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Just as the weather was unusually hot in the San Francisco area, so it was further north. California was in the middle of its hottest heat wave ever and Healdsburg, which is about 70 miles north of San Francisco (and approximately 700 miles north of Tucson), was in the triple digits! We found a shady spot at a trailer park on the south side of town. We were definitely on the wrong side of the tracks but we were close to the mellow Russian River and primo blackberry patches! We had two reasons to suffer through the heat: good friends (Kelly and Elaine) and good wine. Kelly and Elaine moved up here in April because Kelly is managing a vineyard called Medlock Ames.

Healdsburg is just 35 miles inland from the coast, in the heart of Sonoma wine country, and is surrounded by 3 famous wine growing valleys: Dry Creek, Alexander and Russian River. These valleys are home to over 100 wineries and countless other vineyards (not everyone who grows wine grapes makes wine). We were both really looking forward to visiting the wineries of some of our favorite wines!

Our first week Elaine took us wine touring with Tim, our sailing friend, who drove up from San Francisco. The 4 of us (Tim, Elaine, Lance and myself) pedaled out to Dry Creek Valley, stopping to taste at different vineyards along the way. As was the case for most of our visit, Kelly couldn’t play because he was hard at work. The day was warm but not miserable and the wine was really delicious, especially Dry Creek Vineyard’s. It was so beautiful the rolling hills were covered with vines, waving their large leaves in the afternoon breeze. Some of the grapes were even starting to change color, beginning to ripen (veraison to you wine geeks).

Lance and Tim continued their ride by biking over to Kelly’s vineyard while Elaine and I rode back to her house to unload our heavy bottles. We met up with the guys at the vineyard, its not only gorgeous but organic! Part of Kelly’s job requires him to manage a herd of sheep that he rotates through the vineyard to control weeds and fertilize. During our visit Kelly was “training” a llama to protect the sheep.

Apparently, llamas guard flocks in South America, kicking the poo out of predators. Only problem was that this llama didn’t like the sheep and refused to hang out with them. I don’t know how he did it but by the time we left, Kelly was relieved to report that the llama was finally bonding with the sheep.

Unfortunately, Lance had a huge deadline to meet and he wasn’t able to get out and explore as much as I was. Its always more fun when you have someone to share things with so I was really glad that Elaine was an able and willing adventurer. We took an afternoon and wandered around nearby Santa Rosa. Its not as quaint as Healdsburg but it is the home of Luther Burbank’s (famous horticulturalist) gardens and the Charles M. Schulz Museum (Schulz lived in the area for the last 40 years of his life).

On another day Elaine, Georgia (Kelly and Elaine’s beloved dog) and I headed out to the coast. When we left Healdsburg it was in the 90s, 35 miles later in Jenner we were zipping up our jackets! It was under 60 and windy out along the coast but it was beautiful. Even the drive out was gorgeous since the road followed the Russian River the whole way. After watching some harbor seals (who were watching us) and enjoying the birdly mayhem going on at the estuary of the Russian River, we drove over to Goat Rock State Beach.

Good thing it was too cold to even think about swimming; a huge sign warned us that this was the deadliest section of coast in California. And it would’ve been so tempting if it had been warm… Apparently, the final scene from the movie “The Goonies” was filmed here, not sure I even remember that movie. I know I saw it but that was… a long time ago.

Elaine and I even did another afternoon of wine touring, this time up to Ridge’s Lytton Spring vineyard. I have been a fan of their Zinfandels for years. Suffice it to say it was worth the uphill ride. Afterwards we zoomed down to the Simi tasting room. For all its good looks I was sorely disappointed. Its a grand, old winery but I wasn’t impressed by their wine. Of course, I do have a unique palate…

Most evenings the 4 of us dined together, sharing good food, wine and stories. What with working, playing and sightseeing the time just flew by and before we knew it, it was time to move on. Lance arranged to meet with some colleagues in San Francisco and so two weeks later, we headed south.

Photos: We have 3 photo sets from our time in Sonoma County area: Sonoma County, Jenner Coast, and Sonoma County II. Enjoy!

Dates and notes: We stayed in Healdsburg 07/24/06 – 08/06/06. Our 21’ Tioga Arrow motorhome was parked in the comfy “Russian River Trailer Park” on Healdsburg Ave, just south of town.