Rest and Relaxation

The week before last, Claire and I spent a wonderful four days away in Mendocino. I had never been to Mendocino before and everyone kept telling me that it was very scenic and beautiful but that the drive was awful. I have no idea what they are talking about! Mind you, I was the passenger on the way up and on the way down and we took the less scenic route to get there. The scenic route is Highway 1 which hugs the coastline. The less scenic route is Highway 128 which goes through the woods, along a winery path and then through a forest of redwoods. Who says that's not scenic?! Plus, there were so many wineries that we had to do a few stops for tasting and acquisition. I came away from this trip with 7 bottles of wine and a new favorite for pinot noir. If anyone finds Toulouse Vineyard Pinot Noir...grab it! It's so yummy and what a strange coincidence that it's owned by a retired Fire Captain from the Bay Area. It truly is a small world! It's still a new winery and their tasting room is non-existent but the staff is very friendly and knowledgeable about wine.

Following are some pictures from the trip. I think the picture below was taken at Navarro Vineyards. Sorry...the wine made my brain fuzzy and I can't totally remember! But Navarro did have lovely grounds and if you look closely, you will notice sheep dozing under the grapevines. Baaaa!!!

Anther snap at Navarro. I love how the line of skinny trees looked in the background.

And here is a snap of the grounds at Goldeneye Winery. Good pinot noir but very pricey and out of my budget...that's for sure! But the grounds were lovely. The autumnal colors of the grapevines look terrific against the deep green on all the pines and other trees. This winery serves their tasting out on their deck with little nibbles of crackers, dried cherries, almonds and bits of cheese. Very nice and classy. I would recommend if only to stop and take in the view.

Ocean, waves and rocks

Ahhh, ocean is much calmer near the bluff. Claire and I actually walked and explored all around the bluff. It was nice. She was adventurous and climbed down these sand stairs to the ocean cove below. I was all scared I'd fall and create more havoc to the bum that I bruised falling down stairs a few weeks ago. I may look graceful...nut I'm not really.

Here's is the view of the downtown area of Mendocino from the bluff we explored.Point Cabrillo Lighthouse. I thought it would be huge! It's very tiny and I have no idea who those folks are that are walking in the foreground.

And the most amazing thing from the trip...this was the view from the deck of our hotel room at sunset. Isn't it amazing?! How in the world did I leave and how soon can I get back?!
This photo completely reminds me of a Hawaii photo except instead of palm trees, it's these. I don't even know what kind of trees they are! Mendocino was fabulously relaxing and the people were *so* friendly. It was so completely different from the hustle and bustle of the city and I relished every moment. I think this will easily be my *go to* destination for a relaxing getaway that is still kind of local and won't bust the bank account...and I must return sooner rather than later.