Weekend Wine Getaway!!

            What’s the best place to go on a warm sunny day? Sip some wine at the central coast town Paso Robles. Just a 3.5 hr drive from LA, it’s the best destination if you are looking for a short trip and a good wine tasting experience. Here are a few of the places we visited last weekend. Must say, it was a spirited trip!

            Our first stop was at the Firestone Walker Brewery Company. We enter, and see this bar with their famous brews on one side and some souvenir T-shirts and mugs on the other. I am not the beer types. But we took the standard beer tasting for $6. The tasting room had a normal bar look with pictures of beer bottles and barrels all over. The set of four beers given for tasting had their most famous Pale31 among them. One had a Pineapple flavor the other had toffee flavor, another had some sweet nector in it! They said the hop that they add to the brewing process gives the beer its unique flavouring. The presentation was also very unique. The four glasses were actually these little wine glasses served on a wooden holder. Need to look up what such holders/trays are called. My husband enjoyed the variety of flavours, and I enjoyed their aroma.

             We were next off to get something to eat. Deciding to try true Paso food we stepped into a restaurant full of people called ‘Touch of Paso’. We got seated in the patio, and after a long wait we were nibbling at pork chops and grilled sandwich and split pea soup. The place was set up for Halloween. Jack-o-lanterns everywhere and twinkling lights, made a good welcoming sight. Well, we didn’t like the touch of the food after all. We could see that people in the area loved it ‘cause there were very few tables vacant. I guess its just the difference between authentic American food and the generalized American food we get normally in the food chains. Or may be we just picked the wrong kind of food! We have still got to adapt ourselves to it! We wanted to try the cake of the day but they didn’t have any that day! So we moved on and headed to the tour at the Firestone Walker Brewery at 1:30pm.

We were first introduced to the history of how the company was started and the awards they have got. One secret we gotto know was that the 31 in the name Pale 31 of their famous brew came from the fact that California was the 31^st state inducted into the union. Mr.Firestone was from CA and Mr.Walker was from England and thus the Bear and Lion respectively on their logo. We then saw how they actually made the beer. The process, the grain, the hop, yeast, etc. Its interesting how this small place could produce nearly 250 bottles a minute! That is apart from the fermenting process of course. To make their DBA(Double Barrel Ale) beer, they use two kinds of fermentation. Part of the beer is fermented in white oak barrels, which induce some vanilla and oaks flavours into it, and most of it is fermented in steel tanks. These are later mixed to form the resulting DBA drink.

            Our next stop was at Vina Robles. It’s a swiss owned winery and as a harvest weekend special they were serving swiss pairings like gourmet swiss mac and cheese and swiss sausages with the wine! Tasting was free and had 2 whites, and 4 reds. We loved the Red4 and ended up buying it. The ambiance was lovely and they had a range of souvenirs. Also on display were wedding albums of those who chose to get married here. They also have an art gallery showing paintings, photography and a few sculptures. An interesting layout with pieces priced from $2400.

             Bianchi was supposed to be among the best wines in Paso. It had a big tasting room with a bar against one wall and a few souvenirs. The garden had a pond with a waterfall at one corner. A pretty picture really. $5 for a choice of 6 wines including the glass. They had a wide variety of choice from whites, reds, and their reserves. These wines were not as impressive as we expected. I liked the Sauvignon Blanc and Barbera amongst the 6 I tasted.

              Tobin James, a world in itself it is. The old look on the exterior, full of hustle on the inside with loud music, and the most friendly hosts it has. They had free tastings too. We tasted 3 reds and one dessert wine. We loved the Sangiovese of them all. All of them were very good! It was a splendid experience. Something different, something exciting… The place just lifted our spirits to a new level! We also got a souvenir Sun sticker for having tasted. They had all kinds of souvenirs, from wall hanging, to hats, T-shirts, they had this small arcade with some games too. You could just feel the fun even before even smelling your glass of wine! They also have a man doing airbrush tattoos! Halloween theme, James theme, or anything else, this is a fun place to be!

             Our next tasting was at Bear Cave in downtown. This is a modest office that looks the least like a tasting room. Not a very attractive place for wine tasting, but, but, but, but, the wine at Bear Cave is superb! Surprisingly fresh and crisp. They mostly have wine that’s high in alcohol content giving a meaty flavor to it. The host is the wife of the owner who is never tired of talking to her guests and introducing us to the way her husband works and creates these master pieces. Their dog Maestro is also there entertaining guests, and singing away with his tennis ball in his mouth, looking for company to play with. They have all red wines, that ask for some heavy food to go with them. There is one wine on the tasting list that is just a drinking wine the host says, thats the ‘Just Red’. We got the just Red. It was just $10! What more do you need? She had wines from 2006 onwards and they were all a mouthful.

We needed to eat something after tasting so many glasses of wine. So we got to the Odyssey World Café just around the block. It was a nice calm place and the food seemed quite nice. The day ended, It was getting dark and we decided we should head back home. So tadaaa!! Will see you again next time…

An evening at Santa Monica

Taking a stroll along the 3rd St Promenade full of stores, people, fun and sun!!

Looking into the sunset at Santa Monica Beach is awesome!!

Yosemite National Park Quick guide

How to get there

There are four entrances to the park

1)      From Northern California(San Fransisco, San Jose, Sacramento) take 120 East, the Big Oak Flat  Entrance or the 140 East, the Arch Rock Entrance

2)      From Southern California(Los Angeles, San Diego) take 41 North, the South Entrance

3)      From Nevada state take 120 West, the Tioga Pass entrance(closed in winter)

Where to stay

                There are a variety of hotels to choose from in the valley. But if you really want to experience the wilderness completely, reserve a camp spot in advance and plan for a 7 day retreat.

1)      Ahwahnee Hotel—The biggest and expensive hotel in the area

2)      Yosemite Lodge facing the falls—Situated right next to the falls, it has condos in many buildings some facing the falls too. It has a pool, some stores and a pretty good food court

3)      LeConte Memorial Lodge—Near Housekeeping camp

4)      Curry Village—Has cabins with or without attached baths, no heater/AC

5)      Campgrounds—Perfect choice for the adventurous types

What to do

                The most common things to do apart from absorbing the scenic beauty of the place here is Hiking. There are plenty trails short and long, steep and flat. Most challenging being the one to the top of Half Dome. A 16.3mi hike up and down. It starts from Happy Isles Shuttle stop and could be shortened if taken via Mist Trail. Permit is needed fri-sun and holidays.

                Camping is the activity many of us prefer next to hiking. There are 13 popular campgrounds some with and some without reservations. A total of 30 days of camping is allowed in the park per year.

                Horse/mule rides are also available with reservation. 2 hour and 4 hour rides are available.

                Skiing can be done in winter on the famous Badger pass and many other spots.

                Ranger walks, nature walks, star gazing, Campfires, Art workshops everything is happening in Yosemite for kids and adults. Swimming Rafting, Fishing is allowed too. There is also a museum, gift shops, the Ansel Adams gallery, and visitor centers where you can get a lot of information about the valley its wildlife and vegetation.

What not to do

                Never leave your cars open with food inside. One of the first warnings you are given when you check into the hotel. Reason, bear can break into them and cause a wreck!

Useful Tips        

To experience the magic of this heaven, plan and reserve in advance

                Hiking shoes would be very useful on this trip. Whether you choose a 1 mile trail or a 10 mile one, the wilderness is best when tread with shoes( except when you decide to have a picnic beside the merced river when you may prefer slippers)

                Dress according to the season. But its going to be a while before the sun shows up into the valley so its always good to keep a sweatshirt.

When to go

                Although the park looks great any time of the year, the best time to go is the spring when the water is full and the sun is out. Later in the summer, the water dries out and the heat drills into you, and in the winter, most of the ways are closed, you cant camp and trails are difficult. One advantage of the winter is the skiing.

Useful Links


National Park website

Yo Semite!! --Day 2

           Breakfast was good. I had a premium breakfast platter with waffles sausage and scrambled eggs. We reached the stables at 8am exact. We were supposed to attend an orientation about how to ride the horses. After a 10 min video about how careful we need to be on our rides that also have brains, we were allotted a mule each according to our weight and age. We were about 10 people in the group. I got the white mule called Buzz. I asked my guide everything I had to so that I didn’t fall off or hurt myself while on the ride. The first thing we noticed was the stink of poop in the stables. A person familiar with horses would find it normal probably, but for us it was not easy. And the last thing announced was that mules are gassy animals!! Ooooh… I was not waiting for that!! As soon as we begun, the one in front of me pooped… well we got used to it as each of the mules either peed or pooped all the way. My husband and I loved the ride! We were just strolling along the trail in a single line. The mules were fabulously trained. Mine diligently followed the one in front of it. That’s all! I didn’t have to do anything. I must say, the next time someone tries to insult you saying you are a mule be proud of it. They are so intelligent! Riding along our 2.8mi trail I could see how calculated the mule’s steps were. Climbing up and down rocky places, following in one line, it was a very good ride indeed. These stable guys definitely make sure we have the best time. The trail led us to the Mirror Lake, which was again dry! The guide said that many years ago a fine hotel was built with car parking for 300 and they had Saturday night parties too. But it was later dismantled since it was tampering a lot with the beauty of the area. We enjoyed the ride thoroughly. It didn’t seem like 2 hours.

Tenaya Lake

                Next we were on our way to toloumne meadows. On the way back we took one last look at the Tunnel view. How amazing it was! So we were heading west on highway 120 also called Tioga Road and on the way we saw the beautiful Tenaya Lake, Toloumne meadows and the Tioga Pass. Tioga Road is so picturesque it only reminded us of the 17mi drive on Hwy 1. Huge mountain sides, valleys, trees, wilderness all over and lakes here and there it made the perfect place for countless hiking trails all the way. Every creek and lake had more than two trails nearby along with picnic spots and camping grounds. We are definitely going back to experience all that but on a cooler day!! Even the sight of burnt Sequoia was looking soo good! Nature is truly unbelievable. Our first stop on Tioga Road was Tenaya Lake. We stepped out onto a shady shore of the lake. Still clear water copper blue reflecting it was looking wonderful! On the other side was the sunny shore with more people and more waves, we could go boating on the lake too. The road then led us to the Toloumne meadows. These meadows were once the base of a huge glacier, some 2000ft thick and 60mi long. It’s a vast meadow today with no trees. And the day we were there, it was mostly sun reflecting off the yellow grass. There is a visitors center explaining the importance of these meadows and how it formed, the butterflies in the meadows and the rocks found in the area, also the trails that they in and around the meadows. After crossing the meadows we finally reached the edge of Yosemite National Park at the Tioga pass. We were at 9943ft elevation. The view of the mountains was spectacular and the road looked like it was built in the sky. We really felt like we were descending from the sky. We had now entered the Inyo National Forest. We could distinctly make out the difference in vegetation, rock and climate! A few spots on the peaks of these huge mountains still had snow too! The descent took us to Hwy 395 where we headed north towards the Mono Lake.

Mono Lake

               This is a huge salt water lake. The tributaries now feeding the lake have been diverted to feed the Los Angeles water supply and therefore the levels of water of this lake have drastically reduced and the salt content in the water has effectively increased. It is an important part in nature. Many migratory shorebirds use the lake and its surroundings as resting places. They rest on the islands in the middle of the lake that were once volcanoes, thus showing their black rocky surfaces. Due to the lowering of the level of water, the main land is now joined to the island and predators are endangering the birds. These birds feed on the salt water shrimp and alkali flies around the lake.

                   We went to the old marina part of the lake. The flies made us avoid the water and there were quite a few gulls feeding in the area. Not many tufa structures in sight but definitely a beautiful picture. We grabbed a quick burger and fries at a place close by headed towards the June lake loop.         

            This loop extends from 395 through mountains along 4 lakes and again intersects 395 after about 15mi. The first lake on our way was Grant lake. Grant lake was huge! It had a campground beside it and a mud road that lead you to parts around the lake. It made a great place to have a quiet time with family. We could rent a boat and go into the lake. The time was perfect. Clear blue skies, and the water looked brilliant! A bright blue and in it was a dog swimming and playing with his fried.

Our next stop was at June lake itself. Other lake on the way were Silver lake and Gull lake. Mostly fishing lakes with many many houses surrounding them. They looked like summer houses for the Richie rich. Own houses or rental, with numerous motels too. Anyone could stay in campgrounds and enjoy these picturesque locations. But June lake was one of a kind. STargely enough we didn’t see too many people around it but we had a great time there. The water was most clear and looks lovely with a picnic bench on the beach. Trees all around, houses peeking from on top of mountains,  people boating, It was nature all wrapped in itself!

June Lake

Well, well, well, this time after we didn’t stop except for food. Poor my hubby drove all day. One disappointment was the Hwy. Single lane on either side in many patches it was getting tiring with oncoming traffic glaring lights at us. We came back home all tired out and hit the sack like rock…zzzzzzz!!!!

A terrific trip, awesome at every curve, step and depth…

Yo Semite!! --Day 1

                Our day started early. Early meaning very very early for a Saturday morning. Surprisingly I woke up after only one snooze at 3:10am! After packing in a hurry we left at 4:30. Our drive would last for 5.5 hours. I am lucky, ‘cause my husband loves travelling too, and also loves driving. So I was off duty. I took a siesta and read a photography magazine to get some quick tips on taking pictures with our brand new Canon T1I.

                We entered Yosemite National Park at about 9:30am. It was the National park day and so, our $20 fee was waived. We were given guides and maps. We were also warned not to follow any GPS or phone device to navigate ourselves around the valley. So I was trying hopelessly to guide us to our first stop The Glacier point.

Glacier point is a view point of the entire Yosemite Valley at a height of 7214ft. The view was spectacular! White granite mountains spread all around till the horizon and burning white in the hot sun. Half dome, basket peak, royal arches, upper and lower Yosemite falls(with no water unfortunately), Yosemite Point and in the valley, a narrow meandering stream of Merced river, the grand Ahwahnee Hotel, Yosemite Village, Curry Village and Mirror Lake area. It took so long for us to take all this in. It was nothing we could ever imagine. Granite faces going far far away, with Sequoia trees at the base. Half dome itself is at 8836ft above sea level. Looked exactly like a dome cut exactly in half top to bottom. People could climb the peak following a trail that is 17mi long! Not something I would do that too in such scorching heat! The sun was baking us, and we were basking in the splendid view of the valley. It was indeed jaw dropping. A geological exhibit at the Glacier point explains how the valley was formed. Thousands of years ago, the valley was full of glaciers. As these glaciers melted and erode the rocks, Merced river was formed and with its eroding the valley, this beautiful valley was formed. Just to imagine that vast range covered by a glacier was shocking. We then decided to come back in winter to witness this place covered in snow atleast. An interesting info about Yosemite falls was also given. The fire falls. Earlier many many years ago, people would light fire at the top of the upper falls and throw the fire down. The result would be a waterfall of fire. Quite contradictory I know. But that’s what happened back then. It was later stopped because it was considered man made and harmful for retaining the naturality of the falls.

Half Dome

Dragging ourselves from Glacier point, we headed towards the valley. It was already afternoon and we were damn hungry! The sun was harsh and we were baked already. We headed straight to the Village Grill. But, with a stop at the Tunnel view. Another spectacular view of the valley from between the mountains bases. The reason why its called Tunnel view just probably because its at one end of a tunnel leading to the valley. Thousands and thousands of sequoia trees all along the valley base and strikingly high steep faced granite mountains on either side. The view is a definite picture spot. We decided to go back to it on our way back!

Tunnel View

Village Grill was in Yosemite Village. Amazing how the village was hidden beneath the tall trees. We couldn’t spot most of it from the Glacier Point. Even though the sun was burning us, the trees were such a blessing. We were thrown into wilderness immediately. Squirrels running all over, we were on the look-out for bears too (bears could break into our cars for food). So we were unknowingly trying to spot some wild animals. The food at the Grill? There is a reason why I didn’t start with that. Even though me and my husband try out the best of foods everywhere, that day was unfortunate. The cheese burger was bad. My veggie burger was eaten just so that I am not hungry for the rest of the day. Sweet potato fries, um… interesting, but not very appetizing. Never know what worse food we could get in other places! So our expectation of food in the valley, dropped to a 3 from an 8.

                Neither of us ever rode a horse. And it pleased me to see my husband was also interested even though the cost for the ride seemed a little too much for me! $60 per person for a 2 hour ride. I am always thinking if it was worth it or not for the buck. But as I will tell you later, it was definitely worth it. We stood for the free Yosemite shuttle buses and ended up on the wrong side! Thanks to the confusing bus route map. We were right at a certain loop standing in the wrong direction, in a hurry to reach the Yosemite stables. When we reached, it was too late.  We missed our ride. Anyway, we booked our ride for the next morning at 9am and started back to go see the visitor center and museum.

                The Museum has a detailed description of how the peaks and valley came to being thousands of years ago. Even before the glaciers. It has a good exhibit of the kind of animals residing in the valley and the kind of stone in the mountains with glacial footprints on them. A very interesting place to just ponder on the mightiness of nature and what it can bring about to our surroundings.

                Our next stop was at Sentinal Bridge. Stop #11. It was a spot where we just sat and stared at the sight. It gave a pretty view of the Yosemite falls on one side and exactly at the bridge the half dome could be seen. We were sitting at the bus stop watching the Yosemite Falls with no water of course, and again we decided to be back when the water is full. It was the perfect spot for the falls. Seemed like a painting was in front of us. But of course much more magnificent. We could sit there forever, waiting to see water gush down the face of rock and splash onto the lower falls. We missed the white foamy water even though we had never even seen it there! It was wonderful.

Yosemite Lodge at the falls was where we were going to stay for the night. After checking in, we went for a walk to the lower falls. It was a short trail. The bed of the falls was full of rocks. The trees all around and the distant peaks on the opposite side made for lovely pics. We retired to our room early after dinner at the food court at the lodge. We had a choice of Pizza, Pasta, burgers and proper American meals with steak and mashed potato. Food tasted much better here thankfully. And we were glad the day ended early. We were in bed to make up for our lack of sleep last night. 

Lower Yosemite Falls

Yosemite Lodge at the Falls