SAB

Over 15 years ago I would regularly take afternoon bike rides up the Silverado Trail and across the Oakville grade. I had a matter involving the Silverado Country Club that required numerous visits and I would put my bike on the back of my car, change into biking clothes and go for a ride after my meetings were over. I couldn't do that anymore--there was an explosion of wineries, restaurants and visitors in the 90's and a concurrent explosion of traffic and clueless drivers. Biking backroads in Napa is one of those things whose time has come and gone (for me at least).

Otis_B_Driftwood

Biking is fine in the Napa Valley. Disregard what the naysayers have to say. Thousands of people do it and the bike rental companies can help you with itineraries.

Yes, I would avoid Silverado Trail but there are plenty of other roads to bike on. Hwy 29, for example, has a wonderful frontage road that runs from Yountville to Napa. Yountville Cross Road and Yount Mill Road are also wonderful roads to explore on a bike.

There are also new bike trails through Carneros where you can bike through the vineyards and hardly spend any time on the road. Check with your bike rental or tour company for details.

Also, the Vine bus service runs up and down the Valley and can carry your bikes if you want to explore the different towns.

Tomsd

We love the little town square of Sonoma. And years ago - we loved biking around Napa/Sonoma and would ask the bike rental companies where are there some less congested back roads.

My brother in law had a small ranch a few miles outside of Sonoma town - and we loved bicycling around there.

Would also recommend you head south from SF to Carmel/Monterrey - and from there - go the "back way" up to Napa/Sonoma - avoiding the Bay Area traffic.

sf7307

Tom, what "back way" would that be? You can avoid going through San Francisco, but you can't avoid going through the Bay Area. There's as much traffic during rush hour on the east side of the bay as on the west.

nspotz

I am having a hard time narrowing down wineries to visit for our one full day in Napa. We will most likely be visiting Frog's Leap in Rutherford before checking into our hotel in Yountville on Monday afternoon. On Tuesday we would like to visit one or two more wineries and have a picnic. Do ya'll have any suggestions for a winery that has great views and allows you to bring your own food for a picnic? Thanks!

easytraveler

The two Napa wineries with great views that come immediately to mind are Artesa and Domaine Caneros (very close to each other). There are several others further north, but their names escape me for the moment. There's one on the Silvarado Trail that had a really nice view. I really don't know about their picnic facilities tho. You might ask the concierge at your hotel. They usually have the most up-to-date information.

Otis_B_Driftwood

Rutherford Hill has nice views and a great picnic area. You have to reserve it though. Same with Kuleto.

elnap29

Rutherford Hill Winery does have a picnic area with lovely views over the valley. It is located off Silverado Trail up a hill.

Peju Winery is in Rutherford on Highway 29. They have beautiful grounds with several grassy areas for a picnic if you have a blanket. There are also a few tables in a small patio area. Their Savignon Blanc and Cabernets are among my favorites.

Another winery with a rustic but pleasant picnic area is Casa Nuestra Winery on Silverado Trail north of St Helena.

nygvic0326

BM

imorritt

Quickly scanned the replies, so I may be repeating some info - Your 3 stops are doable, but rushed. I think I would pick up a car at SFO and drive to the Napa area. I would stay 2 nights, but probably in Yountville, which is a nice walk around town, plus you could do some wine tasting. Depending on what time you get there and how much wine tasting you like, 2 nights is fine. At that time of year, I wouldn't avoid the Silverado Trail. That's your best bet for the big wineries you've heard of (with tours, etc.) I'd then drive to Carmel for one night - about 3 hours. Cute town and close to Big Sur ( a view is probably all you'll have time for). Then I'd drive to SF for the other 2 nights - lots to see and do. You're covering a lot in 5 days, but if all are interesting to you, and you may not be back for a while, it's doable.

hotzim

We migrate twice a year between FL and the Pacific Coast of Washington, and frequently route ourselves thru CA. We like to find out-of-the-way, less crowded places. We last passed thru Big Sur and SF in spring 2012. I would skip Napa. If you want to visit wineries, see the ones in Paso Robles or one of the other wine regions that are more accessible from Big Sur. If you have not been to Hearst Castle, continue far enough south to see that. Nearby are the Northern Elephant Seal rookery at Piedras Blancas. We love the charm of Moonstone Beach in Cambria. Monterrey is lovely, so are places like Asilomar Beach. Check out the Holiday Inn Express in Pacifica. Its a lot of value for the price point. The Marriott Courtyard in Larkspur (just north of Sausalito)is another great value, plus you can take the Larkspur Ferry to downtown SF and not have to worry about where to park the car. There have been a lot of restorations and improvements of the Golden Gate Recreation areas and we thought the views from Fort Point National Historic Site were incredible also. Muir Woods is another great natural sight, although very crowded and hard to park on weekends. We had not been to the DeYoung museum in SF before and fell in love with it. If you are foodies, that is another area to explore in SF.

Winefoodlover

April in wine country is awesome and the crowds midweek are non-existent. Check this site for some non-touristy stories about the area...nice photos too.
www.readkip.com.
As far as wineries...go to Raymond and Schramsberg (stories about both at the above link.
Good luck.

easytraveler

With all due respect to hotzim, I would not swop the Napa-Sonoma area for Paso Robles.

nspotz

Thanks for all of your input... Our whirlwind itinerary is set and we have made all hotel reservations. We know it's fast-paced but we have previously spend a week in SF and wanted to get a taste for the other areas. Here is what we have decided on:

Saturday: Fly into SF airport, pick up rental car and spend night in Carmel. Hopefully get there early enough for a quick visit to Point Lobos.
Sunday: Drive down Big Sur, haven't planned this out in detail, hoping to stop at Pfieffer Beach and Nepenthe.
Monday: Drive up to Napa area, visit a winery before checking into our hotel in Yountville.
Tuesday: Wine tasting, possible rent bikes at Calistoga Bike Shop (they have a route in Calistoga that has little traffic and stops at some of the smaller wineries in the area. Has anyone done this?)
Wednesday: Drive to SF , drop off rental car. We have a hotel reserved in Union Square. Hoping to visit the ferry building and china town. I am wondering what the best route into the city would be... would love to drive over the bridge and/or stop for some nice photos before we get into the city. Also want to avoid (as much as possible traffic. Any tips?

nspotz

Also, still stuck on the best route from Carmel to Yountville and how to avoid traffic. I've read mixed opinions on this forum and elsewhere. Thanks!

MichelleY

Timing is everything. Travel after 9 and before 3 and you will be avoiding the commute hours.

As far as the route, others may have a better suggestion, but I would go from Carmel on Hwy 1 to 156 thru Castroville to US 101. Head north on 101 up thru Gilroy, Morgan Hill then take 680 up thru Dublin, Walnut Creek to I 80. You will be on I 80 west for a very short stretch before getting off on Hwy. 12 which take you to the Napa turn off.

easytraveler

Michelle has given you the same route I have. That's the best way with the least traffic congestion.

To get from Napa to SFO for your car return, go south on Highway 29, then take Highway 37 (westbound) which runs along the north shore of San Francisco Bay. Merge into Highway 101 going south to SF.

This will take you across the Golden Gate Bridge.

Stay towards the right lanes, you need to exit onto Highway 1 and not continue on 101 once you are across the bridge, so watch closely for the signs for "Highway 1, 19th Avenue". It's either the first or second real exit (I've done this so many times over the years, I can't remember).

Highway 1 at this point runs through the width of San Francisco, but don't let the city streets scare you. I've crossed the width in 20 minutes, so it's a pretty fast and smooth transit.

Stay in the middle lane. You'll see signs for I-280 and the road will curve towards the right. Get onto I-280. Go about 4-5 miles on I-280 and then take I-380. Just follow the signs to SFO and to the return car lot.

Take their shuttle back to the terminal and take BART back to SF.

http://www.bart.gov/


Try and avoid I-80 like the plague.

Hope this helps a bit.

kbob88

When you pick up the car, take 380 to 280 to 85 to 101 to 156 to 1 to get to Carmel. Point Lobos is amazing; could easily soak up an entire day. It's got that classic Monterey / Carmel scenery you always see in photos.

The next day, I'd advise grabbing a lunch to go before leaving Carmel and skipping Nepenthe. The views are great, but the food is just so-so, and it's quite expensive. And you might get a table with just a so-so view. Stop there for their coffee kiosk and check out the views. Then take your bag lunch to Julia Pfeiffer Burns or Pfeiffer Beach parks.

I'd say both these parks are must-dos. JPB is farther down the road (hitting some awesome scenery on the way down), but really pretty, although you can't go down to the beach. The view from the bluff of the waterfall spilling onto the beach is iconic. At Pfeiffer Beach, you can walk around on the beach and check out the just-offshore sea stacks with the surf gushing through their sea caves. It's all worth an early start out of Carmel.

Take your roadside pictures on the way down through Big Sur, since you'll be on the oceanside; it's a lot easier than on the way back when you'll have to pull across traffic into the scenic waysides.

Definitely 1 > 156 > 101 > 680 is the route to go up the East Bay and over the Benicia Bridge. Not sure about whether you should then do 780 > 80 > 37 > 29, or 80 > 12 > 29; it's been a while since I went that way. As long as you're not in the San Jose area from 7:30am to 9:30am, you should be fine. Avoid 880.

On the way into SF, don't hit the Golden Gate Bridge between those same hours approximately and you should be ok.

easytraveler's advice to SFO is good. I think it's the first exit now after the toll plaza (used to be the second exit), but it comes up fairly quickly.

But if you want to take the car into SF, don't take that exit, stay on 101 which becomes Lombard Street. Take a right, on Van Ness, then a left on Bush. If your hotel is on the north side of Union Sq, park at the Stockton-Sutter garage (entrance right from Bush, right over Stockton bridge). Otherwise, park at Ellis-O'Farrell garage - take a right on to Mason from Bush, then a left onto O'Farrell, go a block and a half, garage is on the right. Both garages are city-owned and are (only!) about $32 overnight.

nspotz

Thanks for the great tips this has been very helpful.
@kbob88: I was wondering about the food at Nepenthe, I think we would rather have a picnic lunch and stop for the views/coffe. Thanks!

@easytraveler/kbob88: We have actually arranged to drop of the rental at their location in downtown SF. I was originally going to drop it off at the airport and take BART into the city but thought that might not be the best use of our time. What do you suggest?

Thanks!

MichelleY

Easytraveler and kbob: giver spotz directions to take a drive thri the Seacliff area etc, the over to the Cliff House and back thru GG Park, before returning the car. So beautiful!