The Napa Valley Tour Four days, 212 miles Napa Valley is probably the most famous wine-producing region in America. Other regions may make wines of equal, or in some cases, better quality. Other regions may boast thousands of acres of pampered vines and dozens of prestigious wineries. But no other region comes close to Napa for the intensive development of its local viticulture..from the percentage of available land turned to vines to the sheer number of wineries along its roads, to the careful grooming of its reputation as the holy grail of grapes. But Napa Valley is more than just the wine in its bottles. Its prestige and great natural beauty have proved to be powerful magnets for visitors, and it ranks right up there with Disneyland and the Monterey peninsula as one of California’s most popular tourist destinations. From the point of view of a cycle-tourist, this is something of a good news-bad news deal: there are literally hundreds of inns and B & B’s scattered up and down the valley; but there is also a great deal of traffic, at least at certain times and on certain roads. Our Napa Valley Mini-tour does a thorough job of exploring the best of the region’s backroads. Given the particular geography of the area, it’s impossible to avoid the busy roads entirely, but we’ve tried hard to keep them to a minimum, and to steer our cyclists onto as many miles of scenic, cycle-friendly byways as possible. After considering each of the valley’s three small towns as the base of operations for this tour, we settled on Yountville for several reasons: it works best for our routes; it’s conveniently located, being the town closest to the Bay Area; and it has–in my opinion–the nicest selection of lodgings. Besides, it’s a charming village, with lots to see and do after the rides and an interesting assortment of places to eat. Napa County really has two personalities: the nearly flat valley floor and everything else..meaning for the most part, the hills that surround the valley. Each of our four basic rides spends part of its time among the vineyards and wineries of the valley and part of its time climbing into and dropping back out of the wooded hills on either side. The four rides are listed below in the order in which I would choose to do them. However, you can do them in whichever order you like, and can modify them to your heart’s content. Tour packet: 31 pages; 35 photos; 4 maps Where does it go? Pope Valley Loop 51 miles, 2100’ of climb Heads north up the valley for a few miles before climbing out of the valley to the east, past Lake Hennessey and into beautiful, quiet Pope Valley..one of the most serene and scenic cycling venues anywhere. Climbs back over the hills on a tranquil, easy grade and drops into Napa Valley on a wonderfully slinky downhill. More mostly level valley miles bring you back to Yountville. Go slightly off-course and explore the town of St. Helena. Mt Veeder Loop 45 miles, 1800’ of climb Begins with a nearly level loop around the valley before winding into the forested hills again..this time on the west side of the valley. Climbing is the name of the game almost continuously between miles 19 and 25, and some of it is quite challenging. But then you get the payback of a marvelous, twisting descent for most of the next six miles. The climb and descent are all in woods of redwood, oak, and bay. After a brief flirtation with Napa’s suburbs, roll back to Yountville through the vineyards. Exploring Up Valley 64 miles, 1400’ of climb Locals refer to the northern end of Napa Valley as “up valley.” That’s our destination today. Although it’s the longest ride of the set, it has the least elevation gain, because it spends the most time in the valley, cruising through the vines. There are only a couple of modest climbs at the far northern end of the valley, where the route briefly dips a toe into neighboring Sonoma County. Visits the up-valley hub of Calistoga. Offers an obscure, hilly add-on for those who haven’t had enough climbing on the day. Sonoma Loop 52 miles, 3100’ of climb A real Jeckyll and Hyde of a ride. Mile after mile of rolling hills in the vineyards–easy, pleasant riding–but then a few miles of steep, sustained climbing on a remote, one-lane mountain road, followed by some of the fastest, most hair-raising descents around. Leaves Napa County to visit the historic town of Sonoma. Also contains a few miles of less-than-great suburban highways with more congestion than is ideal. But the balance of the ride makes up for it. At least I think so! We will discuss how to avoid the big climb and the busy roads with a modified route. How hard is it? The Pope Valley Loop has two climbs of about five miles each, and both are about as easy as climbs can be. Both are also really pretty, which always helps! The Mt Veeder Loop has the series of climbs mentioned above..several distinct pitches in a six-mile stretch, with a couple of miles of it quite steep. Otherwise, it’s all flat or downhill. The Up Valley tour is easy, with only a couple of moderate climbs. The Sonoma Loop is the only ride that might test an average rider, with its one big climb gaining over 2000' in five miles. The rest of the loop is flat, rolling, or downhill. Each ride can be shortened to the point of remaining almost entirely on the flat valley floor. We will also point out ways to extend the basic rides, usually with somewhat hilly miles. Overall, this tour should be within the grasp of a moderately fit cyclist. I can’t think of any four-day stretch on one of our week-long tours that would be as easy as these four rides. When should you do this tour? This tour could be done anytime from April through October, with just a slight increase in the chance of rain at the outer limits of that window. Temperatures at the southern end of the valley are usually kept moderate by the influence of nearby San Francisco Bay, but the northern, closed-in end of the valley–up around Calistoga–can be quite hot in mid-summer..even over 100°. Accommodations Lodgings in Yountville tend to be quite luxurious and are priced accordingly. A few rooms in town will go for just over $100 a night, but a more typical tariff is $150 and up. This may not be outrageous by big city standards, but it’s a far cry from the Motel 6’s and Best Westerns of this world. For such establishments, one would have to stay in nearby Napa, half a dozen miles to the south. That’s another reason for choosing Yountville: St. Helena and Calistoga–Napa Valley’s other two resort towns–are quite a bit further from the inexpensive motels in Napa. Travel...to and from Yountville is about an hour north of San Francisco. The town is just off Hwy 29, which is a high-speed freeway until it reaches Yountville, at which point it becomes a two-lane highway. Adventure Velo 7315 Fircrest Avenue Sebastopol, CA 95472 707-823-9807 backroad@sonic.net