June 30: Felton, Ben Lomond, and Boulder Creek, CA

Dear Friends and Relatives,

Welcome to another blog entry, this time from Boulder Creek, a small town of about 4000 above Santa Cruz, where we had stayed last night.  This morning, fog was washing over the landscape, as usual, when we packed up our belongings and headed up Hwy. 1, then switched to Hwy. 9, reaching the small town of Felton in about 12 miles.  There we stopped at Rocky's Cafe, which had been recommended several times in the literature as a very fine breakfast venue.  Maureen and I had two small pancakes with maple syrup and some bacon, along with a great cup of coffee, so by the end of the meal we were ready and set to go for the day.  

From Rocky's, we were off to see one of the two claims to fame of Felton, one of the tallest covered bridges in the United States, and the only one made of redwood.  From there we were off to the east of Felton and Henry Cowell State Park to hike the 1-mile Redwood Grove Trail.  The trail was to be accessed from the Visitor Center, and it was a privilege to witness the giant redwoods, sentinels of a quiet woods in which only birds and the sounds of light breezes filled the air and made the beholder approach the scene as if in a cathedral, buoyed by the awesome nature of its complete magnificence.  The Park Service had provided an excellent trail guide, so our exploration, slow yet thorough, allowed us to gain an insight into its quiet power.  It was almost a meditative act, and I for one have not felt so much exhilaration in the presence of nature in a long time!

By the time we had finished hiking, it was time for lunch, so we drove a bit further north on Hwy. 9 to the little hamlet of Ben Lomond, where we stopped for lunch at a wonderful Italian restaurant called Casa Nostra, run by an Italian family.  We ate outside, and I had a splendid garbanzo bean soup.  Maureen ate a vegetarian-grilled antipasto vegetariano consisting of eggplant, zucchini, sweet peppers, artichokes, and olives, in marinated dressing.  After the end of the meal, we trooped across the street to the Ben Lomond Baking Company, run by the same family.  Both Maureen and I had a scoop of delicious hazelnut gelato.   

Heading out of town, we saw and photographed an unusual church, the St. Peter and Paul Antiochian Orthodox Church, but saw no one who could open the doors for us to see the inside of it.  Later on, on our way to Boulder Creek, we also passed a Buddhist meditative center.  

Here in Boulder Creek, we found our B&B in a lovely Victorian house, and, after depositing our luggage, took a walk to town and back.  It is now almost sunset, and we are having a reprise of last night's vegetables and cheeses with crackers, before watching the sunset and enjoying the quiet of the evening.  Great day--not many miles behind us today, just a leisurely saunter through coastal Northern California at its finest!  As ever, Sylvia

Sylvia M. Venable, PhD

Instructor, German

St. John's Episcopal School

Dallas, Texas