Healdsburg

Highway One took us along the shoreline from Point Reyes Station to a spot north of Bodega Bay. As we cruised along Tomales Bay, we passed oyster vendors and launches for hire. To our right were rolling green hills dotted with grazing cattle, sheep, goats and horses. The surf at Miwok Beach on the Sonoma Coast was wild, and the jagged rock outcroppings resembled pieces of modern art. The soaring eucalyptus trees continued to impress us but they were rivaled by the redwoods in the Armstrong State Reserve just outside of Guerneville. Guerneville, by the way, is a perfect lunch spot. The Main Street Diner has noteworthy veggie pizza slices. They also have a full dinner menu and cabaret performers. The town feels like a piece of the frontier with a Rexall Drug Store, a saloon, a mercantile selling everything from bathing suits to slickers, and a Granite 5 and 10. The aging hippies lining the sidewalks could have been us if we had stayed in '68. As we approached Healdsburg, we crossed the Russian River into the Alexander Valley and began to see vineyards as well as wineries offering tastings. We checked into Madrona Manor which is on the border of Dry Creek Valley and Alexander Valley. This Victorian nineteenth century estate welcomed us with the scent of freshly baked pastries. We happily took a bottle of Navarro pinot noir up to our room to sip.