Where to begin? I can tell you that the 2 1/2 weeks we stayed in Paso Robles was thoroughly enjoyable. Loved the weather, loved the countryside, loved the wine and loved the resort. Close to the beach with very scenic mountain vistas. And the best part? We have friends here who got to show us around. Thank you Shelley and Harvey Ward (and of course Prima and Tula)! Visiting a new place is always, always better when you know people and they can show you the best places.
Cava Robles – RV Park:
This RV park just opened in June of this year. Bocce ball, three dog runs, two pools, three hot tubs, exercise facilities, putting green, restaurant and wine tastings on Friday afternoons! Beautiful multi-level settings where you can see the mountains in the distance without always seeing other RVs. Also had very nice cabins! Here are some pictures:
When the vegetation has matured some more this place will be outstanding! Very quiet during the week and lots of activity during the weekends.
Wineries:
Since we were in Paso Robles during the harvest season there were a lot of wineries holding special events. The first one that we attended was at Adelaida. Five course meal with a duet playing AND all the wine we could drink! Good thing we Ubered it.
Spent a wonderful “Saturday in the Park” at the Castoro winery. Ate some wonderful lunch from the local food truck and supped wines all day whilst listening to the band. Best part of the adventure, stomping grapes. I had some purple socks that lasted the afternoon.
Off to top of a knoll to visit Calcareous Vineyards. What a view! (Except we had to watch our feet as there were signs regarding snakes, didn’t see one – snakes, I hate snakes!). Great wines, had to buy a few bottles of cab and zin!
Daou Vineyards was one of the prettiest wineries that we visited. Such beautiful views that we skipped the wine tastings and just bought a bottle to sit and stare at the vista. Wow!
They were having their club member appreciation event that we kinda stayed for – oops! Good music, good food and of course we purchased another bottle of wine. When our server returned with the opened bottle he asked me for my membership number, told him I didn’t have one so he just charged us full price. Not bad for not being a member. I’ll tell you if I wasn’t already members elsewhere, I would have joined this winery. Classy joint!
Sculpterra winery had, wait for it, sculptures. I know, you got it! Besides the beautiful art pieces, they had wonderful wines and duet playing. Check out the art:
The next weekend we headed over to Le Cuvier winery on top of yet another hill/mountain. (I’m not sure what to call these as they are all mountains compared to flat corn fields). Another beautiful location with great tasting reds. Does this sound like it’s getting a little redundant?
Made a quick stop at the Tooth and Nail winery. Interesting naming of their wines! Had to cross a moat to get into the “castle” to check out the reds. They had an app that when you pictured the label in your camera, the label would come alive and create a story. Too bad I can’t show you it – very interesting use of technology.
Another quick stop at the Wild Coyote wineries to sample more reds! Boutique vineyard that had excellent wines and the owner was the one who served us. We even tried a port, not typically in my repertoire but what the hell? Guess what? Loved it and bought a bottle and even a long sleeve t-shirt!
Other wines/wineries/tastings that we enjoyed during our stay either through dinner or the Friday evening tastings at Cava Robles: Allegretto, Ancient Peaks, Broken Earth, Derby, Hearst Ranch, Onx, Tablas Creek and Vino Vargas.
Excursions:
Kat and I had a chance to take a tour of the Hearst Castle which lays along the Pacific Ocean up on a hill. Absolutely breaktaking! Although very over the top for my personal liking – but still unbelievable. My favorite part was the Neptune pool which had just been reopened after renovations. Take a look:
Other pictures around the castle:
Not bad after learning that the original intent was to build a “cabin” on the site where Hearst used to hunt on as a kid.
Another “excursion” that we did was to take the dogs to the beach. Bear found out that if he runs into the ocean that a big wave will come and roll him over. He loved it! Salty dog to say the least. We also took the dogs on a hike overlooking the ocean.
Went to see the Sea Lions that travel to this particular spot every year during mating season. It was a bit early in the cycle, but we did get to see them, although not as many as during the height when you cannot see sand because it is completely covered with sea lions.
Harvey and Shelly took us up to Ragged Point for spectacular views and a hike. Beautiful area at the southern tip of Big Sur.
Had to stop a Harmony, CA. Interesting place of 18 people right off the ocean that used to be vibrant town, but nowadays more of a tourist trap.
Dinners:
The four of us meet up for dinner almost every night during the week either cooking in at Harvey and Shelly’s house or taking in some local eateries. Always had a nice meal and great friendship.
After reading through this post you can see why I started out by stating that we really enjoyed Paso Robles. It was an awesome stop for us. We have many more pictures and stories that I did not even get a chance to include here. Needless to say – great location! Visiting with Harvey and Shelly was fantastic! It was great that they were able to show us around their new home.
Thank you Harvey and Shelly!
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