[Z28 Mark]

Hi All We are on the 2nd day of the Wine Drive 11. We are in the Anderson Vally at the Hill House - It was the back drop for the show "Murder She Wrote" TV show.
We have DjD , Farm Boy, me (Z28 Mark) and couple others. I lost part of the front aro package while turingng around and another guy with a 69 lost the front spoiler when he hit a box of bagels on the freeway on the way up here. Today we are back on the trail to Colver dale and more of the Anderson Valley...
Cheers
Mark
(AKA Z28 Mark)

[DjD]

Thanks for kicking this off Mark, let me back up a bit and fill in some of the details for everyone. The Wine Drive is an annual overnight event our local club members have been going on for the past 11 years. Every year the destination is different but centers around the different wine regions here in CA. To those not versed in the CA wine country the big attraction for a car guy is not necessarly the nectar of the grapes. Winery's are typically out in the country with miles of 2 lane roads winding through fields of grape vines, cow pastures, forests, mountains and of course the coastline. If you like to drive your car this is a great way to get it out and put some miles on it...

A typical event starts early and includes a long haul on the CA freeway system before heading out on back roads. Since we are in wine country there is a bit of wine tasting, site seeing and shopping taking place which makes it a great way for the spouses to enjoy the Camaros. Everything is planned out in advance so the winery staff are not taken by surprise. This often leads to meeting the wine maker and tasting something not available to the public, we always seem to get treated to something special.

We combine lunch and the first tasting which helps stress being responsible on the roadways and spitting is encouraged at every tasting. The average tourist can hit 6 - 8 or more winerys in several hours, we will stop at 2 - 3 in an entire day. We don't encourage driving under the influence in any way by putting on the wine drive. As the first day winds down we find our way to the Hotel for the night where the cars get put away for the evening before heading out on foot for dinner and exploring the local nightlife. This is also the time to crack open the bottles you bought during the day and fill your glass. On day 2 your morning is free to sleep in, site see, take in early services or do what ever, the second half usually gets fired up around 11:00 and it's off for more adventure. We got home last night about 7:30 and went to dinner to end the perfect weekend.

This year we had 13 Camaros make the trip and 2 other vehicles tagged along with us, there were 6 - 1st gens, 1 - 3rd gen and 6 - 4th gens. I put 500 miles on the car by the time we got home. I too lost my spoiler but in fairness to me it was already being held together with washer sandwiches and needed to be replaced. Dave lost his at 65mph on Hwy 101 when a Volvo swerved and hit a partial crate of bagels that found their way into the roadway. Many cars managed to miss them but being right behind Dave I saw the Volvo swerve away then come back and hit the crate and bounced it right in front of Dave's car as well launched bagles into the air bouncing them off his car. It happened so fast all I could do was drive over some wood and Dave's splintered spoiler as it shot out from under his car. It was amazing there was no paint or body damage to Dave's car or any of us following him.

As always it's a blast hanging out with Mark, Steve and the others all playing with our cars. Here's to next years event...

[DjD]

Pictures...

[DjD]

More...

[DjD]

and even more...

[musclecarjohn]

Wow cool pictures Dennis,reminds me of when our club took a wine tour earlier in the summer.
Love the leaves changing colors...

[zuma]

Dennis, Thanks for the pictures! Looks like the weather was great! So where did you guys spend most of your time, just the Sonoma region , or the Napa Valley as well? Any wines or wineries (or Brewery's) you can recommend? Our wine frig is getting empty and we need to restock...

[98blackburb]

Thanks for sharing the pictures,beautiful, cars and scenery !!!

[DjD]

Originally Posted by zuma

Dennis, Thanks for the pictures! Looks like the weather was great! So where did you guys spend most of your time, just the Sonoma region , or the Napa Valley as well? Any wines or wineries (or Brewery's) you can recommend? Our wine frig is getting empty and we need to restock...

Each year is a different region, this year was Mendicino. Meyers Family Cellers had some great port and everything I tasted was good, also Handley Cellers had some good pinot gris and viognier. I give this years best of to Ferrari Carano though they are in Healdsburg... Everything I tasted there was awesome!

[Z28 Mark]

Hi All,
Here are a few more pictures from the WD11

[johnmh]

Great pictures of cars & scenery guys!!

Dennis, what kind of structure was that overlooking the ocean with the peace sign?

[click]

Wow great pics and sure looks like a fun time. Wish we could have been there. I prefer the light blush wine, thanks

[DjD]

John - There was a saw mill and some form of shipping port in the 1800's but I don't know the exact locations of them. With some other shots I have I believe the peace sigh is carved into a fancy corner post for the split rail fence along the cliff. There are a lot of signs it's where what's left of one of the gangways used by mooring ships as you can see in this drawing.



Here's a better shot of it, in the second shot notice the foot prints compared to the chain links and what I believe is some of the original pilings carved into a totum in the 3rd shot...

[johnmh]

Thanks Dennis. Interesting history of the area.

Again, great pics!

[SixtyAte]

Nice pics guys!

Got to see what the west coast looks like from a different view Oh yea, any scenery is enhanced by a Camaro....


Kev