Village of Arroyo Grande

After a nice quiet slow start to the day and a rip-roaring game of Mexican Train Dominoes, we headed to the Village of Arroyo Grande for lunch at an old fave, Rooster Creek Tavern, followed by a walk along the creek looking for roosters. We used to do this all the time when here. Then the cherry on top was ice cream at the new Rori's Artisanal Creamery which just took over the space abandoned by Doc Burnstein's Ice Cream Parlor. All of today's photos start here.

Mexican Train Dominoes

The orange tank car is labeled
with one of their ice cream flavors.

Showing off (sarcastically) the new Daou "Super White."

Daou, Hunt, Emercy, and Six Test Kitchen

We headed up to Paso Robles wine country about mid-day. We started at Trevor and Jen's favorite, Daou Vineyards. Unbound, Eye of the Falcon, and Soul of the Lion, to name a few, including some great charcuterie munchies. Then on to Hunt Cellars, a Nana and Papa favorite where Cabovation is king. Then a quick last winery stop at Emercy Wines. As it happens, Emercy is related (somehow) to Ladron Cellars in Englewood, CO (a suburb of Denver). Guess where Ladron sources its non-Colorado grapes!? Ladron means "thief" in that they "smuggle in" Paso grapes to Colorado. The grand finale for the day was a fabulous meal at Six Test Kitchen. With just twelve seats, it's an intimate dining experience where everything is prepared right before your very eyes. Michelin-rated, too! Interestingly, the four of us went to Six Test Kitchen back when it was just getting started in the owner's garage; click here. Emercy and Six Test Kitchen are in an area called Tin City, which we had never heard of before tonight. It's just north of Templeton on the east side of the highway. All the day's photos start here.

Daou

Six Test Kitchen

St. George, UT to Nipomo, CA via Tehachapi, CA

We didn't do much today other than drive. With one exception... We stopped for a bit in Tehachapi, CA. Railfans familiar with the area will immediately think of the Tehachapi Loop, a 360-degree track loop to help make the climb in limited space to the Tehachapi Pass. I did a railfan field trip to the Loop back in 2004, click here. But, I had never visited the Tehachapi Railroad Depot Museum which is housed in the Tehachapi Depot. The building has quite a history, from the original in 1861 to the new one in 1904 (because of fire), to the one there today following a fire in 2007, finished in 2010. And as luck would have it, a train went by while we were there with a UP locomotive in Rio Grande livery. Don't miss the German Bakery right next door. We got to Nipomo in time for dinner! Today's photos start here.

Great day in St. George, Utah! All the day's photos start here.

Belgian Waffles at the Bear Paw Cafe.
Guess who had the one with ice cream,
cherries jubilee, and chocolate syrup?!

Very fun street art in St. George.

Inside the St. George Tabernacle.

At the Bringham Young winter home in St. George.

Outside the Painter Pony Restaurant.

Wood Ash Rye Restaurant in the Advenire.
A "best meal ever" kind of experience.

Framed picture in our hallway at the Advenire.
Caught my eye having just finished a melodrama.

View from out window.

From Grand Junction, CO to St. George, UT

The drive from Grand Junction all the way to St. George was gorgeous on I-70 and I-15. There seemed to be no end to the great rock formation views! All the day's photos start here.

Breakfast at Tamarisk in Green River, CO.
Our tableside view of the Colorado River.

It was very hard to not have easy access to the camera.
Could have taken a million pics.

Welcome to The Advenire (The Arrival) in St. George, Utah.

Our view from the Cliffside Restaurant.

Georgetown, Glenwood Springs, and Grand Junction

From home (in Colorado Springs) to Grand Junction, CO the first day out. Thus starts Nana and Papa's journey to California. All the photos are here.

Breakfast at the Happy Cooker in Georgetown, CO.

Ice cream break in Glenwood Springs, CO.
SundaeIceCream.com

Found a bison in Grand Junction!
Lots of statuary along the main drag in old town.

Grand Junction, CO

Great Dinner at the Winery Restaurant in Grand Junction, CO.

The Other Day

The other day... on the highway.

The other day... at the pool.

The other day... Griffen brought home his art project.
That's a clay "baseball" flower pot.