Currently our lives consist of commuting through miles of vineyards to get to work throughout the traditional workweek, sad right? Then on the weekends when it’s time to get out and explore the region we live in we have to drive through other vineyards to get to a whole new destination of fun. Not feeling sorry for us yet? Ya, I wouldn’t either. We truly live in a spectacular region of the world where we are surrounded by beauty everywhere and the hubs and I enjoy every minute of it!
Lake Sonoma is a favorite destination for hikers, bikers, and boaters. It’s just north of Healdsburg in the dry creek valley where some of the most AMAZING wine is created. There are tons of trails, winding hilly roads for bikers and a nice calm lake with easy access for boaters…who could ask for anything more? The views of the lake are great, you can see Armstrong Woods, you can fish and you can fall down on a wake board and it’s all totally ok. I feel like there should be a slogan in there somewhere but I am not in marketing so I can’t come up with a good one. 🙂
I can however tell you about a fabulous little 5.1 mile hike called Half a Canoe loop which starts at No Name Trailhead…confused yet? Ok, I like my info up front so I will also give it to you. Not sure why it is No Name trailhead other than the fact that maybe the Army Corps of Engineers thought they would have a little fun with all of us. There is a sign at the trailhead that says No Name Trailhead so don’t be scared you will absolutely be able to find it. Then you are probably wondering if you will find half a canoe on the trail. Nope! When they were creating the trail they found half a canoe. A little anti-climatic but still a cute story. To get a better description of the actual hike instructions please click here.
There’s not a lot of shade along the hike so plan accordingly. The hubs and I decided to try out our new hiking poles on this hike. Please comment below if you like or dislike yours and why. I felt that uphill they were some assistance but half the time I was twirling mine like a baton (because they are so light) and felt it got in the way when I was trying to take pics of our gorgeous scenery. Would love some feedback or maybe instruction on how to get the most out of them.
We are definitely in a drought but the views of the lake were so refreshing and gave hope that we could come out of this drought pretty quickly. Cross your fingers for us! There weren’t too many other people on the trail with us but we did run into a cute couple camping at a great spot at Bummer Peak (I think it’s a bummer no one knows it’s a great spot!) and a couple other people with friendly happy dogs. Hiking down to the lake was great with all the views of Armstrong Woods, the Lake Sonoma bridge and just the cool blue water. We saw a couple of deer as usual and tons of little lizards. Love having the trails almost to ourselves so we feel like we are escaping reality. No that we need to but it is so very nice.
If you are up for a nice short hike before wine tasting, we highly recommend this one. Then head to the many great small production wineries in Dry Creek! People are so friendly oh and lunch at the Dry Creek General Store is a wonderful little stop!
Definitely will be exploring more of the trails at Lake Sonoma when the weather cools off a bit!
So many wonderful panorama views on this hike. I have hiking poles, but I never use them. Maybe as I get older, I will resort to them more.
Thanks for sharing! 🙂
~Carl~
We do live in a beautiful area with beautiful views!
We have found we keep forgetting to grab the hiking poles…maybe they will be useful on some of the hikes with more elevation gain. Thanks for stopping by!
You are very welcome!