Day 2 of our whirlwind trip to wine country in the Napa Valley north of San Francisco began with a quick walk around the hotel grounds along the ocean in Pismo Beach, then up Route 1 along the Monterey Coast to Big Sur.
If you have never done this drive it is quite remarkable with incredible views along the way at every turn at the edge of the continent. There are places to stop and enjoy the views, which you can't do quite as well while driving. The ground squirrels at the one viewpoint were quite appreciative of all the handouts.
The area is constantly changing with rock and mud slides and areas where the road is deteriorating and must be repaired. There were 3 such major areas this trip with minor delays; one in particular was an amazing engineering undertaking on the hillside - one has to wonder if at some point nothing more can be done to stop the inevitable deterioration and erosion.
We stopped at Nepenthe Restaurant which has been on the mountain in Big Sur for decades and offers what may be some of the most dramatic dining views anywhere, at least where I have been. A wonderful visit and lunch with my cousin in Monterey gave us a nice break before heading up the freeway to Calistoga at the north end of the Napa Valley. Freeway traffic was a real treat with one major accident on our side, and a totally burned out bus on the other. Temps were in the mid to high 80s, which after the chill in Carlsbad was a treat.
Once in the Napa Valley the drive up the main road is spectacular, with wineries, familiar and not, at every turn. While it was tempting to stop there were far too many hours spent in the car and dinnertime was approaching. We stayed at a charming small hotel and spa, Eurospa, in Calistoga (I give them a big shout out for service and their massages) just a couple of blocks from the heart of town with a fabulous dinner at Jole. I even checked in a couple of times on Foursquare. More later.
Enjoy the pics - they don't do justice to the scenery but you get the idea.
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