California: More Than Just Oranges

Our apartment on wheels

Heading out of Seattle after cruising the suburbs and market places one last time we were ready for something new, fresh and a little warmer. San Francisco is located in the Bay Area of north western California and there is so much to see and do in the northern area alone and our Lonely Planet USA book, aka our bible, is open all the time.

We had to pick up our camper from the east side of the bay in a suburb called Hayward. For all those wondering we still have thick Australian accents because we get asked to repeat everything when we are trying to tell drivers where we are going. Our camper van, who we have named Phoenix to fit in with our trashy adopted personas, was waiting for us at a motel just off the interstate highway and the only thing separating us from the road was the desire to get some sleep somewhere other than a motel car park. Phoenix is a converted Dodge van with a fuel guzzling V8 and everything you would expect in an RV; fridge, microwave, shower, toilet and what has now become a really comfy bed. The RV appeared smaller than we thought it would, but after camping out for a couple of days we have become used to making the most of the space we do have, but we digress.

Our first stop once we got on the road was Walmart to pick up some supplies for the journey ahead to make sure we don’t get caught out unprepared and then onwards towards the Napa region. Even though it has been only a matter of weeks since we had driven in Hawaii we were quickly reminded of the discourteous manner and apparent lack of peripheral vision amongst American drivers. Within minutes of being on the interstate we witnessed dozens of ‘near misses’ and saw two crashes within about ten minutes of one another and this really had us on edge considering we were ‘easy prey’ for the cut throat attitude on American roads.

Ken: Elkhorn Peak's Magician

Regardless we arrived at our campsite a little later than expected and got ourselves comfortable for the day ahead, which would see us head into one of the worlds most recognised wine regions. The morning started as many more will, by getting a little lost, but after stumbling through the Napa town centre and finding our pick up location we were taken away on a bus with four other couples to our first vineyard. The Napa Valley is about 50 km long and about seven wide and laden with vineyards and wineries capable of producing some very top quality wines.

The valley is subject to a number of different micro-climates and these different regions are suited to different varieties. The southern more temperate climates are better suited to pinot noir whilst the mountainous regions are better suited to Cabernet varieties to give the grapes the sunshine they need to ripen properly before harvest late in the season. What surprised us about the valley is a majority of the grape producers sell nearly all of their grapes to the local wineries, while keeping a small percentage for themselves, to create a system of sustainability and quality throughout the Napa region.

The 'Yates Family Representative

Our first vineyard was Elkhorn Peak and Ken, the owner, has been growing pinot noir in the valley for about 30 years and his wines were really a cut above the rest. His passion and ability to cut through all the bullshit and misconceptions many have of the wine industry really caught our attention and his no nonsense approach to growing a top quality grape delivered sensationally tasty results. The most disappointing thing about the smaller producers is that most will not ship overseas because it is too expensive and they cannot guarantee their wines will not be affected by the shipping methods so we had to make do with a couple of bottles of pinot and a really tasty desert style wine that, we swear, will only be consumed when we get back home. Napa is a really beautiful region and had we the time and money we would have stayed for much longer and tasted our way through many more of the small vineyards to get a real taste for what the Napa Valley has to offer.

After saying goodbye to the valley we took Saturday to re-fit our RV and get ourselves properly settled. We have pulled out the bed into a more permanent position and stored everything away to get used to the limited space we have available to us. We have already found when it comes to cities and camper vans it is cheaper to get a room at a motel than it is to stay at an RV park, which could be anywhere from 30 to 40 minutes away from the city centre. Our list of cities to visit includes many major cities and if traffic in San Francisco is anything to go by staying off the roads will be a very wise move for our sanity, not to mention safety. San Francisco will be our home for the next couple of days and with Alcatraz and plenty more on our agenda before heading out to Yosemite and onwards to Kings Canyon we really have a lot to think about.

‘Till next time,

Antoinette and James.