Cold Night, Rainy Day, Beer, Wine and Hot Springs - Day 52

What a day! First, it got very cold last night. It was 34 degrees when we got up and out of the tent. BRRRR! Both of us decided against a shower in the campground.

We drove into Calistoga to warm up at the Calistoga Roastery Coffee Shop where we sat for quite a while checking our email and having a delicious apricot-ginger scone. By then, it has started to rain. So, it was cold and rainy - not the best weather for being in a tent. So...what to do for the day?

We drove over the mountain to Santa Rosa where we located the Russian River Brewery, recommended to us by Will S. We ordered a flight of beers before checking to see how many beers we would get - expected 5-6. Instead, we got 18!!!! Way too much for us light weights! And, we ordered a pizza. Half of the beers were Belgian Ales. They had wonderful names which I cannot remember - Temptation, Damnation, Procrastination were 3. We barely finished half of the beer, not surprisingly. We also bought David a T-shirt there. By this point, the rain was bucketing down!

We had made an appointment at Failla Winery, owned by Ehrin Jordan and his wife. Ehrin's Mom was on the Theatre Board with Mark and, last time we were in Calistoga, we went to her house and then had a wonderful tour of Failla where they were just pouring the walls of the underhill caves that Failla was building. And, last year, at the Nantucket Wine Festival we poured for the Failla and Paes vineyards. Ehrin was away and we did not see Lucille either, but had a wonderful tour and tasting. We were taken through a portion of the caves which were quite amazing. And, we bought two bottles of Pinot Noir from the Kieffer Ranch.

The rain stopped around this time, but it was still cold and sitting at the campsite for hours was not terribly appealing. So, we had peanut butter & jelly and then went to the Calistoga Hot Springs and sat in the hot pools there for over an hour. The Spa opens up at night for just $10 per person and was well worth it! We sat up to our heads in the hot water, warming our bones for the chilly night ahead, even though the air was only in the 50's. It was wonderful.

We have decided that we will cancel the next 3 nights of camping, even though we love the campground. It is supposed to rain some more and the weather is not supposed to get any warmer. Too bad, but we are not going to stick it out.