After a light breakfast it was off to RN Estate Vineyard to meet Roger Nicolas the owner and winemaker.

Roger invited the four of us and a couple from the Bay area, Terry and Patty, into his beautiful home where he sat down with us, poured wine and explained what we were tasting and drinking.

His home and the setting are idyllic. The house sits on a knoll with 360 degree views about a mile from the road.

It is surrounded by vineyards, farmland and rolling hills in every direction. That is Roger in the middle of the photos and with Terry and Patty on the right.

We could have spent all day at RN but Roger had a larger group scheduled for the afternoon and we had more wine to taste. There we are at Barrel 27 in the two photos on the right. Coincidentally, Terry and Patty also joined us there.

Final stop of the day was Calcareuos Vineyard, a place known not only for its fine wines but for its views and expansive picnic areas. So we bought some of their fine wines and had an expansive and leisurely picnic.

It was nearly 5:00 PM by the time we tore ourselves away from Calcareous and headed down to Atascadero and the famous Colony Inn Best Western. We would rather have stayed another night in Paso but everything was booked.

Sunday, May 16

Jalama County Park Camping - on the way home

Greg & Kelly took off for San Diego and we took off for the sky. Just kidding, we took off for Avila Beach where we puttered around for a while. We then drove down to Old Towne Orcutt where we found the Addamo tasting room and bistro (no photos) where we had an excellent lunch (with wine).

We took off for the sky, yes this is me doing a little kite surfing at Jalama County Park our stopping point for Sunday night. It was a big air day.

We were camped virtually on the beach and the beaches were practically deserted, except for these crazy guys and their dog.

Lorri and I were firmly planted in our beach chairs, probably sipping one of our recent purchases, while these guys were risking their lives in order to entertain us.

I was impressed. I didn't offer them any wine though. There was a great little camp store and grill where the burgers and fries looked exceedingly tempting but we were good. We bbq'd salmon on a cedar plank which paired perfectly with Booker "Pink". Ah, life is good.

So, in the end, I balanced rocks while Lorri looked at the ocean. We traveled, we ate, we drank, we spent quality time with good friends, it was a great trip!