This entry was posted on Tuesday, February 19th, 2008 at 5:55 am and is filed under Animals, Bay Area Backroads, Chocolate, Friends, Pictures, Vacations. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.
What an awesome weekend! After an invitation and very little negotation we decided to make a trip down to Preson Ranch this weekend. And What a great choice that was. The weather was outstanding. The children were (for the most part) very well behaved and the company, as always, was marvelous. For those that don’t remember from the previous post, Preston Ranch is the family home of Jean and Victor, our friends in Paso Robles (which also happens to be where the ranch is). It’s a log cabin and vineyard atop one of the taller rolling hills which offers commanding views and beautiful views of the mountains, other vineyards, and the city of Paso Robles.
For the msot part we just hang out by thehouse – a wonderful log cabin with warmth, character, and sleeping arrangements for dozens of people. We made a great dinner of ribs and enjoyed s’mores around the outdoor fire-pit. This was the first time that Sofi and Natalie remember having s’mores, even though we’ve made them before, and I believe this is actually the first time that they’ve roasted marshmallows over the fire. It was loads of very sticky fun.
On Sunday we decided to make the trek over to the beach, and I am really glad that we did. Not only did we get to see elephant seals, but we got to spend time on the beach where we found a variety of animal life, including star fish, crabs, hermit crabs, snails and a variety of other creatures of the sea. What has to be most amazing, though, is the number of elephant seals that come to this stretch of beach to mate and breed. They are just laying around on the sand, resting, fighting, burping and looking way too relaxed for a “wild animal.” Fortunately, they were relaxed and comfortable with all the people around which really made for a very good viewing experience.
I’ve always loved the ocean and especially the tide-pools. I hope that my children grow up with the same appreciation for them and I just love getting them out there. Sorry there aren’t more pictures, but, like a child, I was enjoying myself too much to take too many.
It’s almost impossibly difficult to tell from these images (tell anything other than I need a better lens, that is), but these last two pictures are Hearst Castle with wild roaming zebras in the foreground. Yup, that’s right. William Hearst, living out his riches, had a zoo out by the castle and some of the animals that were left to roam were the grazing ones. Of those, the non-native zebra are likely to be the ones that stand out the most. Suprisingly, we got a chance to see them, and it really was quite exciting. Capped off a wonderful weekend, and hopefully the whole Gonzalez family will accept our thanks and appreciation for hosting us, again, for another marvelous weekend.
Papa
