Bodega Bay, California:
Raise A Glass To Bodega Bay
by Janice Rosenberg
Fly into this little seaside gem in Northern California’s Wine Country,
where Alfred Hitchcock filmed “The Birds,” and spread your wings in the glory of the great outdoors.
Looking for a romantic getaway? Sipping tours of America’s finest wineries? An outdoor family vacation? All of the above? Head for Bodega Bay, located just 68 highway miles north of San Francisco on the Pacific Ocean in Sonoma County, Calif. This little town—pop. 1,200— showcases the best of everything visitors love about the Northern California coast.
Situated on scenic Calif. Hwy. 1 at the north end of Bodega Harbor, Bodega Bay is home to 14 restaurants and lodgings of all types. Galleries, upscale groceries, wine-and-cheese tastings, sports equipment rentals and gift shops line the highway. The bay itself, offering protection from Pacific Ocean surf, serves as home port for many commercial fishing boats.
Long populated by Native Americans, Spanish explorer Don Juan Francisco de la Bodega y Quadra Mollineda found the area in the mid-1500s and named it Bodega Bay. He and other explorers had moved up the coast from Mexico, claiming the land for Spain. It remained unsettled until the arrival in the early 1800s of Russian fur traders looking for otters and seals. Following Mexican independence in the mid-1800s more settlers came to the area, including Gen. Mariano Guadalupe Vallejo, who established hundreds of thousands of acres of “ranchos” along the coast and inland valleys of what is now Sonoma County.
Film buffs will recognize Bodega Bay as the location for Alfred Hitchcock’s 1963 movie classic “The Birds.” Dine at the Tides Wharf & Restaurant and you’ll see spots where seagulls attacked actress Tippi Hedren; drive seven miles inland to the tiny town of Bodega for a tour of the private home that was once Potter Schoolhouse, a key location in the movie.
Landing Rights for the Red Baron?
Private aviators fly into Charles M. Schulz Sonoma County Airport in Santa Rosa, where you can rent a car for the 35-minute drive to Bodega Bay. On your way in or out of the airport, consider a stop at the new, kid-friendly Charles M. Schulz Museum and Research Center in Santa Rosa. The museum, opened in 2002, preserves, displays and interprets the art of Schulz, creator of Charlie Brown and the rest of the Peanuts gang. The museum owns a collection of more than 200 cartoon strips, panels and cards from cartoonists acknowledging Schulz’s influence on them and their work.
Bid good-bye to Snoopy and follow River Road west to Hwy. 1, then south 10 miles to Bodega Bay. The pretty drive follows the emerald green Russian River through the heart of Sonoma County, meandering among vineyards and impressive redwoods.
New arrivals choose accommodations from Bodega Bay’s vast array of inns, bed and breakfasts, and motels. Bodega Bay and Beyond Vacation Home Rentals will even place visitors in one of 78 individual, custom-built homes along the Sonoma coast, including 50 in the Bodega Bay Harbour Golf Course Community. Outdoors types can pitch tents at Bodega Dunes County Campground or Doran State Park.
Catch a Wave
As you’d expect, visitors to Bodega Bay flock to the beach for fun. Experienced instructors at Bodega Bay Surf will teach newcomers how to Hang Ten. The shop, which also rents surfing supplies, sits just five minutes from a beach where even beginners can feel at home.
Sister company Bodega Bay Kayak rents one- or two-seat craft and advises you on how to handle it. View harbor seals, sea rays, otters and a variety of birds as you cruise Bodega Bay, or paddle along the lower Russian River with a bottle of wine and a picnic lunch.
Charter fishing boats leave the harbor daily in pursuit of salmon, rock cod and other denizens of the deep. If you want to get a closer look at the sea life, head to Bodega Bay Pro Dive for scuba instruction and gear.
For a different kind of underwater relaxation, visit the one-of-a-kind Osmosis Enzyme Bath & Massage. Fifteen minutes inland at Freestone, it’s the only place in the western world offering true Japanese-style enzyme baths.
 Begin with herbal tea in the spa’s Japanese garden, change into your bathing or birthday suit, then sink into a tub filled with a warm and fragrant mix of cedar fibers, rice bran and more than 600 plant enzymes imported from Japan. The 10- to 20-minute bath is said to be deeply relaxing and restful, affording temporary relief from joint and muscle pain while soothing the nervous system. Shower, indulge in a 75-minute massage or half-hour blanket wrap, then retreat to the meditation garden to deepen and extend the experience.
The Coast with the Most
To appreciate the beauty of the coast from terra firma, take a hike along Bodega Head, a peninsula that forms a protective arm between the ocean and Bodega Bay. Divided by the San Andreas Fault into steep rocky bluffs and sandy dunes, Bodega Head provides dramatic vistas. For an easy hike, take the path along the bay side; for more of a challenge, hike 2.2 miles north from the Head to Bodega Dunes. In November, December, March and early April, the Head is an ideal place for whale watching.
Bodega Bay’s 3.5-mile Doran Beach offers beautiful picnic areas. The ocean side is tailor-made for water sports such as body boarding; gentle waves make it ideal for children. A salt marsh on the harbor side serves as a habitat for a variety of birds.
For more breathtaking views of rugged coastline punctuated by Sonoma Coast State Beaches—perfect for picnicking, exploring tide-pools and spotting seals—hop in a car and head north along Calif. Rte. 1. A short drive inland from Jenner, 12 miles north of Bodega Bay, leads to Armstrong Redwoods State Preserve in Guerneville.
Back on Rte. 1, 22 miles north of Bodega Bay, you’ll find Ft. Ross, complete with several original early-1880s buildings constructed by Russians and local Indians. The fort is a surefire winner for kids eager to stretch their legs.
If you’d prefer to ride in a golf cart, Bodega Harbor Golf Links is open to the public seven days a week all year-round. And if you’d rather skip the engine altogether, try horseback riding along the beach at Chanslor Guest Ranch.
Wine Country
Stop by the Bodega Bay Visitors Center at 575 Coast Highway to pick up a map of local wineries. The Russian River Valley, just 30 minutes away, is home to more than 100 wineries of every description.
As recently as the 1960s, visitors to Sonoma County wineries arrived with empty jugs and bottles that vintners filled directly from their barrels. Nowadays, millions of tourists come to the county each year to go “winery hopping.” Tasting rooms vary from rustic to chic, but all are welcoming and entertaining places to visit.
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Share your experiences of a romantic weekend with other aviatiors at our Stuck Mic
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To ensure your safety, choose a designated driver. Small wine samples add up and can leave even the most careful sipper a bit tipsy.
Winery tours give you an inside view of the winemaking process, culminating in a trip to the tasting room. Be aware that some wineries charge a tasting fee; at some small wineries, tastings are by appointment only. Feel free to ask a lot of questions. Bring a pad and pencil to take notes on wines you enjoy. Carry along water and plain crackers to cleanse your palette between wineries. Be sure to bring a bottle of your favorite Sonoma County wine back home and raise a toast to your days at lovely Bodega Bay. 
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Plan your route to Bodega Bay with FlightPrep.com
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The Best of
Louisville
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Best Season: Spring’s warm, dry days ideally suit Bodega Bay’s outdoor activities. During March, whales swim past Bodega Head on their way north. In early April, the annual Fisherman’s Festival brings art exhibits, family activities, kite-flying events and fresh crabs at every restaurant. Take a table on the deck at the Tides Wharf & Restaurant and dig into crabs harvested by the management’s own boats.
Best Landing: Located on the San Francisco sectional chart and 35 minutes by car from Bodega Bay, Charles M. Schulz Sonoma County Airport (KSTS) has a tower and two paved runways—5,002 feet and 5,115 feet—and full services including jet and 100 LL fuel, tiedowns, rent-a-cars, public transportation, taxis and a restaurant. GPS, RNAV, ILS, VOR, VOR/DME approaches are available, as is HIRL for night landings. Tie down at Apex Aviation to partake of a special pilot package that includes a room with breakfast at the Hotel La Rose in Santa Rosa and free use of one of the FBO’s two cars, all for only $109 per night.
Best Places To Stay: Ideally situated at the south end of Bodega Bay and adjacent to the Bodega Bay Golf Links, the four-star Bodega Bay Lodge & Spa offers 84 luxurious rooms, each with a balcony or patio and its own Jacuzzi bath. Dramatic ocean views and an easy 10-minute walk to Doran Beach allow guests to enjoy the scenery. The lodge’s Duck Club for the past several years has received the American Academy of Hospitality Science Five-Diamond Award.
Best Romantic Adventures: Horseback riding on the beach at Chanslor Guest Ranch; watching the sunset from Bodega Head; Just being on the Northern California coast.
Best Way to Get Around: Rent a car to enjoy scenic drives along the ocean. Avis (707.571.0465), Hertz (707.528.0834) and Budget (707.568.4027) are all available at the airport.
Best Planning Resources: Charles M. Schulz Sonoma County Airport, www.airnav.com/
airport/KSTS; Bodega Bay Chamber of Commerce,
www.bodegabay.com
or call 707.875.3422; Osmosis Enzyme Bath and Massage,
www.osmosis.com
707.823.8231;
Sonoma County Web site, www.sonoma
county.com.
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