Napa Valley (Napa County, California)

My wife and I had been talking about taking a trip to California’s famous wine country, Napa Valley, for some time. Finally, after making the arrangements we were of for a weekend of wine tasting, winery tours, and some wondrous cuisine. We got an early start on Saturday morning and made the three and half hour drive from Reno to Napa. The trip was uneventful, but was clouded with spring showers along the way.

As our first tour and tasting was in the early afternoon, we drove straight to Robert Mondavi’s Winery. While the wetness of the area this day made for poor pictures of the vineyards, it certainly didn’t disturb the taste of the vino. Our tour took us through the winery, highlighting the production techniques, and ended in a fanciful tasting room with several other couples. We were given generous samples of three different varietals, and fourth glass, which was a blend. The entire selection was fantastic. Having enjoyed this first tour, we decided to get checked into our hotel a few miles south of the winery.

The John Muir Inn in Napa was nothing special as far as luxuries, but was gifted with wonderfully hospitable staff. As Cass wanted to lay down for a bit and I was mildly famished, I borrowed and umbrella from the front desk and walked around the corner to the highly recommended Fume Bistro and Bar for a light salad of pears and blue cheese. As we had dinner reservations later in the evening, I didn’t want to ruin my appetite for what promised to be an outstanding meal.

When I returned, I decided to lay down for a bit myself. The early hour and the drive had tired me as well. After a couple of hours of restful sleep, we both arose and prepared for dinner. As we are both great fans of Japanese culture and cuisine, I had made a dinner reservation at Morimoto Napa a few weeks in advance. Having been to the chef’s location in Philadelphia, I was anxious to see if the dining experience was just as fantastic. We arrived and were treated to a seven-course omakase (chef’s choice) extravaganza. Our course selections varied from sashimi to a stylistic surf & turf, from tamarind and Thai chili ice cream to a fanciful salad with amazingly fresh vegetables being dipped in a garlic and anchovy oil bath. It was a truly amazing meal and will not likely be forgotten by either of us. Having filled ourselves with such an amazing spread of food, we returned to the hotel and relaxed.

Rising fairly early the next morning, we found the day to be quite a bit nice. The sun was even visible through the clouds, and the rain was reduced to an occasional mist. We drove to the northern end of the valley for our next tour and tasting to Castello di Amorosa. As we approached, it was apparent that this was no ordinary winery. A very authentic looking Italian Castle greeted us as we parked. We would later learn that everything including the stones and masonry work was authentic. Apparently, this winery had been built only a few years before as a personal project of a wealthy vintner. Later he decided to actually make wine, though it is only privately available – no distributors allowed. Our tour of the castle included all of the expected stops: the banquet hall, the chapel, the torture chamber complete with an antique and experienced iron maiden. We were also treated to a tour of the cave system hand-carved beneath the castle, which serves as the wine cellar.

Our tour ended with a formal wine tasting of about a dozen different selections. Having visited a few wineries in the past, I must say that the overall catalog of this “castle of love” is among the finest to have passed my lips. Cass enjoyed them all immensely as well. We agreed that this will be a stop every time we visit Napa.

Our tour and tasting completed, we headed off for some lunch before the drive back across the Sierras. We chose to try the Mustard Grille, which is along the St. Helena highway in the heart of Napa Valley. While there was a quite a wait to be seated due to the crowds, the food was well worth it. Our bellies full, our spirits content, we headed home. This had been a wonderful way to spend a romantic weekend.

Red Rock Canyon (Clark County, Nevada)

In addition to visiting the Valley of Fire on this trip, I decided to take time to visit Red Rock Canyon, just a few minutes West of Las Vegas. I had heard of this spectacular place from several friends, but had never, in all of my trips to Sin City, taken the time to see it with my own two eyes. Today, that would change.  After grabbing a quick lunch at the nearby Red Rock Casino, which takes it’s name from my destination, I headed out to the canyon.

From many miles away, the red cliff sides were already visible. I drove the scenic loop with every intention of doing some hiking. Unfortunately, duty called and I became involved in a minor crisis at my work. It didn’t, however, prevent me from seeing at least some of what this spectacular canyon has to offer.

I climbed around the Calico Hills a bit, while watching rock climbers scaling the flat faces in the distance. While I have never done any serious rock climbing, it really makes me want to put the gear I have to work and see how I would do outside of the indoor rock climbing facility.
Moving on, I head out to Ice Box Canyon, which my friend Amy had suggested as a great hike. While fighting to get a cell phone signal to continuing working the crisis, I decided to at least hike a little ways up into this canyon. It is named Ice Box due to the significant temperature difference between the air in this canyon and the surrounding desert. The angle of the canyon walls drastically limits the amount of direct sunlight that seeps into this little area, and so it remains much cooler than the rest of Red Rock Canyon. After about a mile and of hiking over sandstone boulders and through some fairly lush greenery, I decide to head back to the car. I have a plane to catch after all.

 

I wish I had more time to explore on this trip, but rest assured, I will be making it back to this magnificent canyon soon.

Fire Wave (Clark County, Nevada)

Since I was headed to Las Vegas anyway for work, I decided to take an extra day and explore an area of Valley of Fire State Park that I had read about. The Fire Wave is a not-so-well-known rock formation full of rich colors. It seemed worthy of checking out. I arrived at the park early and headed to the Northern end of the park, near where my sources said the trail to Fire Wave was located. Just as I had read, there was a very small sign on the side of the road labeled “Wave” with an arrow pointing off into the desert. I parked my rental car about at a pull-off about a quarter of a mile up the road and walked back to where the trail began.

Immediately upon loosing sight of the road, I was bombarded with a palate of deep reds, sandstone whites, and a all variations of pink in between. The landscape here is gorgeous. From the information I had, the Fire Wave itself was only about a quarter of a mile further, and so I began making my way over flat sandstone formations, until finally, I reached what was obviously the Fire Wave.

While the whole surrounding landscape is breathtaking in its beauty, this area above all us steals the show. Several wind-polished boulders and hillsides combine to form what seems to be a wave of lava frozen in time and space. The whites and reds take turns with each ripple. The wind has worn some sections down while leaving others as little islands of color for all to behold.

It’s no wonder this place is not talked about all that much, for I fear too much foot traffic would damage the Fire Wave’s splendor.