was at Tra Vigne. This long-established Napa Valley restaurant boasts a gracious building and a large patio that provide a sort of Tuscany-in-California vibe that is reflected in its food. Jake and Stone enjoyed their mussels, salad, seafood fritto misto (Italian: "mixed fried"), panna cotta and wine. But the most enjoyable part of the meal was the patio and the Napa early evening air, with its hints of cool slowly replacing the warmth of the day.
Thursday, June 19, 2014 -- This was the day Jake and his Army Pal had scheduled to get together for the first time in 35 years. There is a bond among those who serve in the Army during a war. This is true even if that war is "undeclared." It is true even if that service is rendered, not in bunkers, but in the windowed offices of Army Headquarters in Long Binh, Vietnam. It is true even if the bi-weekly guard duty on the Long Binh perimeter line requires "grenade juggling" (not as dangerous as it sounds, and quite hilarious the first time one sees it) to pass the boring nighttime hours. It is true even if the closest one comes to death is riding in a jeep driven by some Army hophead on the way to the pleasures of the city once termed the "Pearl of the Orient," but in those war years simply called Saigon, and now on the world's maps Ho Chi Minh City.
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| Long Ago in Long Binh |
(It should be noted that the brouhaha in our HQ office that day was generated not by the general himself, who reportedly found a bit of humor in this bureaucratic contretemps, but by his many underlings. Perhaps the general's professional equanimity helps explain why his son General Barry McCaffrey has had a career, including his current duties as military analyst for NBC, even more distinguished than his famous father's.)
The loud laughter at Army Pal's mistake soon turned to quiet awe, however, when several months later the female lead singer of a USO-sponsored rock band from Canada invited him to spend the night with her in Saigon. Such a liaison-in-Saigon gave him legendary status within the "hootch" (barracks) and beyond. And finally, and most memorably for Jake, during their shared R&R week in Sydney, Jake and another GI were happy to play wingmen to Army Pal's somehow finding three young Aussie women to accompany us during our week in Australia.
The fledgling winery that their B&B hostess Judy had remembered being a family business when Army Pal was but a boy playing about the neighborhood, has now become, due largely to the work of Army Pal and his older brother, nothing less than one of the top five wine producers in the world. It is likely most readers of this blog have tasted one of their wines -- likely a Sutter Home zinfandel or more likely, Sutter Home's white zinfandel.
It is the white zin which, some three decades ago, not only put Sutter Home on the map, but thanks to Army Pal's sending Jake and Stone about five or six cases of it in 1980 for their wedding, put that happy event on the map as well. (Being ever resourceful, the cases were labeled "vinegar" so he could mail them to New York.)
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| The Napa Valley Country Club |
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| Tee with a View at the NVCC |
Army Pal picked up the tab for dinner that night as well. He brought along a special bottle of zinfandel to the Archetype restaurant in St. Helena. Perhaps it was the conversation about our children (his three boys, our one girl), or the convivial presence of Army Pal's ex-wife who joined us, or the wine, or the food (warm sugar snap peas, Alaskan halibut, Niman Ranch lamb, meyer lemon meringue pie), or all the above. Whatever the reason(s), it proved to be this trip's best food and our couple's favorite dinner.
Friday, June 20, 2014 - On the way from St. Helena to Guerneville, CA ( which was HQ for the upcoming weekend family event), Jake and Stone stopped at the 5,500 acre Annadel State Park outside Santa Rosa for a hike. The summer temps in this part of Sonoma County range from around 50 at night to about 90 during the afternoon. Luckily, our duo arrived early enough to enjoy the coolish morning. And they needed the cool as their hike on Steve's S Trail was short but strenuous, climbing 489 feet in less than a mile.
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| The Patio at Corks |
After lunch the road towards Guerneville proved to be another twisty drive through hilly and forested terrain, but with a new twist -- a peacock! The peacock took its merry time leaving the road, then paraded proudly on the side of the road, its home certainly somewhere nearby.
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| Jake Among the Redwoods |
That evening Jake and Stone checked into their Guerneville lodging and looked forward to the family event that was to occupy that night and the next two days. The event celebrated the 50th wedding anniversary of a couple who have made friends from Paris to Houston, and it was no surprise that so many of them made the trip to California. There is no need here to chronicle the private three days in any detail, suffice it to say they included: a tour and luncheon pig roast at the Michel Schumberger winery, a gourmet pizza dinner amid the redwoods at Simi Winery, a visit to a remarkable garden, shopping in Healdsburg, CA, and on the final night, an exclusive after-hours dinner and dancing at the Francis Ford Coppola Winery Pavilion.
Monday, June 23, 2014 -- Jake and Stone had been joined on the Northwood golf course the previous Friday afternoon by a local young man who, upon hearing that Jake wanted to play "that new links course in Bodega Bay," said he knew some people at the course. As we finished the round, the young man texted his contacts (you know these young folks hate to use the phone to make a phone call) and informed Jake that he was scheduled for a discounted tee time at 10:30 on Monday morning.
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| "Harbour" View at Bodega Bay |
The drive from Guerneville to the Bodega Bay golf course via California Highway 1 is famous for its views of
the
rugged grandeur of the coastline, but the early Monday morning fog had
hidden many of the views. So that afternoon after driving a bit around Bodega Bay, Jake and Stone drove back
northward -- enjoying the views all the way -- towards the coastal town
of Jenner, where they made dinner reservations for Tuesday night at Rivers End Restaurant.
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| Morning Fog on Highway 1 |
Checking into the Bodega Bay Inn (a family run place) they found their room (#3) to be better than the inn's setting, which was between Highway 1 and a small strip mall. But the room was large, with Wi-Fi that was fast, and a comfortable king bed. The proximity to the strip mall did have two advantages -- Roadhouse Coffee (where they found out they would get the included breakfast that came with their staying at the inn) and one of the best restaurants in town -- Terrapin Creek.
Dinner that night was at Drake's Fireside Lounge, an informal bistro room at the posh Bodega Bay Lodge. Featuring an expansive water view of the lowlands of Bodega Harbor, Drake's three-cheese plate (cow, goat and sheep), "fog soup," fettuccine/halibut and seafood platter were all delicious, as were the martinis and wine. Not inexpensive, Drake's made for a lovely end to a lovely day.
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| Stone on the Pool Ridge Trail |
On their way to Armstrong, Jake and Stone had stopped in the little town of Duncan Mills at the Gold Coast Coffee and Bakery where they enjoyed pastries and coffee on the bird-friendly back patio. On the way back they stopped again in Duncan Mills for lunch at the Cape Fear Cafe. At the height of lunch hour the one-chef kitchen was overwhelmed and it took a while to get their lunch of Thai pasta and shrimp (with a nice Rodney Strong Sauvignon blanc), burger and fries (with a nice Great White beer form Lost Coast Brewery) to arrive, but like the back side of their earlier hike, it was worth it. To walk off the lunch, Stone did some shopping while Jake walked shotgun through a couple of nice local stores.
No trip to Bodega Bay is complete without a visit to Bodega Bay Head, a promontory that offers maybe the most dramatic coastal views in Sonoma County. That afternoon the strong winds had the surf up and the many birds hanging magically in mid-air. On that afternoon, the Head was both majestic and wild.
Heading back into town proper, Stone's phone got an email from Rivers End Restaurant saying a road closure had forced them to cancel dinners for that evening. Disappointed, but sure of other places almost as good, Jake and Stone headed for the aforementioned Terrapin Creek. Closed on Tuesdays, said the sign. Well, the Blue Bistro out by the links course had looked nice. Closes on Mon-Wed at 5pm, said the sign. No problem. To the Tides Wharf Restaurant. The large dining room doesn't look real appealing and seems dominated by a post-wedding crowd. Fisherman's Cove, down by the harbor? They drive by. No need for a closed sign. Not a car in the parking lot. So how about that big place off Highway 1? Lucas Wharf Restaurant and Bar. Open says the sign.
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| Out the Window at Lucas Wharf |
Wednesday, June 25, 2014 -- The "breakfast" that comes with a room at the Bodega Bay Inn is actually pastry and coffee at the across-the-parking-lot Roadhouse Coffee. Both yesterday and today our couple had to do without the pastries, but the coffee was good and the scene colorfully local (as might guessed from their "home page.")
Somehow Jake and Stone strayed from their Highway 1 route south toward San Francisco and ended up seeing much of Petaluma, which was a nice enough town, but.... Back on famous 1, they enjoyed the ride through Point Reyes National Seashore (here, 1 is actually two miles from the seashore but still fun to drive), especially liked the many shorebirds along the Bolinas Lagoon, and then were exhilarated by the headland views of Stinson Beach. The exhilaration continued as 1 became a twisty trip through the dramatic hillsides of Marin County until it joined Highway 101 just above Sausalito.
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| Stone with the Cliff House in the distance |
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| Looks good in fog |
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| Teammates rushing the mound after Lincecum's no-hitter |
Thirty-five years ago, their last day in San Francisco had ended with Jake and Stone's engagement. This time with an a no-hitter. Both happen once in a lifetime -- if you're lucky. And they are.
