The Bicycle Adventure Club - Come Ride With Us!

San Francisco and North Bay Tour

April 6th to April 17th

Ride Director: John McCoy
Ride Co-Director: Richard Reinecke
Ride Driver: Linda Stewart
Report by: Art Danby

Photo by Rich Reinecke

Let me start with some comments from a few of the riders -  “It was a great trip and everything went so smoothly.  The weather couldn’t have been better - it is not every ride leader who can control the weather as well as all of the logistics!” . . . “10 days of great rides, great weather, great people, and really super ride leaders.  Thanks for all your efforts in making this a memorable ride for all.” . . . ”What a fabulous ride with a great group of people!“

This is the ride account as seen through my eyes. 

This tour covered some of the best wine growing areas in California and maybe the best in the world.  Ride leader John McCoy created a fantastic tour with ten days of 2B rides between five locations: Larkspur, Sonoma, Calistoga, Windsor, Petaluma and Corte Madre.  Each stop was for two nights.  Mother Nature served up some great days with almost every day cool and sunny.  This year the entire area provided a wonderful green backdrop for our cycling.  See the ride description for even more information.

Saturday’s initial meeting/first happy hour was followed by a group dinner at Marin Brewing Company.  Sunday morning, - Our first ride . . . We went by ferry from Larkspur with views of the San Francisco skyline and Golden Gate Bridge as we cruised by Alcatraz Island.  After docking at the SF Ferry Terminal, we mounted up and rode past the Embarcadero, Fisherman’s Wharf, the Marina, Crissy Field, then over the Golden gate bridge thru Sausalito and Triburon and back to Larkspur . . some riders saw a whale near the Golden Gate. . . and that, ladies and gentleman, was just the first 24 hours!

We rode out of Larkspur to “wine country” Monday morning to Sonoma.  What a great ride!  Long climbs followed by sweeping long downhills through pastures, redwoods, eucalyptus, and vineyards.  Some clouds, some sun and mid 60s all the way.  Happy hour at the El Pueblo Inn followed by pizza and much talk among the newly acquainted friends and fellow riders.  Tuesday offered either an optional ride to Napa and back or no ride so you could visit Sonoma.  We chose to walk to town and checkout the shops and sights.  Lunch at the Girl and the Fig.  Wonderful food! 

Wednesday we rode from Sonoma to Calistoga via Napa, Yountville and St Helena.  Some of us lunched at the Clif Family Bruschetta Food Truck in St Helena.  Yes, that Clif Family.  The one that makes Clif Bars.  Thursday left us to choose between three optional rides so there was no excuse to park our bikes for the non-move day in Calistoga.  I passed on the planned rides and cycled back to St Helena for another look at that friendly Napa County town.  Lunch at Model Bakery and a visit to the local bike shop kept us moving and warm on this slightly cloudy morn.  We rode back to Calistoga and as the sun began to shine we passed the St Helena Culinary Institute where some of our group got caught up in the celebration of a chefs’ class graduation.  Another friendly happy hour covering the ride review for tomorrow and then we went out on our own to grab dinner in Calistoga.  

Friday we rode on to our next town, Windsor.  That ride took us to our most northern point before turning south.  Most of the climbing was covered in the first five miles.  I had a cookie at the Jimtown Store.  Lunch in Healdsburg then on to Windsor.   As in each of the other rides we rolled by winery after winery, all with well manicured vineyards showing the first signs of growth.

Saturday was an optional ride out and back from Windsor.  Nearly everyone rode and nobody complained.  Wow, what a great route.  North back to Healdsburg, then a short turn west to join West Dry Creek Road  . . . . For many of us this became our most favorite ride.  If you go to ride in this area and only have time for one ride, go up West Dry Creek Road.  Good pavement, very little traffic, great scenery that is so typical of this overall area.  That ride is a must do, bucket list ride.  It is not overly challenging - just a real pleasure.  Many of the group did the whole optional ride with the big climb to Sonoma Lake overlook before back tracking to Windsor.  A few riders stopped along the way to visit the fish hatchery.  Others stopped at one or more winery.  A very special day.

Sunday was the longest ride.  For over 51 miles and nearly 2500 feet of climbing we made the trek from Windsor to Petaluma.  Riding along the Russian River  most riders stopped at the Korbel Champagne Cellars in Guerneville for coffee and pastries then pressed on with stops in SebastopoI for lunch or ice cream, or whatever, before taking the final roads to Petaluma.  Monday in Petaluma was an optional day.  There were two optional rides planned but most riders took the day to recharge before our last ride on Tuesday.  Plus, that Monday was the only day with rain.  As for the other days, I don’t know who was responsible for this terrific weather but they should get a medal.  Sunny skies, moderate temperatures, hardly any wind . . . . day after day.

On Tuesday, as we left Petaluma, it was another perfect day.  We retraced some of the route from the previous Monday leading us back to the bay area and Corte Madre, our final stop.  That night we gathered for the last happy hour plus a group photo then went to an outstanding four course dinner at IL Fornaio.  Wednesday morning the group scattered.  Some were heading home directly and some were off to other adventures, all hoping to someday return to this wonderful area for more wine, more lovely scenery, and more great rides.