{"id":820879,"date":"2025-01-18T09:12:20","date_gmt":"2025-01-18T15:12:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/2025\/01\/18\/lose-yourself-in-redwood-forests-and-vineyard-vistas-in-sonoma-county\/"},"modified":"2025-01-18T09:12:20","modified_gmt":"2025-01-18T15:12:20","slug":"lose-yourself-in-redwood-forests-and-vineyard-vistas-in-sonoma-county","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/2025\/01\/18\/lose-yourself-in-redwood-forests-and-vineyard-vistas-in-sonoma-county\/","title":{"rendered":"Lose yourself in redwood forests and vineyard vistas in Sonoma County"},"content":{"rendered":"
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BEAUTY editor Tara Ledden gets up close and personal with giant Redwoods, samples refreshing wine, and tucks into American grub on California’s Golden Coast.<\/p>\n

I have never hugged a tree before, but I can\u2019t remember the last time I felt this calm.<\/p>\n

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\"Ocean<\/a><\/p>\n

5<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>

West Coast is the best coast at Bodega Bay<\/span>Credit: getty<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
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\"Vineyards,<\/a><\/p>\n

5<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>

No one visits Sonoma without hitting the vineyards<\/span>Credit: getty<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

My arms are stretched as wide as possible around one of the oldest living things in the world, but it\u2019s so huge I\u2019m barely hugging a quarter of it.<\/p>\n

Hiking through the Armstrong Redwoods Natural Reserve is awe-inspiring and the 310m-tall Parson Jones Tree stands as high as The Shard in London.<\/p>\n

Just a couple of hours\u2019 drive north of San Francisco, I\u2019m here exploring Sonoma County, which is home to more than 425 vineyards nestled among a whopping 1 million square miles of wild landscapes.<\/p>\n

But for today, I\u2019ve chosen an easy 1.7-mile trail.<\/p>\n

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READ MORE TRAVEL NEWS<\/h2>\n<\/div>\n

Entry on foot is free, by car with parking is \u00a38 (Parks.ca.gov).<\/p>\n

Baywatch<\/h2>\n

It\u2019s a scenic drive from the Redwoods to Bodega Bay and the winding cliff-top road dips to reveal sandy beaches and turquoise water along the way.<\/p>\n

I might be in Northern California, but the jagged cliff faces make it feel like we\u2019re driving through The OC title screens filmed 500 miles down the coast.<\/p>\n

Within half an hour, I arrive at Fishetarian, a fish market and restaurant, where I devour prawn tacos with chipotle aioli, pico de gallo and green onions, \u00a312.50, and an equally delicious, creamy clam chowder in a sourdough bread bowl, \u00a310.50.<\/p>\n

They also do great merch, and I regret not picking up a T-shirt before heading out (Fishetarianfishmarket.com<\/a>).<\/p>\n

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The Peloponnese penninsula – an underrated Greek holiday destination<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

I\u2019m off to The Barlow, a quirky outdoor market with artisan boutiques like Acorn \u2013 where I splurge on a wooden vanity set, \u00a328, for my niece, but leave an adorable test tube of mini lavender bath salts, \u00a37, behind, worried they\u2019ll be mistaken for contraband at customs (Acornshop.co<\/a>).<\/p>\n

Before dinner, I head over to the Golden State Cider Taproom to order a pint of its \u201cchampagne of ciders\u201d \u2013 the Brut, \u00a35.50.<\/p>\n

Every refreshing sip lives up to the hype (Drinkgoldenstate.com<\/a>).<\/p>\n

My day ends with moreish fried chicken and bread-and-butter pickles, \u00a39.50, and melt-in-the-mouth black cod with ginger rice and shishito peppers, \u00a331, at Fern Bar (Fernbar.com<\/a>).<\/p>\n

Motel rocks<\/h2>\n

It\u2019s dark by the time I reach Flamingo Resort & Spa, a refurbed motel that wouldn\u2019t look out of place in a Wes Anderson film, with delightfully retro rooms and an alfresco pool.<\/p>\n

The next day starts with a sound bath and yoga class, free to guests, before I dig into hearty old-fashioned oatmeal with brown sugar, almonds, raisins, cranberries and cinnamon, \u00a310.50.<\/p>\n

No one visits Sonoma without hitting the vineyards, and Paradise Ridge Winery is less than a 15-minute drive away.<\/p>\n

I sip sparkling ros\u00e9, \u00a39.50 a glass, as I follow an impressive trail of sculptures \u2013 many of which began life at Burning Man festival \u2013 before joining a sunset tasting on the terrace, \u00a327.50 per person.<\/p>\n

I try a sauvignon blanc, cabernet sauvignon, pinot noir and a blush ros\u00e9 \u2013 which is a darker shade than my usual faves, but dangerously gluggable.<\/p>\n

I then tuck into an artisanal cheese board with cured meats, \u00a329, to soak it all up (Prwinery.com<\/a>).<\/p>\n

As the sun fades behind the vines, I decide I never want to leave.<\/p>\n

The only decision to make is whether I want to be an artist or a sommelier\u2026<\/p>\n

BTW<\/h2>\n

Plan your trip at Visitcalifornia.com<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Double rooms at Flamingo Resort & Spa cost from \u00a398 per night (Flamingo resort.com<\/a>).<\/p>\n

Return flights from the UK to San Francisco cost from \u00a3460.<\/p>\n

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\"Trees<\/a><\/p>\n

5<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>

Why not embrace a gigantic Redwood tree?<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
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\"Lunch<\/a><\/p>\n

5<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>

Fishetarian\u2019s tacos are a real catch<\/span>Credit: Fishetarian<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
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\"Tara<\/a><\/p>\n

5<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>

Tara soaking up the California sun<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n

Tara Ledden
Read More<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

BEAUTY editor Tara Ledden gets up close and personal with giant Redwoods, samples refreshing wine, and tucks into American grub on California’s Golden Coast. I have never hugged a tree before, but I can\u2019t remember the last time I felt this calm. 5 West Coast is the best coast at Bodega Bay Credit: getty 5<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":820880,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[92596,1797],"tags":[135671,6973],"class_list":{"0":"post-820879","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-redwood","8":"category-yourself","9":"tag-redwood","10":"tag-yourself"},"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/820879","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=820879"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/820879\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/820880"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=820879"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=820879"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/newsycanuse.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=820879"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}