Wisetrips Travel Blog

For Memorial Day weekend, we decided to join our friends at a house in Forestville (on the Russian River), with a stop to kayak with  Burke's Canoe Trips . I had called Burke's one day earlier to make reservations for two kayaks: one two-seater for Inna and me, and one single-seater for Alex. We were told to arrive before 11:00, as it usually took 3-3.5 hours to complete the 10-mile downstream journey to Guerneville. …

Inna made one-day hotel reservations at the Portola Hotel & Spa at Monterey Bay  for the April 5 - 6 weekend. She wanted us to explore Monterey, Carmel, and Point Lobos Natural Reserve. Saturday, April 5, 2025 At around 09:30, we started our long drive to Monterey via US-101. Traffic was relatively light, and we arrived at the Alta Bakery & Cafe  at 10:35. We parked our Tesla Model Y and sat at an outdoor table nea…

Since I had a few free days off work, Inna and I decided to plan a mini-vacation nearby. At first, we considered spending a few days in South Lake Tahoe, but the nearby Mosquito Fire worried us about air quality. There were many inexpensive homes for rent, but we thought the risk needed to be lowered.  We also considered driving to Pismo Beach, where I really enjoy surfing and walking on the beach. We enjoy staying at th…