The Trail

Over Thanksgiving I had the week off from both my jobs and since the weather was nice I took the opportunity to hike up into Annadel again. This is one of my favorite places in our county. In the summer it is very hot, but as soon as it cools down a bit it is a wonderful wild place to spend time in.

For quite some time I had this idea in my head that I wanted to take pictures of Rough Go Trail by just using my phone. Now finally the time had come to turn this idea into reality (I'm afraid this is a photo-heavy post).

The trail that leads to Rough Go starts near the lake and is nice and mellow with relatively smooth going, the only obstacle in your way being a coyote brush.

Looking back already offers a beautiful view of the Mayacamas Mountains.

Then we hit the Rough Go Trail and the going gets... well, rough. There is a reason why the trail has its name. The first part is still in the shade which is the only shady section of the trail.

Then the trail gets rougher while climbing up.

Turning back you can see the scars of the October 2017 fires - those are some of the mountains where the fire roared over in the night of October 8th, 2017.

The trail climbs steadily among the boulders and rocks - another reason why I avoid this trail in the heat of the summer since the rattlers love to hang out here. While I think they're still more afraid of me than vice versa I do prefer to see them from a safe distance.

The views across my town toward the Coastal Range are stunning. I'm always amazed how many trees there are. Hard to believe that this is a city of 160,000.

But we still have a bit of a climb to do, so let's move on.

 

This is the end of the first climb - this lovely bench on the ridge.

I love to sit here under the old trees, watching the turkey vultures circling above me. Sometimes deer walk by. About ten to fifteen years ago or so while I was sitting on this bench enjoying the view a woman had climbed up the same trail and was approaching the bench a bit hesitantly. After I had told her that there is certainly space for both of us she sat beside me and we started a conversation. I immediately loved her English accent, and we talked for a long time. At the end we exchanged phone numbers and we became hiking buddies for many years.

It's also a great place for contemplating and writing in my journal.

From here you can still hike much further, there are many trails in Annadel. But I chose to go back, walk down Rough Go. It looks different on the way back.

After all these years I still love this trail. It never gets boring, there is always something new to see. One time I saw a bobcat, another day a coyote further up the mountain. Once a jackrabbit was hopping on the trail and even posing for the camera! I often saw mountain lion scat and once I even turned around on a more remote trail because I suddenly felt my hair standing up. I was pretty sure there was a cougar nearby and I didn't want to take any chances. That never happened on Rough Go, but I'm always vigilant. This is the wilderness after all.

Where the Wine Grapes Grow

Just like in 2017 I have a difficult time finding my "normalcy" again after our latest emergency. I struggled with that back then and I do it again right now. I've finally unpacked all the evacuation items, realizing that I packed less than last time. For example, I could leave behind all the scrapbooks because I had scanned them since the 2017 wildfire. Obviously I learned a lesson or two.

Anyway, I decided to get back to blogging, hoping to ease back into my "normal" life. I was thinking of the Alexander Valley north of town which was at the center of the Kincade Fire, our latest big wildfire. It is a beautiful valley with the Russian River lazily meandering through it. Vineyards stretch out to the foothills of the Mayacamas Mountains with majestic lone trees, mainly old oaks, standing either at the edge of the vineyards or right in the middle of them. Back roads pass the many wineries and restaurants that serve farm-to-table food.

The Wappo who with the Pomo used to live in the Alexander Valley prior to Spanish colonization call the valley "Unutsawaholmanoma"  which translates to "Toyon Bush Berry Place". Viticulture started back in 1843 when Cyrus Alexander began to establish vineyards in the area with vine cuttings collected from Fort Ross. The valley has become a renowned wine growing area, and AVA (American Viticulture Area) status was established in 1984.

The wine grown and produced here is truly delicious. The Cabernet-Sauvignons are top notch, but my personal favorite is the Zinfandel - for me it is THE California grape. It is a rich wine with a dark red color and flavors that explode on your tongue - I can't believe I'm writing this at 8:30 in the morning! I sure look forward to my glass of Zin tonight (probably from an Alexander Valley vineyard).

Despite the wineries that bring quite some tourism and therefore traffic to the area on a weekend, the valley has retained its sleepy agricultural character. It's a pleasure to trundle along Highway 128, a quiet back road, with a stop at Jimtown (a deli and a church) to grab a sandwich. The Mayacamas Mountains can be seen from anywhere in the valley with the peak of Mount St. Helena towering over them.

Today, Alexander Valley is the largest and most fully planted wine region in Sonoma County. It is also one of the warmest areas in Northern California during the day, but at night experiences a wide diurnal temperature variation (the variation between a high temperature and a low temperature that occurs during the same day) that offers cool climate conditions. This enables the Alexander Valley to grow a wide range of grape varieties. No wonder you can find so many wineries here.