Sunday, June 14, 2020

Discovering New Roads: Sweetwater Springs Road

We live in a beautiful art of the world, where there are also many roads to explore. James and I are having fun expanding our looking for deer (the moms and new fauns are out now - it's adorable!) to discovering where that side road goes that we are usually too busy to explore.


This week, James wrapped up a good week's work and wanted to drive along Westside Road. It's a pretty Sonoma County country road, full of curves, dips, farmyards, vineyards, and old country homes. Scenic and relaxing.

Part of the way there, I caught side of a side turning we'd noticed before. "Want to see where that road goes?" I asked. James said "Sure!", and off we turned, onto Sweetwater Road. 



It curled away from the main road, between the folds of rolling hills, lichen-decorated boulders growing out the ground, shaded by shaggy California Oak trees and wandered past cows grazing impossibly on steep hillsides, ridiculously close (for us city slickers) to the road. 


The car tires thrummed as we crossed one cattle crossing grate after the other. California quail scuttled and fluttered in front of us, crossing the road in the late afternoon sun. I drove slowly and carefully, as the road was narrow and winding, and much patched in places. 


The road crested a hill and dropped us down in a valley, where just like that, we were surrounded with ferns, dense redwoods, shadow, and  running next to a creek, fed by deeply grooved channels in the earth, running down to meet it. It felt like entering Mirkwood, and I told James so.


Unfortunately, we did not have enough daylight to follow the road to its end. We plan to try again this weekend. 




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