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Santa Barbara Coast and Wine Harvest, 6 Days - Oct. 5-10, 2008
This trip combines the jewel of Santa Barbara and its magnificent coast with the  spectacular beauty and bounty of the Santa Ynez Valley wine country in harvest season. In the Santa Barbara area, you will bike along the coast both west through Hope Ranch and the University of Santa Barbara and east on the spectacular Mountain Drive overlooking the Pacific Ocean. In the Santa Ynez Valley, you will bike through Happy, Foxen and Ballard Canyons and travel on the Santa Rosa Road. You will be visiting-during the exciting October wine harvest-some of the great wineries that made the movie, Sideways, famous. You will dine at Louie's California Bistro in Santa Barbara and the well-known Mattei's Tavern and the Los Olivos Cafe in the Santa Ynez Valley.
Highlights
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Bike the magnificent Pacific coast where the mountains meet the sea
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Explore the town of Santa Barbara, one of California's most beautiful towns, visiting the famous Santa Barbara Mission 
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Bike the quiet country roads of Santa Ynez Valley's gorgeous canyons
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Visit the famous wineries of Southern California's "Sideways" country
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Stay in two of the area's finest inns and dine at Louie's California Bistro in Santa Barbara and the well known Mattei's Tavern and the Los Olivos Café in the Santa Ynez Valley.
Special Features
Weather: The average high in Santa Barbara in the first week of October is 74 degrees and the average low is 53 degrees. The average high and low temperatures in the Santa Ynez Valley is 55 degrees.
Terrain: The terrain in the Santa Barbara area is flat to rolling with a few significant hills. The Santa Ynez trip varies from flat to rolling and hilly depending on the route. Most of the significant hills can be avoided by choice of route.
Distances and Difficulty: The daily routes will be 20-40 miles, but there will always be options for shorter and longer rides and the rides each day will be tailored to meet the preferences of riders of varying abilities. This trip is suitable for intermediate-level bikers and above.
Logistics: This trip starts and ends in Santa Barbara, California.
Costs: The cost of this trip is $1,795. Trip costs include: two nights accommodation in the celebrated Upham Hotel in Santa Barbara www.uphamhotel.com, the oldest operating inn in Santa Barbara, and three nights accommodation at the charming Ballard Country Inn in the Santa Ynez Valley www.ballardinn.com, voted one of America's ten most romantic inns; four dinners, all breakfasts, three picnic lunches and snacks along the way; visits to wineries (tasting at your own expense); support van, two guides, maps and cue sheets. The single supplement for single room occupancy is $335. Bike rental is $150 for a road or hybrid bike for the trip.
Itinerary
Day 1: Arrive at Upham Hotel at 9:00 am ready to bike. After bike fitting, you will bike west passing through the Hope Ranch and along the Pacific coast through the University of Santa Barbara Campus and along the beach. You will have lunch in Isla Vista. That evening we will have a welcome reception at the hotel and dinner at the celebrated Louie's California Bistro. Meals provided by Escapades: (D)
Day 2: After visiting the Santa Barbara Mission, you bike along Mountain Drive overlooking the Pacific Ocean through San Ysidro Ranch and gorgeous canyon land and lunch in Carpinteria. You will dine at a local Mexican restaurant on taco night. (B), (D)
Day 3: In the Santa Ynez Valley, you will bike in Happy Canyon and will return to the Inn for a picnic lunch. Those wishing to continue to bike can pedal a loop through Ballard Canyon . You will dine at the celebrated Los Olivos Café. (B), (L), (D).
Day 4: You will bike through Foxen Canyon to the Rancho Sisquoc Winery for a picnic lunch. You will then have the option of biking back or enjoying a van wine trip back to visit all the famous wineries along the way. Either way, you will have a great visit to one of the great wine-producing areas of California and the site of the movie "Sideways" at the peak of wine harvest. You will have a free night to dine in Los Olivos, the Danish town of Solvang or the Ballard Inn. (B), (L)
Day 5: You will pedal through Ballard Canyon and then past vineyards along the Santa Rosa Road to the Lafond Winery for a picnic lunch. After lunch, you will stop at the magnificent La Purisima Mission and then bike back the way you came or on to Lompoc and Surf and Ocean Beach State Park . We will have a festive wrap-up dinner at the famous Mattei's Tavern in Los Olivos. (B), (L), (D)
Day 6: We say a sad good-by to the lovely Santa Ynez Valley and van back with our bottles of wine to Santa Barbara and a noon departure. (B)
Making Reservations
Please let us know if you would like to make a reservation and send us a deposit of $400 to hold the reservation. Please send the balance of the cost of the trip at least six weeks before the start of the trip. You can pay by credit card on line by phone or by check. Checks payable to Escapades LLC should be sent to 1965 Biltmore Street, NW, Washington, DC 20009. For information, please call Escapades, 877 880 2453 (BIKE) or 202 232-1531 or e-mail tours@bikeescapades.com or go to www.bikeescapades.com .
Refund Policy: We will refund all but $200 of your deposit or other payments made to Escapades if you cancel at any time up to six weeks before the start of the trip. Because of hotel cancellation policies and other logistical considerations, we will not refund your deposit or any other payments if you cancel for any reason six weeks or less before the start of the trip. In the unlikely event that Escapades cancels your trip, all payments made by you to Escapades for this trip will be refunded in full.
Miscellaneous :
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