Harriet and Tony head off to Napa, while I remain to finish the publication-preparation of Psalm 14, page 2 (seems for the best as he's in a pickup, and figure they have brother-sister catching up to do, even beyond the c. hour in which he as regaled us re his new life with Maria in her native Quito, Ecuador). But then, well, the general idea of The Valley is too tempting, and I'm out the door, as well -- been a long time since I've taken a personal-Bay-Area-Ridge-Trail-string-'em-together hike (last one was on December 23 -- duly chronicled at markalburger2009.blogspot.com/2009/12/december-23-temple-of-world.html)
So, call H to let her know the plan, and it turns out they've gone to Calistoga via Lake Berryessa and Route 128.
Intrigued, I drive beyond the Oak Grade turn north of Stag's Leap, continuing past
Robert Mondavi and through
St. Helena beyond
Berringer to see if I can track them down.
Alas, when re-calling, since I can't recall the restaurant's name, just get the recorded message.
Still, seems like I'm approximately experiencing their day in the environs of
Sam Brannan's Store (the enterprising Mormon of "Gold! Gold from the American River!" fame) and
Indian
Springs.
Heading south through the tree-arbored late afternoon, retracing to
Mondavi, it is now time to take the Grade to make the grade of the walk from when last we
trod, with its
mostly-scrimmed views of the
East Mayacamas
Ridge, doing some
self-reflection among the
S-curves and
redwoods to
near the Napa-Sonoma border.
Again backtracking, down (there's a coyote at bottom left of the pole and
at extreme left amongst the vineyards), and
up canyon, the hour is auspicious for this one to head home on a questionable c. quarter-tank of gas through the wildlands of
128 south of Lake
Hennessy, into
Sage
Canyon (through which, a notable increase of digger pine, at the expense of live oaks),
revealing
Chiles and
Capell Valleys
(including
Raney Rock),
back into the
Spanish-mossed
oaked,
rocky
Wragg,
Cherry, and
Markley Canyons,
debouching towards
Lake
Beryessa's
Blue
Mountains at
Devil's
Gate, downslope into temporarilly
Solano
County,
looking up at
Monticello Dam (named after a drowned town) and
Thompson Canyon
Ridge.
Across Putah Creek, we're in
Yolo through a
declivity
widening out
into a northern
highlands of
pasture and
moonlight.
South, back over the Creek, the view is west toward the Vaca Mountains's Blue Ridge and
east to the English Hills and
more and
more
moon.
Orchards and
Schoolhouse
Junctions,
barns and
bovines, and
home late with still an eighth of a tank,
returning to finally re-encounter Harriet and Tony, bidding the latter farewell (we decide we must hike the northern Napa Valley Palisades someday), and composing page 7 of Song of Solomon: II. I Am the Rose of Sharon.
