Joy to the Wine

'Tis the season … and a really good reason to visit wineries growing merrier and brighter by the vintage—and the outdoor activities! Here are three standouts not named Napa or Sonoma that are making their mark for outstanding wines and good times in the great outdoors.

Week: 12.08.2015
Regions: Northern CA

From Gold Rush to Wine Crush

Wine Tasting in Amador County

Story Winery
There's a new rush happening in the beautiful foothills of Amador County, and it's not for gold. Wine is the current cash crop—with deep historic roots in this part of California. The wine industry here took off back in the gold rush days before tapering as gold mining declined.
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New Year's Eve at the Aquarium

New Years Sleepover at Monterey Bay Aquarium

Feel like a fish out of water when it comes to New Year's Eve? We have just the plan for you! The New Year's Eve Seashore Sleepover, hosted by Monterey Bay Aquarium. Gather your friends, the kids, whoever else you want: The world-famous aquarium is positively magical at night, an
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Room to Roam and Sip

Wine Taste and Hike at Picchetti

picchettiinside-image-jpeg
Free-range roosters and hens, wide-open space with hiking trails, and an earthy wine tasting room twinkling with lights. Hiking and wine tasting go hand in hand at Picchetti Ranch and Picchetti Winery near Cupertino in the Santa Cruz Mountains.
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The Pinot Express

Zipline in San Luis Obispo County

Some wine flights are just more exciting than others. Add some ho-ho-holy smokes to your next sip and swirl with one of wine country's biggest thrills: zip-lining high above the vineyards on the flanks of the Santa Lucia Mountains. Margarita Adventures (as in Santa Margarita, not
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  1. Serene Las Gallinas

    A serene stroll alongside marshland, passing ponds and grasses frilled in seasonal wildflowers, with Mount Tam a beacon in the background … how nice. As part of the esteemed Bay Trail, San Rafael’s Las Gallinas Valley Birding Loop and Wildlife Ponds comprises about 3.5 miles of wide-open trail.

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  2. Paint Brushy

    This time of year you’ll have good reason to head for the hills—the electric-green rolling hills of Brushy Peak Regional Preserve in Livermore. This 4.5-mile loop hike is like stepping into a plein air painting.

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  3. Sponsored

    2025 POST Wildflower Walks

    Get flower empowered! POST’s complimentary 2025 Wildflower Walks guide blooms with the best places to see a variety of florals across the Peninsula and South Bay this spring.

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  4. All right, Almaden!

    Take a trip through time on this 5-mile loop in Almaden Quicksilver County Park. Explore the ruins of an old cinnabar mine and enjoy the first hints of wildflower season.

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Trending Stories SoCal

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  1. Sponsored

    Weekend in Reno Tahoe

    Weekend plans? Reno Tahoe! Just a few hours by car or a short flight away, Reno Tahoe springs to the moment with great ways to combine adventure and relaxation in its beautiful mountains-meets-desert setting.

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  2. Hiker walking along the North Bluff Trail on Santa Cruz Island, Channel Islands National Park

    Purely Wild

    Channel Islands National Park lives up to its nickname as “North America’s Galapagos.” This less-traveled national park is an undeveloped and isolated series of five dramatic and distinct islands reached by boat. Hike the largest of the islands, Santa Cruz.

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  3. Woman hiking the South Kaibab Trail in the Grand Canyon

    Truly Grand Day Hike

    One of the best spring day hikes in the Grand Canyon? See layer upon layer of the park’s grandeur—including the river—on this 3-mile (one-way) journey to Skeleton Point via the South Kaibab Trail.

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  4. A woman stands amid an array of yellow and purple flowers at Descanso Gardens in Los Angeles

    Petal Paradise

    Tulips, lilacs, and daffodils—flower power is in full bloom at Descanso Gardens in La Cañada Flintridge. Sprawling across 150 acres surrounded by mountains, the gardens are putting on their best show right now.

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