CA trip report
Oct 18th, 2004, 12:17 PM
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CA trip report
I just wanted to send a thank you to all that helped with planning this itinerary and let you all know the trip was fabulous. As always, we are happy to be home.
Day 1 - We started in San Francisco. Only spent a day there because we had both seen a lot of it on previous trips. We ate dinner at the R & G Lounge in Chinatown. Very good. We recommend the Mai Tai?s. The next day we rode the trolley to Ghirardelli Square. Although a bit cool out, it was a fun ride. We walked up, way up, to Lombard St. to take some pictures of the curvy block. Then we were back to our hotel and on our way out of the city. We stopped in Battery Park and missed the Golden Gate due to heavy fog. We visited the store though and pictured it in our mind with the help of postcards. From there, we headed down Highway 1. We stopped at the Cliff House and Seal Rocks for some more pictures. From there we headed down to Santa Cruz. The whole idea was to view the coast from this drive, but we were socked in with fog most of the way. It did open up a bit and we got a great view of a lighthouse and bit of the rocky coast? and some ?parasurfers? ? not sure if this is what that sport is called. We stayed at the Best Inn in Santa Cruz. What a great little hotel. We got a super deal on this hotel from hotels.com. We did hear, however, that they do not have AC. We didn?t need it this time of year. The weather was nice enough to watch the volleyball players by the boardwalk that afternoon. We ate dinner at the Acapulco Mexican restaurant downtown. We had the grande burritos. They were grande but so good.
Day 2 ? Our much anticipated big day. We drove from Santa Cruz to Sequoia National Park to Yosemite all before the sun set. This is doable, although a long day. We were prepared for the long haul, which I think, made it easier. We were thrilled that we did it and so happy we saw the ?biggest? trees vs. the some of the biggest trees in Mariposa Grove. We got in early enough to enjoy the tunnel view area and gaze at the climbers on El Capitan through our binoculars. We set up camp and pretty much went right to sleep. By the way, those bear containers in Yosemite are fascinating. So simple, yet so difficult for the bears to figure out.
Day 3 ? We camped in North Pines, which was a great location. We planned to hike Vernal and Nevada Falls this day. We were surprised by the vertical gain in this hike but did fine as we are avid outdoor enthusiasts. My husband almost had me talked in to climbing Half Dome the next day but then we came to our senses. We met up with a park volunteer at the top that was in search of a bear cub making trouble in the area.
Day 4 ? We made the drive to Glacier Point early in the morning. Saw a bride and groom taking some photos. That was sweet. We took our pictures there and then hiked up to Sentinel Dome for the 360-degree views. Both are beautiful vistas. We decided from there that we would go back down to the Valley and try to get as close to the base of El Capitan as we could. We do a bit of climbing in Colorado, but nothing like that and we wanted to get up close to check it out. We ended up bushwhacking and scrambling a bit, but got close enough to hear the climbers talking to each other. My neck was creaked from looking up. That rock is beyond huge. We stopped by the chapel to take some more photos and saw two more happy couples celebrating their nuptials. After that, we took a short break and decided to do the walk to Mirror Lake (although dry at this time of year). There are great views of Half Dome from there. Our last night back at camp, some new campers crashed our neighbors site. They were very generous for letting them do so. As our neighbor explained the bear container, they laughed as though they thought he was joking so he had to repeat himself. Needless to say, this made us a little nervous. We watched them unpack until everything that looked like food was safely inside the bear container. We went to sleep? but at 1 a.m. a loud boom awoke us and someone (I?m assuming a park ranger) was yelling ?get outta here bear, get outta here bear.? That?s what they tell you to yell if you encounter a bear. A couple more loud booms and some more yelling and then the campground was silent again. We could not sleep for at least an hour after that. We think the bear was about 5 sites down from us because the next morning the rangers were searching a trailer in that vicinity.
One other note ? October was wonderful for visiting Yosemite. We didn?t think the crowds were bad at all and our weather was fabulous. It was only really cold first thing in the morning.
Day 5 ? We packed up camp and stopped at the Yosemite store for some quick souvenirs. We also stopped at the Ahwahnee Hotel for a quick peek. What a lovely hotel. I think next time we?ll stay a night there. It was on to St. Helena from there. Another long drive, but nothing like the ?big day?. We checked in to the Adagio Inn. What a great location. Close to Main St and within walking distance to a lot of great restaurants. We ate at Terra that night (which I would not recommend), and then came back to enjoy our private hot tub. We stayed in the Prelude suite. Polly Keegan is a great host. I personally think the innkeeper can make or break a stay in a B & B. She was great. Served us wine and cheese every night and a wonderful breakfast every morning. Also, she?s not the type that is in your face all the time. Very non-intrusive.
Day 6 ? We visited Cakebread Cellars first. This was our favorite winery tour of the trip. Our guide was Brady. Prior to his retirement he worked the vineyards for 42 years ? he?s very knowledgeable. Now he does tours. This is a fabulous free tour. Very informative and the wine is great. We went to Niebaum-Coppola after that to check out the museum and grounds only. That was a nice stop. We also stopped at the St. Helena Olive Oil Co. We picked up a ton of great treats here? but not olive oil. I think the checkout person was disappointed that our purchase didn?t include olive oil. After that we went to Robert Mondavi (we wanted to do this tour because we drink so much of their wine). Although, not our favorite, it was interesting to see the differences between their large setup and Cakebread?s. We ate at Cindy?s Backstreet Kitchen that night. What a change from Terra. The service was outstanding. The food was excellent and the rates were reasonable. We loved the atmosphere and would recommend this place over and over.
Day 7 ? We headed up to Calistoga for our first stop at Sterling Vineyards. We really just wanted to see the views from atop the hill. The gondola ride is short and gives you a pretty good view. We didn?t stay long here? long enough to taste the wine and take some nice photos of the vineyards below. We headed down to the town of Calistoga and shopped around for awhile. We had an appointment at Schramsberg that afternoon. Schramsberg was our other favorite ? we highly recommend it. They make champagne there and store it in caves. Most of the tour takes place in the caves. The process of champagne making is interesting compared to wine. Plus, Schramsberg does everything by hand. It was a nice change from the other tours we had been on. Plus the tasting of the champagne at the end is wonderful. We ate at Martini House that night. Another great restaurant. The atmosphere is wonderful and the food is delicious. I highly recommend the mushroom soup.
Day 8 ? Shopped around St Helena a bit and headed back to SF for our departure. We made another attempt at viewing the Golden Gate, but fog was a factor again. We did drive over though which gave us a nice closeup.
Day 1 - We started in San Francisco. Only spent a day there because we had both seen a lot of it on previous trips. We ate dinner at the R & G Lounge in Chinatown. Very good. We recommend the Mai Tai?s. The next day we rode the trolley to Ghirardelli Square. Although a bit cool out, it was a fun ride. We walked up, way up, to Lombard St. to take some pictures of the curvy block. Then we were back to our hotel and on our way out of the city. We stopped in Battery Park and missed the Golden Gate due to heavy fog. We visited the store though and pictured it in our mind with the help of postcards. From there, we headed down Highway 1. We stopped at the Cliff House and Seal Rocks for some more pictures. From there we headed down to Santa Cruz. The whole idea was to view the coast from this drive, but we were socked in with fog most of the way. It did open up a bit and we got a great view of a lighthouse and bit of the rocky coast? and some ?parasurfers? ? not sure if this is what that sport is called. We stayed at the Best Inn in Santa Cruz. What a great little hotel. We got a super deal on this hotel from hotels.com. We did hear, however, that they do not have AC. We didn?t need it this time of year. The weather was nice enough to watch the volleyball players by the boardwalk that afternoon. We ate dinner at the Acapulco Mexican restaurant downtown. We had the grande burritos. They were grande but so good.
Day 2 ? Our much anticipated big day. We drove from Santa Cruz to Sequoia National Park to Yosemite all before the sun set. This is doable, although a long day. We were prepared for the long haul, which I think, made it easier. We were thrilled that we did it and so happy we saw the ?biggest? trees vs. the some of the biggest trees in Mariposa Grove. We got in early enough to enjoy the tunnel view area and gaze at the climbers on El Capitan through our binoculars. We set up camp and pretty much went right to sleep. By the way, those bear containers in Yosemite are fascinating. So simple, yet so difficult for the bears to figure out.
Day 3 ? We camped in North Pines, which was a great location. We planned to hike Vernal and Nevada Falls this day. We were surprised by the vertical gain in this hike but did fine as we are avid outdoor enthusiasts. My husband almost had me talked in to climbing Half Dome the next day but then we came to our senses. We met up with a park volunteer at the top that was in search of a bear cub making trouble in the area.
Day 4 ? We made the drive to Glacier Point early in the morning. Saw a bride and groom taking some photos. That was sweet. We took our pictures there and then hiked up to Sentinel Dome for the 360-degree views. Both are beautiful vistas. We decided from there that we would go back down to the Valley and try to get as close to the base of El Capitan as we could. We do a bit of climbing in Colorado, but nothing like that and we wanted to get up close to check it out. We ended up bushwhacking and scrambling a bit, but got close enough to hear the climbers talking to each other. My neck was creaked from looking up. That rock is beyond huge. We stopped by the chapel to take some more photos and saw two more happy couples celebrating their nuptials. After that, we took a short break and decided to do the walk to Mirror Lake (although dry at this time of year). There are great views of Half Dome from there. Our last night back at camp, some new campers crashed our neighbors site. They were very generous for letting them do so. As our neighbor explained the bear container, they laughed as though they thought he was joking so he had to repeat himself. Needless to say, this made us a little nervous. We watched them unpack until everything that looked like food was safely inside the bear container. We went to sleep? but at 1 a.m. a loud boom awoke us and someone (I?m assuming a park ranger) was yelling ?get outta here bear, get outta here bear.? That?s what they tell you to yell if you encounter a bear. A couple more loud booms and some more yelling and then the campground was silent again. We could not sleep for at least an hour after that. We think the bear was about 5 sites down from us because the next morning the rangers were searching a trailer in that vicinity.
One other note ? October was wonderful for visiting Yosemite. We didn?t think the crowds were bad at all and our weather was fabulous. It was only really cold first thing in the morning.
Day 5 ? We packed up camp and stopped at the Yosemite store for some quick souvenirs. We also stopped at the Ahwahnee Hotel for a quick peek. What a lovely hotel. I think next time we?ll stay a night there. It was on to St. Helena from there. Another long drive, but nothing like the ?big day?. We checked in to the Adagio Inn. What a great location. Close to Main St and within walking distance to a lot of great restaurants. We ate at Terra that night (which I would not recommend), and then came back to enjoy our private hot tub. We stayed in the Prelude suite. Polly Keegan is a great host. I personally think the innkeeper can make or break a stay in a B & B. She was great. Served us wine and cheese every night and a wonderful breakfast every morning. Also, she?s not the type that is in your face all the time. Very non-intrusive.
Day 6 ? We visited Cakebread Cellars first. This was our favorite winery tour of the trip. Our guide was Brady. Prior to his retirement he worked the vineyards for 42 years ? he?s very knowledgeable. Now he does tours. This is a fabulous free tour. Very informative and the wine is great. We went to Niebaum-Coppola after that to check out the museum and grounds only. That was a nice stop. We also stopped at the St. Helena Olive Oil Co. We picked up a ton of great treats here? but not olive oil. I think the checkout person was disappointed that our purchase didn?t include olive oil. After that we went to Robert Mondavi (we wanted to do this tour because we drink so much of their wine). Although, not our favorite, it was interesting to see the differences between their large setup and Cakebread?s. We ate at Cindy?s Backstreet Kitchen that night. What a change from Terra. The service was outstanding. The food was excellent and the rates were reasonable. We loved the atmosphere and would recommend this place over and over.
Day 7 ? We headed up to Calistoga for our first stop at Sterling Vineyards. We really just wanted to see the views from atop the hill. The gondola ride is short and gives you a pretty good view. We didn?t stay long here? long enough to taste the wine and take some nice photos of the vineyards below. We headed down to the town of Calistoga and shopped around for awhile. We had an appointment at Schramsberg that afternoon. Schramsberg was our other favorite ? we highly recommend it. They make champagne there and store it in caves. Most of the tour takes place in the caves. The process of champagne making is interesting compared to wine. Plus, Schramsberg does everything by hand. It was a nice change from the other tours we had been on. Plus the tasting of the champagne at the end is wonderful. We ate at Martini House that night. Another great restaurant. The atmosphere is wonderful and the food is delicious. I highly recommend the mushroom soup.
Day 8 ? Shopped around St Helena a bit and headed back to SF for our departure. We made another attempt at viewing the Golden Gate, but fog was a factor again. We did drive over though which gave us a nice closeup.
Oct 18th, 2004, 02:11 PM
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Yale,
I'm courious....what dates were you caming at North Pines in Yosemite? We were in camping in Upper Pines Oct. 7,8,9 & 10th. The first night we heard that a bear was just on the other side of our loop. The ranger went running after it. (I hear they shoot them with rubber bullets to discourage them from coming into the campsite)
The next night we heard the banging and saw flashlights flashing everywhere...then a little later we heard and saw the same thing at a campsite closer to us.
The last night....DH shined the flashlight on a bear that had wandered into our campsite. The bear didn't like the light and kept moving on. Later we heard "GET OUT OF HERE" so we figured the bear had invaded another campsite. They were VERY active this time.
Don't know if you heard this or not, but it's snowing in the high country now and Tioga Pass is closed.
One last question. We didn't bother going to Vernal Falls because we've seen it when the conditions are dry. Was there much water coming over the falls or was it like Bridalveil?
Utahtea
I'm courious....what dates were you caming at North Pines in Yosemite? We were in camping in Upper Pines Oct. 7,8,9 & 10th. The first night we heard that a bear was just on the other side of our loop. The ranger went running after it. (I hear they shoot them with rubber bullets to discourage them from coming into the campsite)
The next night we heard the banging and saw flashlights flashing everywhere...then a little later we heard and saw the same thing at a campsite closer to us.
The last night....DH shined the flashlight on a bear that had wandered into our campsite. The bear didn't like the light and kept moving on. Later we heard "GET OUT OF HERE" so we figured the bear had invaded another campsite. They were VERY active this time.
Don't know if you heard this or not, but it's snowing in the high country now and Tioga Pass is closed.
One last question. We didn't bother going to Vernal Falls because we've seen it when the conditions are dry. Was there much water coming over the falls or was it like Bridalveil?
Utahtea
Oct 18th, 2004, 02:46 PM
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Too bad about Terra, could you be more specific with your disappointment with this place? Did you find it to be over-priced and "stuffy?" or was the food not what you expected it to be.
We have always had nice meals here. ***kim***
We have always had nice meals here. ***kim***
Oct 19th, 2004, 05:55 AM
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Utahtea - we were there the 8th, 9th and 10th. We only heard the gunshots on the 10th. I can't believe your husband actually saw the bear. We were too afraid to move after the gunfire. DH asked me if I wanted to get in the car... I didn't want to step foot out of our tent. It's pretty amazing how careless people are though. After the first or second boom we heard people outsided scrambling to get odds and ends into their bear containers.
Vernal Falls was nice. I think it was at the same flow as Bridalveil though. You're able to get closer to Vernal though, which we liked... and we'd never been to Yosemite before this trip. We saw pictures of what both look like in the Spring... we'll be going back.
Kimamom - we had heard great things about Terra. Maybe we went in with our expectations too high, I'm not sure. But we both found the atmosphere to be quite stiff and snooty. The wait staff was cold and unfriendly. We were a table of two and we were seated in the corner while the table for two by the window was held for almost the entire time we were having dinner. Our waiter seemed irritated when we asked him to recommend a bottle of wine. The food was good, but not worth the money charged. We were disappointed.
Vernal Falls was nice. I think it was at the same flow as Bridalveil though. You're able to get closer to Vernal though, which we liked... and we'd never been to Yosemite before this trip. We saw pictures of what both look like in the Spring... we'll be going back.
Kimamom - we had heard great things about Terra. Maybe we went in with our expectations too high, I'm not sure. But we both found the atmosphere to be quite stiff and snooty. The wait staff was cold and unfriendly. We were a table of two and we were seated in the corner while the table for two by the window was held for almost the entire time we were having dinner. Our waiter seemed irritated when we asked him to recommend a bottle of wine. The food was good, but not worth the money charged. We were disappointed.
Feb 2nd, 2005, 08:11 AM
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I stumbed upon this thread long after the fact, so I'm sure that yale won't see this.. but no matter. For many years I was a server a top wine country resaurant, and I can tell you this: no waiter is ever irritated by being asked by a customer to suggest a bottle of wine. Quite the contrary -- that's what they live for. They love turning people on to new wines. They don't love serving people the same stuff they could by in the Safeway back home. We are all guilty of inferring what other people are thinking. Usually we're wrong. In this case I'm sure that's what you've done.
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