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Lisa Hall
- 2 min read
Backroads Biking Adventure
Our Backroads Biking Adventure was a full sensory experience in Sonoma within the California wine country. This Virtuoso Company provided a beautifully orchestrated active travel opportunity with impeccable service, lovely stay at a boutique hotel that offered a local cultural experience and delicious cuisine. Our group of eight guests enjoyed a blend of organized activity with plenty of freedom to explore on your own. A wonderful way to meet new friends and an engaging way explore this part of the world.
Backroads offered a chance to see the local beauty and off-the-beaten paths of this incredible region. Our trip began in the Armstrong Redwoods State Park where we were surrounded by majestic trees. Each day we had a couple of route options. Day 1: a 21 mile route with a 900 elevation gain from the State Park to Healdsburg OR a 31 mile route with a 1800 elevation gain through Green Valley. Day 2: a 27 mile route through Windsor OR a 38 mile route through Alexander Valley OR a 50 mile route over Chalk Hill Loop. Day 3: a 14 mile route to Geyersville or a 27 mile route through the Dry Creek region.
Of course, I must admit that I got caught up in peer pressure and foolishly thought I was George Hincapie…. however, I am proud to say that I finished the 31 mile route on Day 1 with sheer determination and enjoyed the satisfaction AFTER the ride was completed! Each day offered rides that offered true beauty and exhilaration. The early morning rides allowed us to see the fog over the vineyards and observe the morning sun catch the myriad of colors of fall foliage.
The culinary experience that Backroads provided was superb! From a picnic lunches among the redwoods and the grounds of a local winery in the Alexander Valley to a dinner with wine-pairing education by a local named Galen. We learned correct wine pairings with our menu with a lovely combination of wine humor and anecdotes about the industry. The cuisine was both a feast for our eyes and our palate.
Our Backroads adventure offered the opportunity to re-connect with nature and enjoy the local sounds of birds chirping, the wind whistling through your ears on your descents and the synchronized rhythm of the spinning pedals. It was an amazing lack of sound that was the most appreciated. No electronic devices, no car engines, no noise…..a welcome refreshment of quiet that we rarely experience.
A perfect symphony of one’s senses can be found on a Backroad Biking Adventure. It can accommodate the novice biker (me!) to the more advanced cyclist in a seamless way to provide a wonderful travel memory from the top of 2 wheels.
Put on your biking shoes, don your helmet & Backroads biking jersey and start pedaling. There is a great big world for you to explore.
Thornton-Hall Travel can add additional value to your reservation through our affiliation with Virtuoso.
