California Dreamin' in the North Coast (Sonoma County, CA

This weekend, I was lucky to be invited up to my good friends' Joey and Molly's cabin in Sonoma County. We decided to take hikes to the beach and around their property as well as visit some interesting antique stores in the area. I tried to do it all, and believe I was successful. I took two cardio-enhancing hikes and saw some beautiful nature. The first day there, we walked down a cliff trail to a beach that is only accessible when the tide is out. The beach had pounding waves, majestic rocks and also piles of small rocks that were stunning natural jewels. I spent a lot time looking through these jewels to take home a select few for my home. We spent so much time there that the tide started coming in and we had to head back for the cliff and the long walk up. The reward was the view at the top. After the beach hike, we drove to Duncans Mills where they have Joey's favorite mocha coffee milkshakes. I also had the chance to visit two antique stores there including: (1) Thistledown and (2) Jim and Willie's. Both stores are fun to visit and have many, interesting vintage items to choose from. I bought a beautiful bracelet and necklace from Jim and Willie's and got 30% off. I was very happy and am still wearing them.

On day two of my visit, we took a monster hike to some forest waterfalls that are totally off the map. My friends found these waterfalls while on a walk in the miles of open space that borders their property. It was a difficult hike for an urban hiker such as moi, but I tried not to complain (too much). The hike had its rewards when we got to the waterfalls that were near a phantom campground that hadn't been used for several years. It had a fairy ring with (13) huge tree stumps around an overgrown fire pit. It also had bleachers behind the fire pit made from redwood trees. We had lunch there, rested and took photographs of the amazing nature. After our hike, we drove down to the Blue Heron in Duncans Mills for an outdoor happy hour to toast to such a perfect day.

Today (Sunday) we returned to civilization, but not before stopping off at the Sebastopol Flea Market off of Highway 116. I had visited it one time before and bought some Louis Vuitton purses for a very discounted price. Since then, I've wanted to check it out again. It wasn't as good as the last time, but we still had fun. If the vintage clothing dealers in Sebastopol got more involved with this flea market, it could become the flea market to visit when passing through. It is a very large space and popular among the locals, but needs to reach out to a more diverse community of shoppers. I'll keep it on my radar.