Bothe Napa (12)

It’s taking me longer and longer to write these posts because it’s hard to write about the mundane in times of terror. I understand not allowing the horrors of the world take away one’s joy, but when my own government is taking innocent lives, traumatizing children, pushing us to the brink every single day, well, maintaining a camping blog feels … surreal.

Nevertheless, small bursts of positivity do not lose their importance in the face of great evil. And to be sure, these are times of monsters and great evil. Right now, I’m going to use this blog in two ways. First, in recapping what was a very joyful long weekend in a beautiful part of California, I’m going to try to calm my nervous system a little. Maybe this little virtual walk in wine country will be of some use to you, maybe it won’t. That’s ok.

Second, I’m going to post some resources at the bottom, like links to organizations that help people resist. In reading content providers who talk about how to manage political anxiety, the first thing they say is to get involved in some way. It doesn’t have to be big, but it needs to be something. Something doable, something you can commit to, and something that is sustainable. I have my own personal commitments for ways I can push back against the regime. I can’t just pretend that everything is normal, and maybe some of these resources will be useful to you. Maybe they won’t. That’s ok too.

But here we go on the happy weekend part. This was a nice three day weekend to honor the memory and work of Martin Luther King Jr. Now is a good time to be reminded of his message, and this weekend gifted us with nice weather so we could really enjoy it. We have learned over the years that the correct thing to do in Napa Valley is to reserve a tour and wine tasting somewhere. This time, we chose Beringer Vineyards. But that was not until the afternoon, so we had time Saturday to get on our bikes and ride the Vine Trail.

The trail runs all the way from St. Helena to Calistoga and is paved most of the way. It takes you through vineyards and keeps you off Highway 29, which is a safer and more pleasant way to ride Napa. There are wineries along the way where you can get tastings. Sadly, gone are the days of free tastings. I understand that was not financially sustainable, but it sure was fun back in the day! Most places offer tastings of three or four wines at varying price points, and many welcome walk ins.

We grabbed lunch at the open market in Calistoga. There were a couple of options and we went with the wood fire pizza oven on a trailer, and that was delicious. Only $15 for a hot 8″ pizza made to order. The market also had tamales for sale, and down the road was a popular BBQ place. I was happy with our choices, and we turned around and rode the trail back to St. Helena.

As we got into town, there was a lone protester holding up an ICE OUT sign, eliciting a lot of supportive honks. I love you, lone protester guy. There is power in the big crowds, but sometimes seeing one person out there, speaking out, makes just as much of an impact. Never underestimate your power to make an impact.

We walked around a little and got gelato at a new place: Roman Holiday. It seems to be themed on the the 1953 movie of the same name, starring Audrey Hepburn. We had the 70% dark chocolate and it was delish.

We arrived at Beringer with enough time to stroll the gardens and peek inside the Rhine House. This majestic estate was built in 1884 and is adorned with stained glass windows and detailed wooden moulding all throughout. It is a beautiful house, surrounded by manicured gardens and an outdoor seating area where you can order wines by the glass.

We took the 30 minute tour through the limestone caves where they have fermented their wine in oak barrels for over a century. They still use the original gravity system to move wine through the fermentation stages. Our tour guide was animated and delivered a fun experience. He invited us, well me, since Richard doesn’t drink, to look for undertones of pear, cherry, cranberry, etc., with each different wine. I swear, I can never actually taste those things really. If you say there’s a blackberry finish, I’ll say sure. But I tried to guess what fruit he was going to say ahead of time and never got it. I think it’s just as well I don’t have refined pallet though. I mostly drink really cheap stuff and am perfectly happy doing so. Better not to be aware of the subtleties of taste too much, I figure.Having had a delightful experience, we rode away with one of us being happily tipsy. Good to be on a bike, and no, I did not crash into anybody. We got back to Dory and enjoyed a tasty Blue Apron dinner, followed by a movie on the projector. Perfect day.

On Sunday, we had the whole day, or so we thought, to do a hike up to Coyote Peak. There is a lovely trail that follows Ritchey Creek up the valley, and then cuts uphill to the high point at Coyote Peak. There are a couple of ways you can make a loop out of it, but the river crossing on the outer loop was a little too exciting for our blood. California is now officially out of drought and the creek is running strong. With a little less water, I’m sure it would be easy to get across. No worries though. Richard is getting good at invoking Multiple Plans Marvin so he can be flexible with unexpected things. The climb up from the valley is sustained and steep in places, but it’s a nice trail. Up close to the peak, it gets narrow and there is a short section where the trail goes along exposed rough rock. It’s short and returns to dirt after maybe twenty feet. The views are largely obscured by trees, but you can make out the valley below and see all the way to the Silverado Trail on the other side.

We sat for a while at the top, trying to peer through the trees and identify wineries, when I got a call from the state park. That was weird, so I answered. The ranger was politely inquiring as to our pack up plans, since check out time had just passed. I was confused. We had another night reserved so we could go home Monday. I vaguely remembered that there were two consecutive reservations, and I thought maybe that was the hiccup. But the ranger said someone else had the site reserved for Sunday night. Hmm. I checked my email to find the confirmations. I was confused again and had to check what the date was. Ah. I saw what happened there. I must have made the first reservation for Friday and Saturday, as usual. Then later, when I realized it was a three day weekend, I must have gone back to pick up the third night. But instead of reserving Sunday, I had the date of Monday on my brain and reserved that by mistake. The ranger was ever so kind and said there was an open site she could move us into. I explained we were at the top of Coyote Peak and it would take us a while to get back down and pack up, but she said that was no problem at all. So we started down the trail.

Now normally, something unexpected like this could have really thrown us. This was definitely not the plan. But really, it was no big deal and we were able to pack up and move sites in less than thirty minutes. Richard did a great job rolling with it, and I did a great job not feeling bad or defensive about my error. We both did a great job not taking on any imagined anger on the part of the people waiting for us to get out. They could have taken the open site, and really, we were out of there just a half hour past check in time anyway. So we were able to enjoy the whole hike, and relax the rest of the afternoon.

Getting home is easy peasy from Napa and only around a two hour drive. There is no dump in this park, so we always just wait to dump at home. There are endless wineries to choose from for tastings or tours. So far, Castello di Amoroso stands out as the most unique tour experience. But the limestone caves and beautiful Rhine House of Beringer are well worth the price of the tour. You can’t go wrong in Napa.

See below, following the picture gallery, for resources and links of organizations where you can get involved and fight to save our democracy.

Total miles: 63, 2 hours 17 min, 17.6 mpg. Site 20, then 12. No hookups, no dump. Better cell service than I remember. Could get 1-2 bars of 5g from either site. Site 20 has some solar, but 12 is in deep shade.

With daily atrocities being committed by the US government, it is no longer a matter of “talking politics” to say that we are at a pivotal moment in our history. If you follow Heather Cox Richardson, which you should, she has made the call that yes, we have officially arrived at fascism in the United States. The powers of the state are being used against the people to terrorize us into submitting to the will of a lawless dictator. That dictator also happens to be mentally unstable. Many guardrails have failed to protect us from this moment. The damage done is being felt worldwide, but within our borders, our people are being murdered. The time for neutrality has passed. I have made no secret of where I stand. What I will do from now on is include some link, or article, or content provider, to highlight and link with each post. You may well already be aware of these resources, but at least I won’t feel like I’m ignoring the shitstorm all around me by saying nothing.

First, I highly recommend finding your local Indivisible chapter if you haven’t done so already. This organization operates nationally to direct people to events, campaigns, and resources. The local chapters drive the grassroots activities. So many people are out there doing the hard work every single day. There are teams of people protecting our immigrant neighbors with food delivery, legal help, medical services, and more. And there are the people who go out multiple times a week on Visibility Brigades, to hold signs on overpasses. There are writers composing letters to the editor, social media and website authors, and there are in person protests happening multiple days every single week. It is not only about networking to hook up with your local chapter; it is also incredibly comforting to be in community with people who are just as upset about what is happening as I am. There is every kind of opportunity to get involved through the Indivisible website. From there, you can get to protests organized by 50501 or postcarding or phone banking campaigns organized by Commit To Democracy. Links below. Check em out if you haven’t already!

Indivisible: https://www.mobilize.us/indivisible/

Commit To Democracy: https://www.commit2democracy.com/

50501: https://www.fiftyfifty.one/