by Scott Hocker

 

Photographs by Jen Siska

Sebastopol, among the orchards and vineyards of Western Sonoma County north of San Francisco, is a favorite stopover for people heading west toward the Russian River or beyond that to the coast. But if you’ve only seen this quaint town from State 116, a cruise up into the less-traveled hills around town gives you new reasons to love the place.

Our favorite scenic drive is a 14-mile route that starts at Florence Avenue, which acts as a neighborhood-wide outdoor gallery of the madcap sculptures fashioned by local artists Patrick Amiot and Brigitte Laurent out of bits of junk. Outside town, you’ll climb up, up, up, then plunge into a pastoral valley and pass over trickling Atascadero Creek.

Follow these directions from State 116 and click here for a Google map of the route:

Start at the corner of Healdsburg Ave. and Florence Ave.
Head down Florence Ave. to see the sculptures.
At street’s end, turn right on Bodega Hwy.
After .8 miles, turn left on Pleasant Hill Rd.
After 1.5 miles, turn right toward Watertrough Rd., then left on Sanders Rd. The road comes down the hill, veers right, and becomes Barnett Valley Rd.
After 4 miles on Barnett Valley Rd., turn right on Bodega Hwy.
After 1.7 miles, turn left on Grandview Rd.
After 1.3 miles, turn right on Cherry Ridge Rd., then right on Mill Station Rd.
Follow Mill Station Rd. until you return to State 116.

by Margaret Sloan, Sunset production coordinator

Where do I want to be this weekend? First let me tell you where I’ve been and what I’ve done.

The day my nieces were born, I whispered their names to the river otters who swam off  shore in Humboldt Lagoons State Park. The day after we got married, my husband and I wandered arm in arm along the bluffs at foggy San Gregorio State Beach (at left). The day our grandmother was buried, my brother and I waded in the streams of Portola Redwoods State Park, telling stories of her to the tall trees.

California state parks, beaches, and reserves have often been the backdrop for the important events in my life. If you’re from California, or have visited our state, I’ll bet that might be true for you too.

And maybe you were as disheartened as I was to hear that 220 of our parks are in danger of being shut down.

But we can help save our parks. How? By going to a state park near you this weekend!

The California State Parks Foundation is organizing a statewide S.O.S weekend of action—the Save our State Parks Campaign—to encourage people to get out and make a difference. They’re having rallies at some locations, but you can also go to any state park, have some fun, wear some green (the official color of this campaign), take some photos, and post them to the foundation’s Facebook page. Oh, and while you’re at it, let the California government know how important the state parks are to you. The foundation’s website makes it easy to speak up.

So where do I want to be this weekend? I want to be in all of California’s 279 state parks, all at once, doing things like celebrating the solstice in Anza-Borrego, camping on Angel Island, or swimming in the cold waters of Emerald Bay on Lake Tahoe. 

But I can’t be in all the parks at once. Instead, I’ll be beach-hopping along the San Mateo coast and in the Santa Cruz area with my dad, plein air painting at state beaches like Bean Hollow, Año Nuevo, Wilder Ranch, Natural Bridges, and New Brighton. Look for us. We’ll be wearing green.

The end of the pier at SeaCliff State Beach.

Photo by Linda Preston

by Lisa Trottier, Sunset senior editor

This weekend, June 20–21, is the first of three admission-free weekends planned for this summer at all the national parks. (Mark your calendars, the others are July 18–19 and August 15–16.) Some of the biggies aren't cheap, so clear your calendar and hop in the car.

Here's me enjoying Zion with the kids earlier this year. Price of admission that day: $25.

by Harriot Manley, Sunset contributor

For anyone who has taken the 27-mile boat ride out of San Francisco Bay's Golden Gate to the Farallon National Wildlife Refuge, a trio of remote, mostly rock islands, you probably agree it’s amazing—with roughly a quarter-million sea birds squawking from the cliffs and swirling overhead. That's not to mention seals, sea lions, orcas, and porpoises, plus grey, blue, and humpback whales, and (yes) great white sharks churning the cold waters. You probably also agree once is enough, given the often unfortunate stomach-related consequences of bumping through ocean swells for hours on end.

Now, there’s relief, and it isn’t in the form of a Dramamine pill. The Point Reyes Bird Observatory, a long-standing scientific presence on the island, has joined with the California Academy of Sciences to install a live, solar-powered web-cam on the refuge’s Southeast Farallon Island. According to PRBO, the live camera feed, scheduled to begin today, June 8, at calacademy.org/webcams/farallones, will be accompanied by animal identification guides, Farallones history, and research and conservation information.

“Since the islands aren't accessible to the general public, the webcam will be a valuable tool not only for scientists, but for casual observers too,” says Dr. Jack Dumbacher, lead scientist on the project. “The wildlife observations from this webcam will assist with research, guide conservation decisions, and hopefully inspire citizens to care about this valuable resource right in San Francisco’s backyard.”

Umm, hello. That's a no brainer: Sunset Celebration Weekend—of course!

Sorry for the shameless plug. But all of us editors will be there June 6 & 7—pouring wine, manning the grill, serving artisanal cheeses, leading tours of our absolutely fabulous new outdoor kitchen (pizza oven!) and Modern Idea cottage. Please come by and say hello!

by Sunset editorial staff

California is home to 279 sanity-saving state parks, but it’s also home to a $24.3 billion budget deficit. Governor Schwarzenegger recently proposed closing down 220 parks. And the list includes some serious A-list spots: Angel Island in the San Francisco Bay, Julia Pfeiffer Burns in Big Sur, Big Basin in the Santa Cruz Mountains, Emerald Bay at Lake Tahoe, Torrey Pines State Beach north of San Diego.

At least one ranger at Butano State Park this past weekend thought it was all bluster. But these days, who knows? It might be smart to make this the summer of the state park and knock a few off your list before the talked-about shutdown date of November. Here, a few suggestions to get you started: 

1. Big Basin Redwoods State Park
Your pick of four waterfalls is the payoff for tackling the roller-coaster trails that fan out under gargantuan old-growth trees in the Santa Cruz Mountains. Located 65 miles south of San Francisco, Big Basin Redwoods is the oldest state park in California, established in 1902. 831/338-8860.

Photo courtesy of redwoodhikes.com

2. Fort Ross State Historic Park

The perfect place to play "storm the fort," the Russians' southernmost outpost has high walls, corner towers, and, as frosting on the cake, sweeping views of the north coast. Well worth a stop whether you're a history buff or not.

Photo courtesy of inn-california.com

3. Mount Diablo State Park
Because Mt. Diablo rises abruptly from relatively flat land, visitors to Mt. Diablo State Park's eponymous 3,849-foot peak experience unmatched panoramas encompassing Sacramento, the Central Valley, the Sierra Nevada, Lassen Peak, Mt. Hamilton, and the Farallon Islands. It's a veritable tour of Northern California, all from one spot. Get oriented with trail maps and dioramas at Mt. Diablo State Park's historic visitor center and museum. Stand on "the rock" (Mt. Diablo's highest point), which juts through a hole in the floor. 925/837-2525.

Photo courtesy of waymarking.com

For more information, visit www.parks.ca.gov.