Eccentric Hearst had his castle on a hill SAN SIMEON -- Nearly a century ago, when publishing magnate William Randolph Hearst conceived a summer dwelling for a ridge top on California's Central Coast, he wanted it to make an unequivocal statement about himself.
Cycling and sipping on a Napa Valley tour CALISTOGA -- The route to Vincent Arroyo Winery wasn't nearly as convoluted as it might sound: over a wood-slat bridge that clattered beneath our tires, through the parking lot of the Home Plate Cafe, alongside a golf course, across a one-lane stone bridge built in 1904, and down a dirt lane flanked by leafy green grape vines.
PETALUMA -- Vacation with kids in California's wine country? Sure. There are lots of activities that appeal to families.
This past June I took my two grandchildren -- Cierra, 10, and Connor, 6 -- to visit family in Sonoma County and looked for activities that were inexpensive, not too time-consuming and suited to their ages and interests. I'd say we mostly succeeded.
Travel Local: Los Angeles The Grammy Museum rocks L.A. Live Enter the new Grammy Museum and run head-on into 160 musical genres, photos and footage from 50 years of awards ceremonies, historic costumes and instruments, plus dozens of interactive displays that illuminate popular music's origins and cultural impact through the decades.
Palms and pines welcome Palm Springs hikers PALM SPRINGS -- On the west side of Palm Springs, the San Jacinto Mountains don't so much rise from the desert floor as stab skyward. From an elevation of 150 feet in the city, the terrain soars to the 10,834-foot summit of Mount San Jacinto in just six linear miles -- one of the steepest escarpments in the United States, according to ranger Adrienne Fitzgerald of nearby Joshua Tree National Park.
