Our 5th wedding anniversary is this Friday + my parents have offered to take our boys for the entire weekend = we've been on the hunt for a local romantic getaway.
I'm always counting my blessings that we live in beautiful, romantic San Francisco, but this weekend we're looking to get out of the city. After pondering various options (e.g., wine country, Yosemite, Vegas even), we settled on Point Reyes National Seashore in West Marin. It's just an hour north of San Francisco and from what I hear it feels like it's a world away. The green part of the map below shows the National Park boundaries.
The National Park is home to crashing surf out by Point Reyes
and also tranquil Tomales Bay, filled with oysters
And to add to the excitement of it all, it's prime earthquake
country, sitting right atop the San Andreas Fault, where the earth's
North American Plate and Pacific Plate meet. The "San Francisco
Earthquake" of 1906 was centered in Olema in West Marin.
After some Internet research and talking to friends-in-the-know, our front-runners for lodging are Manka's Inverness Lodge and the Olema Inn and Restaurant. The general concept is to stay at a romantic little dog-friendly B&B and go hiking with our Black Labrador during the day.
Because we'll have our dog with us, we've scouted out hiking trails and beaches that are dog-friendly so hopefully we can keep the harmony.
Manka's had a big fire in 2007 and their famous restaurant tragically burned down. They now have what's called "Fireside Supper" – where their chefs go out to the local ranches and create a multi- course menu, similar to what they did in the past at the restaurant. The menu might start with a cheese and charcutarie, then a soup and salad, a entree, and dessert. The chefs can also pair wines and it's all delivered and set up to be enjoyed in front of the fire.
Now if that doesn't sound romantic, what does?
We're also planning to go to the Cowgirl Creamery for a cheese tasting, have lunch at the Station House Cafe and dinner at Osteria Stellina. Horseback riding is allegedly fun and easily available, as is kayaking. We're playing some of that by ear- wouldn't want to overschedule.
I'll take some photos and some notes and will keep you posted as to how it all turns out. Hopefully we'll be ready for another 5 years of marriage after our romantic getaway weekend in Point Reyes National Seashore!
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