Jack's Pond

 

I took Ruby to a nature preserve a few miles from our house today for her daily walk.  I'm not sure why I never thought about taking her here before - she loved it!  She was jumping around in the truck when she saw we were going to a new place.

In this photo, Ruby had just heard a rustling in the bushes.

Jack's Pond.  Very serene.

Where the pond turns into a stream again.

The area is much greener in the spring and summer - I'll have to take more photos then.

Ducks enjoying a Sunday afternoon.

Ruby pondering what is around the next bend.

We had many Monarch Butterflies in the area last year.  I wonder if this is part of the reason why.

San Francisco's "Castle" and Underground Spring

 

Jack London State Park

Our flight to Sacramento was moved to early Tuesday morning instead of Tuesday afternoon, so we decide that was the perfect opportunity to spend the day at Jack London State Park - something I had wanted to do for quite a while. 

We toured the museum (about 1 hour) then decided to hike to the Wolf House that he built in 1910.   

Along the way we passed this moss covered tree.  Quite lovely.

A close view of the tree.

The hike was nice and peaceful. It is about a half mile out to the Wolf House.

Our first glimpse of it!

Jack London wanted to build his dream house on his property in Sonoma Valley, so he hired San Francisco architect Albert L. Farr to design a 15,000 square foot mansion of lava rock and redwoods.  Jack wanted it to blend in to the surrounding wilderness.  Construction started in late 1910.

The design included advanced features for the time including a built-in vacuum, refrigeration, water heater, laundry facilities and a wine cellar.

Mindful of the recent 1906 San Francisco earthquake, Jack and Albert designed it to be earthquake and fire resistant.

But not resistant enough.  As construction wrapped up on August 22, 1913,  a worker left oily rags in a can and went home for the night.  Just two weeks before Jack and his wife were to move in, the rags caught fire and destroyed the mansion.

Only the lava masonry remained standing.  This is a view down the main level courtyard.

Jack vowed to rebuild, but the fire was a huge mental blow to him and his health started to fail not longer afterward.

This is a rendering of the Wolf House.

Jack and his wife had traveled the world on his yacht the Snark and his medicine kit during his travels included drugs such as morphine, cocaine, heroin and opium which were all common medications at the time.  But what likely caused his failing health was the mercury he used to heal his wounds on board the boat.  This caused kidney failure that led to a stroke or heart attack.  He died at the age of 40 in November 1916.

The remains of the reflecting pool at the center of the house.

Floor plans of Levels 1 and 2.

One of the few photographs of the Wolf House.

Levels 3 and 4.

After Jack's wife Charmian's death in 1955, the estate was donated to the state and made into a state park.

I would encourage you to visit this spectacular property.

A view into the basement.

An unintentional photo of myself.  You'd think I'd learn to handle my electronics better.

On the walk back out,  we passed this vineyard.  I stepped off the path to take the photo.  Only after I stepped off the path did I note the sign "WARNING poison oak" - I was wearing shorts at the start of my vacation.  Oy.

I later learned the fence is the edge of Jack London State Park and the vineyard is on private property.  And I luckily didn't develop a rash.
 

Domaine Carneros 2023

As we were driving up to Jack London State Park, we passed this winery and I remarked "hey!  we've been there before!".  My wife politely stated that she had asked to go there this trip too - somehow that had not registered in my head.

So I asked her to call Domaine Carneros right then and there from the car and see if they could fit us in that day.  They said yes, in about two hours.  That was perfect as we could do Jack London then head over to Domaine Carneros to wind down from the hiking.

So that's exactly what we did.  Here is my wife immediately after we sat down.

She snapped a photo of me also.  They had sat us in a side parlor that was nicely shaded from the sun yet still had great views.

We each ordered a different flight of sparkling wines which gave us a chance to taste virtually everything they offered.

Bottoms up!

My wife's flight.

My flight.

Is it time to taste yet?

The view from our seats.

It was a lovely day.

Waiting for something to drop.

So now I know - this is my wife's favorite winery in Napa Valley.  Let's hope I don't forget!  I got lucky this time...
 

Buena Vista Winery

We started our tour of Sonoma Valley at Buena Vista Winery, just outside the city of Sonoma.  We made it our first stop of the day before noon on a Wednesday.  As we waited in the near empty parking lot for our tasting time, a tour bus showed up so we hustled inside before they had a chance to beat us in!

The tasting room is very tasteful.

I must say I enjoyed their red wines very much.

My wife browsing their wares.

Beautiful chandelier.

The have one wine called The Sheriff.  See if you can figure out which bottle!

The tasting menu.

Something new to me - a boldness scale for various wines.

My lovely bride.

Yours truly.

We enjoyed our trip to Buena Vista very much.  Highly recommended!
 

Deerfield Ranch Winery

We discovered a great winery on this trip through Sonoma Valley!

Deerfield Ranch near the town of Kenwood is a fantastic relaxing place to taste a few great wines.  The tasting area is in the cellar - this photo looks back towards the entrance.

A beautiful painting on the wall.

I love to give little warning before I snap a photo - they had about 2 seconds to think before I clicked!

A more posed photo of my wife and me.

As we tasted the wines from our seat, this was our view.

It was rather quiet due to it being a Wednesday.  I'm sure weekends are livelier.

Sip. sip. sip.

About time to wrap it up.  We could have stayed all afternoon!