Norcal! San Francisco, Pt. Reyes, Locke, Sacramento, Sacramento Delta {Travelogue}
If you haven't noticed, I take my friends' visits pretty seriously. I really hope that they eat good food, see a ton of things, and have a great time. Of course, depending on time constraints, one can only get so much done, right? Here are a few sights I took my friend to. Where would you take your out of town guests if they wanted to see some sights in Northern California?
She arrived in the afternoon, and it was then that I realized I should have just asked that she fly to SFO since the plan was to start out in the Bay. After picking her up from Sacramento's tiny little high tech airport, we drove out to San Francisco, dropped off our things at the hotel near Golden Gate, and went out to the Sutro Baths. I was hoping she would get to see one of the fantastic sunsets, but we were out of luck. While it was 100 degrees in Sacramento, it was about 55 degrees at the Sutro Baths, and it was also a bit foggy. Honestly though, it was still pretty and relaxing.
After walking around the windy beach for a while, I thought it best that we get some ice cream. Super touristy, but is any first trip to San Francisco complete without stopping by Ghirardelli Square?
900 North Point St,
San Francisco, CA 94109
There are actually two soda shops in Ghirardelli Square. If you want the full experience as a tourist, feel free to stop in the first shop by Larkin and head into the Square. At the very end, past some very cool shops (wine, pet clothes, McCormick's & Kuleto's, to mention a few), is the other Ghirardelli shop. This one is likely to still have a line, but it will be much shorter than the one on Larkin. Don't let that stop you from grabbing a free chocolate at the store adjacent to the first store, and another at the second shop in the back of the square though 😜
While you can get the majority of the chocolates anywhere, I think it's worth sharing a sundae with some friends. Or getting your own. Whichever you want. I am here to enable. We opted to get our own. Note that the scoops are large, and they are generous with the fudge. That hot fudge is pretty fantastic. It tastes like a happy childhood. Normally, I get their regular hot fudge sundae. Today though, I went for their Summer of Love Haight Ashberry Sundae. Ashberry. Cute. So named because of Haight-Ashbury, and to celebrate 50 years since the summer of love (1967). Yes, that's right, I am one year behind. That just means in nine years, you can probably celebrate their 60th anniversary and also get some swag with your sundae. This Haight Ashberry Sundae came with a dark chocolate blueberry square, blueberries, and seasonal berries (I noticed mostly strawberries and raspberries). It also came with heart shaped sunglasses and a flower headband so that you too, can be a flower child.
Lighthouse Visitor Center
27000 Sir Francis Drake Blvd
Inverness, CA 94937
The next day, we woke, bright and early to head out to Pt. Reyes. Bleary eyed and tired, we made it to the lighthouse. Only to discover that there was some serious fog coverage and high winds. We were told to wait at their information house. They mentioned that if it didn't improve, there was also the possibility that it wouldn't clear up for the day and our trip there would be wasted. Fortunately, it cleared up about thirty minutes later and we were allowed to head down.
If you plan on going to Pt. Reyes, let it be known that there are a lot of stairs. And by a lot, I mean over 300. To be fair though, this was a cake walk compared to Jhiben, in Taiwan. Now that was an obscene amount of stairs! Over one thousand stairs, and a view that consisted of tree tops, and more tree tops.
If you find yourself in need of a break, they gotchu. There are three break areas just off to the side. Just a warning, on this foggy day, the wood was damp and slippery. Watch your step! You don't want to get hurt in the middle of 300 stairs. That, and enjoy your break by watching people come and go, and reading fun facts about sooty shearwaters.
Cypress Tree Tunnel
Inverness, CA
This is a neat little place within the Point Reyes National Seashore Park area. Just off Sir Francis Drake Boulevard, is a neat little roadway with - you guessed it! - cypresses. I only recently heard about this place. It was a bit hard to find. Sir Francis Drake Boulevard is a windy road in what feels like the middle of nowhere. If you're lucky, other cars will be turning to drive down that road. Once you pass it though, you'll know. It can be hard to turn around, but I believe in you! Drive safe out there and enjoy playing frogger with the other tourists to get that shot of the tunnel without cars in it.
Point Reyes Shipwrecks
Inverness, CA
There are only so many roads here, so I found it pretty easy to find these random sights. The town itself is really small, so blink and you'll miss it. If you want to check out the shipwreck, it's behind the country store. Find some parking and follow the other tourists. And there it will be, the grounded Point Reyes. I wouldn't recommend trying to climb aboard though; it doesn't look very sturdy.
12781 Sir Francis Drake Blvd
Inverness, CA 94937
Since I haven't been out in this neck of the woods, it was hard to pick where to eat. After much consideration, I went with Saltwater. This area has a lot of oyster farms (Tomales Bay ring any bells?), so of course I wanted my friend to try some of our best local oysters. They have a simple menu, and it seemed like everything was done pretty well. We opted for oysters, of course, and since they were closing soon, we called it a day and left to fill our bellies to the brim with some clam chowder at Boudin at Fisherman's Wharf.
Hog Island Sweetwaters
Roasted Tomato (left): Romas, white wine, oregano, garlic, and butter
Katz Chili (right): Fermented Fresno chile, garlic, lemon, and butter
Painted Ladies
Steiner St (between Grove & Hayes St)
San Francisco, CA 94117
A lot of kids from the 90's would appreciate this I think - a quick look at the painted ladies, aka the houses from the Full House intro! They are also referred to as "The Full House House." One of the times I brought some friends here, they were covered in scaffolding. Luckily for this friend, she was able to see them unobstructed. I supposed it's only fair after dealing with so many other sights being covered by fog!
Twin Peaks
501 Twin Peaks Blvd, San Francisco, CA 94114
Not to be confused with Snoqualmie Valley where the show Twin Peaks was filmed! This Twin Peaks has one of the best views of the city. There are two main parking areas at the top which can get packed on the weekends or during sunset. Watch out for the tour buses!
1001 R St
Sacramento, CA 95811
Back in Sacramento, I thought the best place to take my friend to brunch was Fox & Goose. It's one of my go-tos because of its simplicity, price, and atmosphere. Fox & Goose gets pretty busy during brunch, but while you wait, you can grab a cup of coffee (not free though, it gets added to your bill). And if your wait is long enough for you to have multiple cups of coffee, it's self serve at the bar.
When you get to your seat though, order whatever you would like, but be sure to order at least one olallieberry scone and definitely get it with a side of the Devonshire cream. It's so light and airy and perfect with the olallieberry scone. Note that the scone is house made and comes sliced and buttered. I know a lot of people are not fans of scones, but this scone is the real deal. It's not a hard block of dough like most scones. This one is fluffy and warm. Try the scones!
If you drive down South on River Road, there is a tiny town in Walnut Grove called Locke.
I used to play chess with my grandparents. Setting up this side brought back a ton of fond memories.
Masa Guiseria
Masa Guiseria is one food truck I have been trying to catch up to for a while. They have a "find us" option on their website. If you click on it, you'll see that they show up at a lot of farmer's markets and occasionally Clarksburg so you can get a nice snack like we did while wine tasting at the Old Sugarmill.
Pictured below - tacos on handmade tortillas, Mexican coke, and some churros.
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