Philo, CA

Wednesday, October 24, 2018
Philo to Garberville, California
Garberville/Benbow KOA
Distance: 125 miles
Duration: 2 nights
Cost: $57/night
Weather: Sunny and warm

We woke up with the sun and were on the road fairly early for us. I took more pictures of the vineyard and the fog on the hills in the distance. It was such a beautiful and peaceful morning. I hated to leave.

The drive on Hwy. 253 was very pretty with a lot of the trees dressed in their fall colors. The highway is probably just as curvy as Hwy. 128, but there wasn't as much traffic, so it was more enjoyable than when we drove in to Philo from 101. Also, we noticed that when I pulled over to let the cars behind me pass, almost every single one tapped their horns in appreciation. This has happened occasionally on our road trips, but we were shocked that almost 99% of the cars and trucks expressed their thanks to us with the horn tap. Thank you, Northern California drivers!

Another first was having a couple of deer dash across the road, right in front of the RV. Thankfully, we were going slow enough that it wasn't a problem, but it sure got our attention! 

We had one steep descent of 10% for 2 miles, but the RV handled it just fine. I feel so much more comfortable with steep ascents and descents in this Class C RV compared to when we were pulling a trailer. 

Early morning at Handley Cellars Winery.

Beautiful morning with lots of birdsong.

Another vineyard just east of Handley Cellars Winery. Gorgeous!

We decided to play tourists and stopped at the Drive-Thru Tree Memorial Grove in Leggett. It's pretty much a tourist trap, what with the $10 fee to enter the park. Obviously, our RV is far too big to drive through the tree, but we walked around and took a few pictures.

Probably not worth it, but we decided to play tourists.

Nope. The Four Winds is not gonna fit!

2400 years old! Wow.

I don't know how many times we've stayed at the Benbow KOA, but this may have been our third visit and it was nice to be back in a familiar spot. We snagged a good end site, which meant there was nobody on our right and we could enjoy looking out on the beautiful fall colors. The contrast between the leaves and the blue sky was picture-perfect! I took a long walk, desperate to get some exercise and stretch my legs. I walked over to the Benbow Inn and couldn't believe how low the Eel River had become since our visit less than six months earlier.

We enjoyed our drinks outside, as the weather was absolutely perfect. Not too hot and not at all windy. It got pretty chilly after the sun went down, but it was so quiet, we both slept great.

Back at the Benbow KOA.

The river is so low!

Beautiful fall colors.

Benbow Historic Inn.

Last time we were here, this river bed was completely covered with water.

Love these trees!

Not too many people here, so it made for a nice quiet stay.

Looking Back - What Looks Like Crazy on an Ordinary Day

Looking Back... In an effort to transfer my book journal entries over to this blog, I'm going to attempt to post (in chronological order) an entry every Friday. I may or may not add extra commentary to what I jotted down in these journals.

What Looks Like Crazy On an Ordinary Day by Pearl Cleage
Fiction
1998 Harper Perennial (first published in 1997)
Read in December 1998
Rating: 3/5 (Good)

Publisher's Blurb:

Acclaimed Playwright, essayist and columnist Pearl Cleage breaks new ground in African American women's literature--with a debut novel that sings and crackles with life-affirming energy as it moves the reader to laughter and tears.

As a girl growing up in Idlewild, Michigan, Ava Johnson had always heard that, if you were young, black, and had any sense at all, Atlanta was the place to be. So as soon as she was old enough and able enough, that was where she went--parlaying her smarts and her ambition into one of the hottest hair salons in town. In no time, she was moving with the brothers and sisters who had beautiful clothes, big cars, bigger dreams, and money in the bank.

Now, after more than a decade of elegant pleasures and luxe living, Ava has come home, her fabulous career and power plans smashed to bits on one dark truth. Ava Johnson has tested positive for HIV. And she's back in little Idlewild to spend a quiet summer with her widowed sister, Joyce, before moving on to finish her life in San Francisco, the most HIV-friendly place she can imagine.

But what she thinks is the end is only the beginning because there's too much going down in her hometown for Ava to ignore. There's the Sewing Circus--sister Joyce's determined effort to educate Idlewild's young black women about sex, drugs, pregnancy, whatever. . .despite the interference of the good Reverend Anderson and his most virtuous, "Just say no" wife. Plus Joyce needs a helping hand to make a loving home for Imani, an abandoned crack baby whom she's taken into her heart.

And then there's Wild Eddie, whose legendary background in violence combined with his Eastern gentility has stirred Ava's interest. . .and something more.


My Original Notes (1998):

It took me a while to gain interest in this novel, but once I did, I was hooked! I found myself caring about Ava and Eddie, as well as the baby, Imani. Touching without being too sentimental. A good read!

My Current Thoughts:

Another book of which I have no recollection. I'm pretty sure I read it with an online book group, which probably got the suggestion from Oprah's book club.

Santa Rosa & Philo, CA

Tuesday, October 23, 2018
Santa Rosa to Philo, California
Handley Cellars
Distance: 87 miles
Duration: 1 night
Cost: Boondocking - free
Weather: Cool and partly sunny

We said our goodbyes to Sue and Rob then drove over to Sebastopol to meet up with our good friends, Sarah & Bert. Of course, we planned our lunch date at Handline so we could enjoy yet another delicious meal of fish tacos! After our early lunch, the four of us headed to Hook & Ladder Winery for some wine tasting. The winery is quite lovely and would be a nice place to go for a picnic lunch next time we're in Santa Rosa. We bought two bottles of their Sangiovese and had fun looking at all the shirts and caps that firefighters have brought to have on display in the tasting room. I even found one from Lincoln!

The bounty from George & Merry's avocado trees!

A foggy morning in Santa Rosa.

Handline fish tacos & fries. Delicious!

Our dear friends, Sarah & Bert.

Hook & Ladder Vineyards and Winery.

Fun to spot this one from Lincoln, Nebraska!

Perfect spot for a picnic.

Happy travelers!

After more goodbyes, we got back on Hwy. 101 and started making our way north to the Anderson Valley of Mendocino County. Handley Cellars Winery (a Harvest Host site, which is located in Philo) was our destination for the night. It is less than a 100 miles from Hook & Ladder, but the last 40 miles (on Hwy. 128) took close to an hour, as it is quite curvy. However, the trees and vineyards were gorgeous in their fall colors and the drive turned out to be more beautiful than expected.

We arrived at Handley around 4:00 and after checking in at the tasting room, found our way to our site. In order to park out of the way and find a level spot, we had to park next to the old water tower, facing some small cottages (which we assume are for workers) and weren't able to position the RV with the windows looking out toward the vineyard. There was also some music coming from one of the cottages, but it was turned off before we were ready to go to sleep. So, not an ideal vantage point to appreciate the beauty from inside the RV, but certainly a lovely location to spend one night.

After dinner, we wandered around the property, taking in the views and watching the sun set over the hills in the distance. 

Note: Should we ever decide to travel from Hwy. 101 over to Mendocino (on Hwy. 128), a few nights at Hendy Woods State Park, which is situated on the Navarro River, might be a good alternative for a longer visit to this particular area.