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 N A P A   V A L L E Y

t W E D N E S D A Y   D E C E M B E R   1 3

From Mendocino we passed our lodging in Calistoga in the Napa Valley and headed directly south to the wine-tasting rooms of Napa Valley. We stopped at Beaulieu Winery in Rutherford, Franciscan Winery in Oakville and Merryvale Winery in St. Helena. By then we were a little bombed, so we headed to our hotel in Calistoga for relaxation, dinner and a swim in the naturally hot mineral springs-fed thermal swimming pool. We are here for two nights and tomorrow after we visit Bolinas in Marin County, we will return for a spa treatment.

At the very top of the Napa Valley, centrally located between Napa and Sonoma counties, Calistoga remains the historic hot springs resort destination of wine, water, and wellness
Named a Distinctive Destination by the National Trust for Historic Preservation in 2001, Calistoga enables a visitor to see wine country as it was before freeways and fast food - only two lane roads lead here and fast food franchises are banned by law.
The town supposedly got its name from a slip of the tongue which turned "Saratoga of California" into 'Calistoga' of Sarafornia. (too much wine?)
Calistoga is at the north end of the Napa Valley and there are numerous wineries within a short drive. Calistoga itself, however, is noted for its hot springs spas, a local specialty being immersion in hot volcanic ash known as a mud bath. Some of the best wine in the world comes from a tiny collection of villages in the Napa Valley, places like: American Canyon, Deer Park, Napa, Oakville, Rutherford, St. Helena and Yountville.
  

"іPor fin!"   Philip  Napa Valley 2006

Merryvale Winery 2006

Dinner in Calistoga   2006   

 Philip   Calistoga  2006

Philip   Beaulieu Winery  2006

Napa Valley 2006

  Cask Room  Merryvale Winery  2006

 B O L I N A S

   T H U R S D A Y  D E C E M B E R   1 4

Today we drove to Bolinas from Calistoga, through the back roads of Petaluma and it's beautiful rolling hills of the coastal range. The rains brought an early green to the hills and fog and marine effects hung suspended in the undulating and sensual curves of the horizon. Bolinas is located along the coast and accessible only via unmarked roads, Bolinas is perhaps best known for its reclusive residents; historically, any road signs pointing the way into town on Highway One have invariably been torn down by local residents.

Craig had a Victorian home here, a bed and breakfast and was the Curator and co-founder of the Bolinas Museum. He first met Alberto here in May of 1989. Craig first met Philip here 30 years ago when Philip sold his homemade pizza at the local saloon. Philip lived here for many years in a beautiful part of Bolinas called Horseshoe Hill.
Bolinas and its reclusive reputation are featured in the 1981 novel Ecotopia Emerging by Ernest Callenbach. Bolinas is chock-full of interesting people. The person who cleans your house could easily be a Rhodes Scholar or a brilliant published poet or writer. Your gardener could know as much about compost and dry farming as they do about Keynesian Economic Theory and speak five dialects of mandarin Chinese. Today, Bolinas is increasingly occupied by the weekend noveau-riche from Berkeley and San Francisco, yet still maintains a large core of year-round long-time "locals" and still feels like a typical small village found along the ranching and farming coast of Northern California.

Famous residents and property-owners, past and present include Bill Berkson, Richard Brautigan, Jim Carroll, Robert Creeley, Joanne Kyger, Anne Lamott, Walter Murch, Charles A. Reich, Orville Schell,Tony Serra, Grace Slick, Susie Tompkins, Joel Coen,
Frances McDormand, StuArt Chapman and Aram Saroyan, Philip Cunningham and many more.

More about Bolinas here: http://www.jackmagazine.com/issue3/renhist.html

It was fun to see old familiar faces and old friends. Philip had a late morning tea date with an old friend on Horseshoe Hill, Barbara Pace. To be at Barbara's house in the 70's was every bit as entertaining as hanging out with Gertrude Stein in Paris or Virginia Woolf or Dorothy Parker in their times. The rest of us wandered around town or on the beach, bumping into friends and admiring the way things has not changed in this charming town. I saw Ernie Tacherra at the ranch, the ageless, witty and beautiful Linda Samuels (we caused a traffic jam downtown) and most surprisingly, one of my all time favorite people in the world, the talented writer and artist, the witty and gorgeous Samantha Sachs whom I have known since she was a baby. I could  have done handsprings down Wharf Road, In the afternoon we returned to Calistoga for a mud bath and massage at one of the many spas that fill the town.

Bolinas Lagoon  2006

Philip and Susie Stewart    Horseshoe Hill    2006

  Bolinas  2006

Bolinas  2006 

 Horseshoe Hill  Bolinas 2006

Samantha and Colin   Bolinas 2006

- c o n t i n u e d -

C A L I S T O G A  M U D  B A T H S

We took the full spa treatment: mud, masque, mineral bath, blanket wrap and massage.  a-h-h-h-h-h-h........................

Afterwards we went downtown for Italian. We ordered a bottle of Twenty Rows Cabernet 2002 from the American Canyon District in Napa (AVA). It was explosively fruit forward, with large creamy mouthfuls of black cherries,lingering tastes of mint, chocolate, hints of spice and vanillin oak. Absolutely the quintessential Napa-style. Delicious.

After the spa treatment    Calistoga   2006

Craig and Alberto   Calistoga Mud Baths  2006

 Alberto and Craig   Mud Baths  2006

S A N   M A T E O

F R I D A Y  D E C E M B E R  1 5

We dropped  Mañuelito at SFO for a trip back to Los Angeles. Philip dropped us off at our hotel in Santa Cruz then headed to San Mateo for two nights with his brother Kim and his wife. On Sunday the 17th, we drove home along Hwy 1 through Big Sur and Morro Bay.

 Philip and his sister-in-law  Brenda    San Mateo  2006

R E D O N D O  B E A C H

M O N D A Y   D E C E M B E R  18

Philip left for Toronto on Tuesday evening but before he left, Manuelito took us to a restaurant in the sunny marina in Redondo Beach.

Alberto and Craig  Redondo Beach  2006

 Philip and Manuelito  Redondo Beach  2006