Ojai, and Heading to the Ocean

Well, with the piece of mind knowing that my accommodations are all set for the next 5 days I don't have to worry about where to spend the night. I just have to think about getting there and making sure I arrive. My urban evening next to the winery was just fine, and finally cooled, as I woke up admiring the old-fashioned street lamps that lined the railroad tracks. I'm just thankful that the train wasn't running, otherwise that would have been beyond loud.

I wound up in Ojai, CA, which was very familiar, since I was here last year. It's a very charming and quaint town, and I'm just disappointed that my timing is off again regarding a visit to the Beatrice Wood Arts Center. They are only open on the weekends. One of these days I will time it right. I enjoyed a stop at the Ojai Olive Oil farm which was quite tucked away at the foothills of the mountains. It is 40 acres of olive trees that apparently are pretty old. I have two olive trees at my house, but they are youngsters compared to these. I sampled six different varieties, along with balsamic vinegar, and of course I'm taking several items home with me. I was the only one there for the time being so I received 100% undivided attention, and a bit of an education regarding the pressing and manufacturing of olive oil.

I drove right past Wheeler Gorge Campground where I stayed last year. It is in the Los Padres National Forest. I was tempted to stay again, but it was just early, and I already have a commitment for an evening stay. But I did stop by and made my way down to the creek to enjoy a picnic lunch. We are experiencing another really hot day and it was already almost 100 degrees. The locals say that it's unusual to be this warm, and I am just hoping that my upcoming visit to the ocean will be the relief I seek. I continued on Route 33 through some really beautiful pristine country. The mountains are still desert-like, but they eventually turned more into pine and juniper. I decided to do a detour to the Rose Valley Recreation Area, and seek out the half mile hike to the waterfall that I had read about. I was pleasantly surprised to see many bushes and trees in fall colors in this area, and set out to find the waterfalls. It looked like it was dried up from a distance, but a couple other hikers mentioned that there was a trickle and well worth the effort. After navigating through a couple little running creeks and climbing over some logs, I managed to reach the falls. Yes pretty, but I was most impressed by the water dripping off sections of moss and ferns, and loved the soft misty textures. It looked more like something you would find in Hawaii. It was a really cool respite, and a nice hike, even though my knee in the end was not happy about it. JoJo was carried in my kangaroo pouch for the whole hike. 

I arrived at Sagebrush Annie's Vineyard, a Harvest Host Member, around 4 p.m., so it was a perfect time to settle in. I met Paige, and Amy, two other campers, that are nearby. I'm happy to say that it was the quietest night yet, and it's beautiful open space, in Santa Barbara County, near the town of Ventucopa. 

As I write this, I'm hearing just the faint sounds of farming equipment with many singing birds that apparently are nesting in row upon rows of grape vines. The sun is out, there is comfortable breeze. I am ocean bound.




























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