A taste of: Napa and Sausalito, California

 

     

     

  

     

     

     

     

Chateau Montelena Winery

     

     

The Hess Collection -- Winery and Gallery

"Hommage" by Leopoldo Maler

"Johanna II" by Franz Gertsch
Photo by Philip Harvey

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During my stay in San Francisco I went on a couple of day trips outside of the city.  In this post I have featured images from my visits to the Napa Valley and Sausalito.  

Philip Harvey and I left very early for Napa one morning in order to take pictures of the hot air balloons in flight.  We were not sure if we were going to make it in time to see them.  Luckily our timing was perfect and we arrived just as they were taking off.  It was such a beautiful day to be out there and it was quite the adventure to photograph the balloons.  We chased them around the valley while Phil drove and I shot pictures with the big zoom lens.  I felt like I was part wildlife photographer, part paparazzo.  I must share the photo credit with Phil for the balloon shoot because we  were both using one of the cameras.  We took so many pictures that day that I am not entirely sure who took what.

After our morning adventure we went to the Bouchon Bakery for coffee and croissants--delicious!  Maybe you have seen their cookbook.  We then went to the Chateau Montelena Winery for a wine tasting and a walk around the beautiful grounds.  For lunch we stopped at Taylor's Refresher for a burger and a shake. There was a huge outdoor seating area with picnic tables which was nice.  From there we headed to the Hess Collection Winery and Gallery.  We took a tour around the grounds, went for a tasting where they had some really lovely wines, and then walked around the gallery which had a private collection of contemporary art. 

On a different day trip I borrowed a bike and rode across the Golden Gate Bridge to the town of Sausalito.   Once again, I was very lucky with the weather so I had a smooth ride across the bridge and got to soak in a lot of sun.  Sausalito is on the water so it was lovely to walk around.  For lunch I stopped for tacos and washed them down with a refreshing Corona.  I was pretty stuffed after that meal but I was told that while in Sausalito I had to go to Lappert's Ice Cream.  I happily "struggled" to eat a scoop of their coconut, macadamia and caramel swirl flavour--wow!  I then took the ferry back to the city where I got a beautiful view of the bay.