Leaving Solvang to Wasco,CA

The next day we were leaving Solvang and we have visited also Los Olivos in the charming Santa Ynez Valley

This charming historic town of 1,000 residents is located in the beautiful Santa Ynez Valley. Recognized for its expansive views in the center of Santa Barbara's 50 wineries and horse ranches, it is a rewarding and relaxing village to visit.
Los Olivos
is noted for its eclectic art galleries, wine tasting, unique shopping, epicurean restaurant opportunities, antiques and generally friendly populace.
Many of the downtown and residential buildings date back one-hundred years when Los Olivos was served by a stage line and the Pacific Coast Railway. Our historical ambiance is preserved by a Victorian architectural overlay.

Old olive trees are growing in between the vineyards

Nice geometric field structures to see towards the Santa Maria Valley

Santa Maria Valley

As much as rocky coastlines and golden hillsides conjure up visions of California, the sight of sprawling vineyards bring to mind the state's unique landscape. It is no surprise that wine grapes have become Santa Barbara County's first-ranked agricultural crop, with 19,000 acres of vineyards spanning 50 miles of scenic countryside. Though area wineries produce numerous superb vintages, many experts and critics consider Santa Maria Valley Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, and Syrah to be among the best in the world.
There are many ways to savor Santa Maria Valley wines. A favorite way is to enjoy wine tasting on the beautiful Santa Maria Valley Wine Trail.

The Santa Maria Valley possesses the rare geographic feature of being an east-west running valley. This valley channels cool ocean air into the region, creating mild temperatures year-round. The area is also blessed with a growing season that is approximately four weeks longer than most other California wine growing regions. The unusually long growing season and cool summer temperatures combine for slow maturation and long "hangtime" of the grapes. In addition, the Santa Maria Valley has porous, extremely well drained soil which restricts vine vigor and forces the plant to focus its energy on fruit development. The result of all of these factors is more intensely flavored and well-balanced wines.

A "Welcome" sign to taste the vine in the Santa Maria Valley Vineyards

Grape vine everywhere - it makes a very nice pattern too

We arrived at the coast close to Pismo Beach

Why do the Californian people build their houses so far out to the edges?

After the beach the road went up again over the hills into other vineyards

Welcome to El Paso de Robles, or "Pass of the Oaks", a community of 29,950 nestled in the coastal mountain range of central California, where the values and riches of the past are interwoven with the future. Located close to mountains, beaches, and deserts, it is home to one of the United States’ greatest wine growing areas and a growing number of hot springs resorts.

Zinfandel producers and enthusiasts come together for a weekend of wine in March, food and celebration of California's heritage variety.
http://www.prcity.com/

The City of Paso Robles has a long history with both wine and healing waters. Situated midway between Los Angeles and San Francisco, it is also a gateway to thriving metropolitan areas north, south and east.

We had to change from 101 to #46 to get to Wasco - our next goal for the evening. But before arriving in Wasco we had to pass this steep road up to the Lost Hills.

On This Very Spot on September 30, 1955, James Dean was traveling east on Route 46 on his way to race his Porsche at the Salinas, California airport. Donald Turnupseed, a student at Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo, was traveling in the opposite direction in his white 1950 Ford Custom Tudor coupe. Turnupseed crossed the center line to go northeast on Route 41, apparently failing to see Dean's grey car in the gathering dusk. At 5:45 p.m., the two cars collided nearly head-on, and Dean was killed instantly. Dean had received a speeding ticket around Bakersfield, but whether he was speeding at the time of the accident is uncertain. No charges were filed against Turnupseed. Just days before, James Dean had taped a television public service announcement on safe driving.

Going up the hills we have seen such beautiful landscapes like these hills in their amazing pastel colors of purple, yellow and soft green...

...or this pretty geometric patterns and the different greens

... or these long purple shadows of the trees

The first oil drilling were appearing - and people working hard in the strawberry fields

We arrived finally in Lost Hills

The town is at the intersection of State Route 46 and Lost Hills Road. The enormous Lost Hills Oil Field, which is sixth largest by remaining reserves in California, is west and northwest of town, extending about ten miles (16 km) along the range of low hills for which the town was named.

Down in the flat was Wasco located, where we stayed for the night on a truck stop. In the pictures you see the pink blooming almond trees

Once named "Dewey" and also "Deweyville", the City was renamed to "Wasco" in 1900. The proposal to rename the city came from a settler, William Bonham, from Wasco County, Oregon, who recognized that the name "Deweyville" was already in use.
One of Wasco's major economic centers is its agriculture, specifically in the growing of roses. 55% of all roses grown in the United States are grown in or around Wasco.


Hi my friends,

Thanks again for all the wonderful comments, I appreciate that very much!
Stay tuned for the next etappes of our travels!
Soon we will arrive in "Viva Las Vegas" :))

Susanne and David

Oxnord - Santa Barbara - Solvang,CA

Santa Barbara is very pretty and built into the rolling hills on the coast

Santa Barbara is a city in Santa Barbara County, California, United States. Situated on an east-west trending section of coastline, the only such section on the west coast, between the steeply-rising Santa Ynez Mountains and the sea, and having a Mediterranean climate, it is called California's "South Coast", and is also sometimes referred to casually as the "American Riviera." As of the census of 2000, the city had a population of 92,325 while the contiguous urban area, which includes the cities of Goleta and Carpinteria, along with the unincorporated regions of Isla Vista, Montecito, Mission Canyon, Hope Ranch, Summerland, and others, had an approximate population of 200,000.

We were passing by a Volkswagen Club - they were riding with their clean and shiny, old and also very old cars the same route like we

The blue sea and an oil drilling platform out on the horizon

Around every curve was appearing a new and beautiful view of the Californian coastline and the Santa Ynez Mountains in the background

We had our breakfast on Emma Wood State Beach overlooking the water and observing all kind of activities going on

The beach is two miles west of Ventura. North Beach is reached via Highway 101. Moderate ocean temperature at Emma Wood State Beach makes the area a great place for swimming, surfing and fishing. Catches include perch, bass, cabezon and corbina. A freshwater marsh at the southwest end of the beach attracts raccoons, songbirds and red-tailed hawks. The beach also features the crumbling ruins of a World War II coastal artillery site. There is a grassy area for groups. The beach offers a view of Anacapa Island - and occasional dolphins.

Pack your tent and sleeping bag and get your wheels rolling; Emma Wood State Beach is a delightful local campground if you happen to be in California. A lot of people stay here when going to Channel Islands National Park.
You just can't imagine the amount of outdoors entertaining stuff the Santa Ynez Mountains has to offer. The wonderful folks of Ventura like to hang out nearby; if you haven’t been to Channel Islands National Park, you should schedule some time for it since you're here. Gosnell Hill is a fine place to pop by while in the vicinity, and Olivas
Park Golf Course is a great golf course nearby.

As I told before, a lot of activities on this beach: for surfers an ideal spot with great waves

The "Surfliner" train complex on the way to Santa Barbara

Bikers loved this mountain streets!

And there were also other little visitors :))
(click in the picture to see him bigger)

After our breakfast we took the road up to the hills trough the Santa Ynez Mountains and the landscape were changing suddenly again to this wonderful green hills with all the almond and olive trees...

and yellow fields.... everywhere you can see nature awaking - it must be springtime soon!

We arrived in Solvang - a small but picturesque Danish town in the Santa Ynez Valley

Solvang is so photogenic and a joy for every photographer to go around and capturing the beauty of this little town! I made a collage to show you my own collection of Solvang. (click in the photo to see it bigger)


Solvang
(Danish for 'sunny field') is a beautiful little city nestled in the Santa Ynez Valley of California. Founded in 1911 by a small group of Danish teachers, Solvang now is a diverse, modern city, with fine restaurants, lovely shops and outstanding activities to enchant young and old alike.
There are Danish festivals, quiet tree lined streets, horse drawn wagons, Hans Christian Andersen Park, windmills, Danish pastries and dozens of quaint shops to explore. Solvang was incorporated as a city on May 1, 1985 and now has a population of approximately 5,555.

Hi my friends,

We left LA and changed the landscape from a big city to beautiful mountain scenes. We both, Dave and I loved Solvang very much. The region there feels so peaceful, even though it's a touristy place, there is something special in the air! And the rolling hills reminded me so much to certain regions in Switzerland. :)

Stay with me, there will come some more posts to enjoy!

Susanne and David