The Vacation when California was on Fire

   We headed north to Geyserville, CA on our Harley, on an October Sunday. As we got further north the weather grew extremely windy around Fairfield, CA and into the rolling vineyards of Napa. Typically, a very pleasant drive, but the wind made it very rough on us. I had to hold onto my helmet to keep my neck from hurting too much. :(
     Making plans in my head of all the tasting rooms to visit in the next few days and getting excited to try out some new wineries. Nearing our destination decided to stop at FieldStone Winery .....confused by it's unique, hobbit-like entrance.

Fieldstone Winery Entrance

The tasting room offers wine from all around, as they are in a transitional period. 

We loved the wines selected for our tastings and purchased 2 bottles.

View from our Balcony

Enjoying some great Wine

    Arriving late afternoon at the wonderful Geyserville Inn. The Inn was chosen for it's location, comfortable beds and spacious rooms. The Inn is on the north-west edge of Sonoma county and has the beautiful hwy 128 to take us to the coast in a couple days.

We had a gourmet meal at their restaurant with a bottle of 2013 Trione Pinot wine, and then relaxed on the balcony to begin our vacation. Relaxed and ready for the new day....or so, we thought.

     


 I woke up around 2am to a red reflection on the TV screen. I got up to see that there were flames in the distance from our balcony. Stunned......I  woke up Danny to witness the fire as we sat on the balcony for a moment; saddened and concerned.

Geyserville Inn view around 2am

By morning, it was apparent that this was a serious fire(s) and it was spreading quick.
Smoke-filled air, ashes on the car and on the bike. We knew we would be checking out soon. 

Next morning: smoke-filled sky

        No time to fuss over our loss, these local people were going to have their world turned upside down. We checked out quietly, wished them the best, and headed out.
But, 1st breakfast and Bloody Maries at the RR Station Grill.


It turned out to be a projected meeting place for those affected by the fires. solemn, yet respectful moods. The owner's son..... seeming to be around 13, unaware of the surrounding tragedies was home from school and present at his dad's bar.

The road leaving Sonoma county was everything I had hoped it would be:

I chose the gentle curving of hwy 128 to get to the coastal highway.
With all the Vineyards, gorgeous wineries, old barns....this is 

the Anderson Valley we've heard about that great wines come from. 

I wanted to stop at every winery :)  

Then north up the 101.....oh, wow!
 these views are amazing..... my neck is gonna hurt :)

Hwy 101 views....smoke has spread quickly

A quick nights stay in Eureka....not worth mentioning. I do not plan to come back here. 

Beers & Tacos in Eureka

We had hoped to head north up the coast into Oregon. But, with rain in the
forecast, we changed plans and headed east on hwy 299. 

 The drive was gorgeous down hwy 299, a bit cold but beautiful views of trees and streams along the way.  

Our next stop is Weaverville, Ca. We pulled up to the only hotel we see.... the Weaverville Hotel ....they had 2 rooms left. We passed on the twin beds and opted for the suite.

I'm so glad we did....it was so comfortable that we stayed 2 nights. 

Turn-down Service....spoiled me :)

Our Bed in Weaverville

Cozy sitting area for guests only. 

Hotel Gift Shop....vibes in this town. 

The small town of Weaverville, Ca does not have a lot to offer in terms of shopping, but the 'down-time' was needed. We walked the town and had great food, wine and superior customer service everywhere we went.

We ate at La Grange Cafe on both nights. They had delicious food and local wines that were fair priced and impressive.

   We checked out the museum, too. 

Lots of interesting facts and displays about the area.

Heading further east         

Whiskey Lake 

          Because, of our change in plans we decide to traveling east

Adjusting the communicator 

 to find a towards home that avoided both the smoky air 

of the Napa fires, and also the busy towns around the I 5. 

So, we chose Nevada City, Ca. since we've never been and have heard
 interesting things about the little town. 

My safe driver

Northern Queen Inn....great parking

The Nevada City downtown area was very busy and had "no vacancy" signs, so

 we stayed just 1/2 mile out of town at the Northern Queen Inn. 

Turned out to be a gem :) 

It would be a great location for a large group to stay. It's a 

short cab ride into town and has some beautiful grounds.

The bridal path. Perfect!

Amazing  backgrounds for photos

   Cab ride into town for another delicious meal and great local wine.

Art Wall At Bistro 221

Bistro 221

The next morning we had a nice warm breakfast in the train car for Danny's birthday. 

Birthday Boy :) 

We had been told by our server last night of about 6 tasting rooms downtown....sounds perfect :)

So, after loading up the bike, we planned to check out a couple.  

Nevada City Winery.... good wine, we had it last night. 

but, they didn't open for another hour.....

"so, you wanna find a bloody mary?" 




"sure!"

We wondered into the National Hotel.... found the bar.

 and....well, We have the best luck ;)

Joni made a mean bloody mary. 

Loving this view with a drink in my hand

Bloody Maries on the Balcony 

 Dallas, a traveling musician

    Bloody Maries on the balcony and a local musician practicing..... Just what we needed to start our day.  Good choice!


    I think we'll check out the rooms and stay here next time we're in town. There's more to see and we just didn't get the chance this trip.

   One more day on the road, and a quick night stay in Sonora and then home.

Almost home.....

     Over all this was a trip where we drove the most miles; 2,300.
   The reason for my title is because the fires have spread throughout CA, up to 17 by the end of week.
Before & After Photos: Fires Tear Through California Wine Country
   We stayed longer in places we hadn't plan to visit, and didn't get to stay in places we had hoped to. 

But, we love our time together, chatting on the road, finding new places 

to explore, and wouldn't change a thing.