SF & Napa

[Manu]

The GF and I just booked a short summer get away. We're staying in the bay area for a few days and then going to napa for a few nights. We're going to stay in Cabria on the way back down.

Anyone have suggestions on must see/do/eat things?

[DngrMse]

The petrified forest in St. Helena. You can see veins of crystal opal in some of the exposed logs, (lots of blue, with some fire. Stable samples, for the most part). The surrounding area is an ancient volcanic caldera. The Geiser's, just north about 20 miles is the world's largest geothermal power plant in the world. Fine dining at the culinary academy a few miles south, and a number of excellent wineries between the mountains, and Napa, (thanks to the excellent volcanic soil). There are a number of casinos in the area, most are in the lake region, and many of them offer rather inexpensive accommodations. Clear Lake itself is rather...meh. It's good for some fishing at odd times of the year, but otherwise doesn't offer much in the way of touristy interest...it's silted up, generally milky, and anything but 'clear'. The town of Middletown offers two really good small Mexican restaurants, right on main, a few blocks apart.

While you're driving around, you'll see steam rising from various places....this area is volcanic. Interesting wildlife include black bears, mountain lions, bobcats...and all the tasty little critters they eat. As far as poisonous stuff goes, there are rattlesnakes, black widow spiders, brown recluse spiders, and scorpions, which are usually not a concern, unless you're in to hiking. There's a trail that leads off from 49, near the Calistoga plant that's not marked on most maps. It's challenging though. There's a nudist colony north and west of Middletown, if that's your thing.

Lastly, most of the rivers, and streams that run into Clear Lake are safe to swim in...but you don't want to swim in, or drink from waters flowing from the lake.