Stinkin' hot (technical term)[/caption]The dog days of summer last from July 3 through August 11, which coincides with the rising of Sirius, the Dog Star (I didn't just happen to know that--I read it on The Old Farmer's Almanac). The dog days also tend to be very, very hot. As I write this, it is about 104 degrees out on my porch here in Vacaville. The air conditioning kicked on at 7:00 this morning, which is never a good sign. When it's this hot in Vacaville, I always think it's kind of the equivalent of getting snowed in, since you pretty much have to stay indoors. For me, personally, having to stay inside is not a terrible hardship. Staying in the air conditioning, reading, sounds like a pretty good day to me. The rest of my family, however, begs to differ. So we went on a field trip.
First order of business was finding somewhere cool to go. Thus, off to the beach. Almost two hours from Vacaville, you will find
Bodega Bay. And if you stay on Highway 1 just past Bodega Bay, you come to Sonoma Coast State Park. The park consists of a series of beaches. The[caption id="attachment_2204" align="alignleft" width="300"]
This would be the wine country...[/caption]drive is a nice one, not too windy (car sickness always an issue), through California wine country and California milk country. Rolling hills and eucalyptus groves, abandoned barns, tiny towns, and swanky wineries all nestle together in this part of California.
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...and this would be the milk country[/caption]Before we went, we checked the Weather Channel, and they claimed it would be 80 degrees. We were suspicious, but since it was so hot here, okay, it sounded plausible that it could be that warm over there. Usually when we go to the beach I pack just short of what I'd need for an arctic expedition, but this time I didn't. Well, long story short, I should have. It was freezing! And me only in a light little cardi! But really, we didn't mind. It felt good to be cold! We had long pants on, and when we were sitting we draped ourselves with the towels I'd brought to dry off after wading in the water.
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Pebbly beach (different from Pebble Beach)[/caption]The beach we go to, and that my family has been going to for more than 40 years, is Wright's Beach. It's got some sand, but most of the beach is pebbly, which I like. It's got picnic tables out on the beach, as well as up by the parking lot (where it only costs $8 to park all day), and it even has bathrooms that, while not glamorous, are certainly better than, uh, finding a big rock. You can camp there, too, but we've never done that. Part of the charm of the Sonoma Coast is that it is easy to get to for a day trip, which certainly keeps the cost down. And I think we all know how much I need to sleep in my own bed. And not in a sleeping bag. Ever.
We brought a picnic, which consisted of Ginger-Soy Marinated Spicy Steak Sandwiches, Confetti Orzo Salad, potato chips (you just have to have potato chips on a picnic, in my book), grapes (same), and molasses cookies for dessert. It was all quite tasty. After lunch there were strolls on the beach and a rousing game of paddle tennis. And then, just when the fog[caption id="attachment_2215" align="alignright" width="300"]
Shortly after I took this photo, this rock completely disappeared in the fog![/caption]usually starts to lift, around 3:00, it started to roll in! About half an hour later, though, it rolled back out, and we could even feel a little warmth from the sun peeking though here and there. It's a beautiful part of the
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Look! Wildlife! A pelican![/caption]state, and certainly
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More wildlife! Seals![/caption]worth the outing. Driving back along the coast, the fog had completely lifted, and you could see the beautiful scenery. And once we got back home, the heat didn't feel quite so horrible. I mean, you know what they say, "For sleep, riches, and health to be truly enjoyed, they must be interrupted." I guess that goes for weather, too. Even the dog days.
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