Jack London State Park and an Excellent Biodynamic Winery--Benziger

I'm lucky enough to live near northern California's wine country, and summer  and autumn are perfect times for a trip to Glen Ellen, heart of the Sonoma Valley. Among the sights, one must-see is the beautifully maintained Jack London State Historic Park, dramatically saved from closure by a group of volunteers. Even if London's widely known adventure stories, such as "White Fang" and "Call of the Wild" never made it to your reading list, the park crystalizes the life of the author and his wife, Charmiane as if in amber. The House of Happy Walls museum and Beauty Ranch on the property hold numerous artifacts from their travels in the south seas and around the world, and are so effectively laid out you wouldn't be surprised to see Charmiane sweeping into the room in a shirtwaist and floor-length skirt, followed by the chain-smoking, high-living author; London's lifestyle was almost as famous as his books.

A view of Wolf House

Their stories are tied into northern California history in many ways--London was one of the founders of the Bohemian Club, when it was a bastion of artists and writers. Also on the property, the ruins of Wolf House, the London's dream home that burned to the ground under suspicious circumstances shortly before they were to move in. Take a docent-lead tour to make the most of the property. Beyond the hiking trails and buildings, the park offers many events and activities, including a "Broadway under the Stars" series complete with food trucks. Click on the link above to find out more.

Benziger's recycle pond

On the way back down London Ranch Rd. from the park, take a moment to stop in at Benziger Family winery--one of Sonoma's privately owned wineries (it really IS family owned--members of the large Benziger family, headed by big brother Mike, participate in the winery's operation). Award-winning Benziger was the first in the area to go biodynamic; a process that not only practices the highest level of organic farming, but uses a complete ecosystem--plants and animals on the property--to cut the use of chemicals. You can take a virtual visit on the website, but nothing beats riding along on a tram tour of the lovely property, then enjoying a tasting. AND, the wines are delicious!

Sunday August 4 – Gay Christmas and the Other Side of Stand-by

Photo courtesy of Joe Shao--you'll recognize
these guys from the video (http://vimeo.com/71997462)

The radio advertised “Gay Christmas”, referring to the LGBT Pride Parade taking place today. All along Robson, Deman and Davie streets, rainbow flags flapped, storefronts were decorated with rainbow stripes (even Safeway!), pedestrian walkways were multi-striped, and people of every orientation dressed up a little or a lot. The Parade is a very big deal in Vancouver, especially in the West End. Viewers were gathering by 8AM; people had reserved tables near the street in cafes. And I was going to miss most of it.

My flight left at 3:14PM, so Joe gave me a ride to the airport ($20 to cover gas and time—not bad, as it would have been $12 by public transportation). 

The saving grace--a terrific collection of
Disney character toys in the Vancouver airport

I got there at 1PM, and the nightmare began. I had noticed flights that day were overbooked, but it didn’t occur to me that this might be a warning sign. When the gate opened for boarding a half-hour before take-off, I asked the airline rep about my chances for getting on—he told me, “not likely. I’ve had one stand-by here since 6AM. We routinely overbook here in Vancouver”. Not good news. In fact, they had to ask a paying customer to get off the plane for the next flight (he got a $400 certificate, so he didn’t suffer too much). Long story short, I was there for 9 ½ hours before I caught the last flight to San Francisco; the only reason I got on was because the flight was delayed 3 ½ hours and people who had to make connections out of SFO took other flights. The overbooking of Vancouver flights was a royal pain, but the delay was all SFO’s fault, as they’re only letting one international flight land at a time since the Asiana Airlines disaster a month ago (a pilot filled me in on this detail).

I got in at 12:45AM, and SFO was completely shut down. My only way of getting home was by taxi, and the fare was $120. I had exactly $46. I thought, “hey, the airporter will run in only 4 hours; I can wait it out”. I queried a couple of cab drivers whether they would consider my $46 for the fare and got turned down. As I was pacing around the baggage pick-up doors, a cabbie pulled into the end of the line (there were 30 cabs waiting, and no flights were landing…go figure). He yelled, “Where you going?”. I told him, and the amount of money I had on me. “I’ll do it,” he said, “but I can’t pick you up here—they’ll get mad (meaning the 30 cabs ahead of him). So I met him upstairs, and all I can say is, I’m glad there’s no traffic on the road at 2:30AM. Basically, he used the white line on the road as a guidance tool.

“Some people ask me how I can stand to work all night,” he said. “Coffee and cocaine. Just kidding.” As we neared my house, I mentioned that it was across from a well-known quick stop. “If it’s open, I’ll get myself a beverage,” he said.  It wasn’t, he didn’t, and I made it home at 3:30AM, all in one piece. I wish my driver the best of luck, and slightly more prudence. And I will never fly out of Vancouver again, Donald and Mickey be damned.

See the video: http://vimeo.com/71997462.

Saturday August 3 – Fireworks!

I had already decided to retire the bike instead of renting it overnight when I discovered how close the viewing platform for the fireworks was: a fifteen-minute walk. I strolled down to my favorite tea place, Bottega Café, on Cadero St. between Nelson and Comox streets. It’s crowded with locals in the morning (owner John Manestir wanted to create a place for the community to hang out), and in the afternoon, you couldn’t ask for a more pleasant place to sit and enjoy a cuppa and pastry, and maybe a chat with one of the sweet young European girls who work the counter, or one of the friendly local folks.

Even the postboxes are cute

I wandered down to the fireworks viewing area, which was on the beach. Essentially, anyone can come and watch the fireworks for free, if they’re willing to reserve a spot on the beach for several hours ahead—I took the easy way out, and bought a seat on the viewing benches, right across from the fireworks barge, for $42. I didn’t want to waste precious time staking out territory when I could be exploring. Food trucks lined the walkways, and I took my seat at 8:30PM, jumbo hot dog in hand. The two couples next to me turned out to be from San Francisco and Marin;
the fireworks and beauty of Vancouver throw a pretty wide net.

Before the fire show, a trick flyer did dives and loops in the sky, fireboats did an ornate ballet in the water, and the sunset put on its own spectacular. Finally, the show started close to 10PM (the sun stays up later here). Words fail me, which is why you have to see the video: http://vimeo.com/71997462.

Walking back, the crowds were so persuasive that I got a little lost. Fortunately, a group of handsome firemen directed me to Cardero Street. While walking, a young man commented, “Wow, the energy is so happy here,” and he was right—nothing like a ton of explosives in pretty colors to re-program people’s brainwaves into patterns of joy.

See the video: http://vimeo.com/71997462.

Saturday August 3 –Totem Poles and No Brakes!

I woke fairly early and walked a few blocks to the corner of Davie and Bidwell streets to the Red Umbrella (1707 Davie St.). I had scouted this place the day before; it advertised a “real Canadian Breakfast”—lots of meat! A true old-fashioned breakfast place, I had the aforementioned breakfast with two eggs, home fires and sausage for $6, plus coffee. All was acceptable except for the home fries—I suspect they roast a bunch in the oven, then reheat them on the griddle, making a somewhat dried-out and chewy product. I once asked a man I was dating, "why do you like going out to eat so early in the day?” He responded, “How can you ruin breakfast?” Well, there you have it.

I researched bike rentals and found one on Robson St. close to the apartment—when I told Joe the price ($30/day, plus $10 overnight, plus $20 the next day), he said, “That seems high”. He was right. On Denman St. between Robson and W. Georgia, there were at least five bike rental places that were all cheaper, including Bayshore (745 Denman St., www.bayshorebikerentals.ca), and Stanley Park Cycle (768 Denman St., www.stanleyparkcycle.com). Being a real cheapskate (or cheapcycle), I opted for EzeeRiders (1823 Robson St., 604-331-1789) at $25 a day. They threw in a helmet (mandatory) and lock (I asked for it), and informed me that sidewalks were off-limits. The bike was somewhat embarrassing—a pink one-speed emblazoned with a breast cancer ribbon. As I rode off, I noticed a cluck/clunk sound but ignored it. I won’t make that mistake again.

It was my intention to round nearby Stanley Park (10K, about 7 miles). A seawall surrounds the park (it starts at the Vancouver Convention Center, near the airtrain’s Waterfront Station, one stop north of where I got off), rounds the park and goes far beyond the park into town. This was the best cycling path I’ve ever been on—doesn’t get much more scenic than this! The path was one-way, and wide enough to pass in most places.

My first stop was the totems, probably the most popular tourist spot in Vancouver, at least judging from the buses parked in the lot. 

The Narrows

Once again, I appreciated the graphic beauty of indigenous art of Western Canada. On through the narrows, with giant piles of brilliant yellow sulpher across the strait, around the point to the piling place of Kent Avery, who spends many of his days balancing rocks one upon the other.

Kent Avery, at work

When I reached the end of the park on the other side, I decided to continue on, cross the Burrard Bridge, and tour the famous Granville market. The seawall continued, and I missed the turnoff for the bridge, going under it—however, the ride was so pleasant I continued. I discovered the seawall went all around False Creek—another very scenic seven miles. Knowing my energy wasn’t infinite, and relying on the excellent mapping provided by the city, I decided to take an aquabus water taxi to Granville Island, and ride home from there. 

The Aquabus (www.theaquabus.com) took me and my bike from David Lam Landing to Granville for a couple of bucks and a lot of charm. It makes stops all over False Creek, and is an excellent way to get around.

Granville Island’s Public Market is justifiably famous. Dozens of craft shops surround the covered market, which is a warren of seafood, meats, fresh produce, baked goods and more, rivaling Seattle’s Pike’s Place Market in every way.


I bought salmon jerky from Longliner Seafoods, amazing bread and a cinnamon roll from Terra Breads, fresh blueberries ($2.99/k!) from Granville Island Produce, and settled myself on a bench overlooking the harbor to enjoy a spontaneous lunch.

When I returned to pick up my bike, parked with a hundred others, I was disturbed to find that I no longer had a front brake—part of the assembly had fallen off! I cycled back to the bike shop over the Burrard Bridge from Granville Island (carefully, very carefully), though I spent very little time on public streets thanks to the excellent bikeways. Nervous, nonetheless, I brought the bike in, explained the problem, and asked for a discount—they gave it to me immediately. 100%. I think that little pink number will no longer be in the rental line-up.

The Burrard Bridge, up close and personal

See the video: http://vimeo.com/71997462.

Friday August 2 – Three ALMOST Perfect Days in Vancouver

I like my bears like I like my men: stuffed.

An easy trip out to the Vancouver Airport from SFO. I was immediately impressed with the beauty of the airport—I learned its dark secrets on Sunday!

The airport is bound to impress with lots of glass and local artwork

   I had arranged through AirBnB to stay with a young couple, Joe and Sharlyn Shao, in a neighborhood close to the beach where the fireworks were taking place. This was my first experience with AirBnB, so I wasn't sure what to expect. Once at the airport, I had to dawdle a while since I couldn’t get into the apartment until 4:30, when Joe returned home from work—so I had a decent sushi lunch in the airport, then took the airtrain (driverless, and very fast) for $8.50 to Central Station.

Cadero Street

 I found myself among high-rises, in a fancy shopping area along Robson Street. 

Still having time to kill, I decided to walk, heavy backpack and all. The distance must have been little more than a mile—an easy and pleasant walk. I found the building I was staying in and continued to explore the area. The West End neighborhood is a cross between the best parts of north Berkeley, CA and State College, PA—leafy, tree-lined, neatly kept, imminently walkable and generally lovely. Within a few blocks of the apartment were literally dozens of restaurants and food stores. I got lucky again! I met Joe coming out to walk his adorable, well-behaved dog Kyra, and went up to my room. The room shared a bath, and had a private balcony, a comfortable bed, and plenty of storage; bonus: seagulls—we were within a 15-minute walk from Vancouver’s beach. I shared my swarma, purchased on Denman St., with a bold and not-at-all well-behaved seagull on the beach.

See the video: http://vimeo.com/71997462.