Rejuvenation Awaits
in Sonoma Valley
By StoryStudio on March 1, 2024
January has come and gone. Our new year resolutions have also disappeared from the calendar for many of us. However, focusing on wellness and healthy food shouldn't feel like a sentence to endure. If you know where to look, you’ll discover an oasis of enjoyable practices that promise to become habit-forming. Look at Sonoma Valley, a fabled locale that blends outdoor recreation, nourishment, and wellness experiences like few destinations in North America. Whether taking deep breaths in Sonoma Garden Park, collecting green veggies at the Farmers Market, or stargazing post-thermal bath, embrace wellness here.
"Sonoma Valley is rich with stunning hiking paths, bike trails, local parks, and botanical gardens," says Ari Weiswasser, chef/owner of Glen Ellen Star. “It also has a depth of restaurants that take their quality of ingredients seriously when menu planning. The use of local farms to provide sustainable, delicious produce is at the forefront for our chefs.”
Food & Wine ‘People’s Best New Chef’ in 2015, Weiswasser relies upon his family’s Glentucky Family Farms for much of the produce he's preparing this winter in his kitchen, like the wood-fired cabbage & ssamjang-marinated tofu served with a caramelized parsnip puree.
I believe that the small town feel of Sonoma allows people to enjoy a beautiful place and take time to escape the everyday hustle
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Local Provender on Parade
Visitors also enjoy plenty of opportunities to meet the producers, beginning at the Friday Farmers’ Market. The year-round market, a five minute walk north of the historic Plaza, features fresh produce, baked goods, and a variety of locally prepared foods, as well as entertainment, artists' work, and artisan crafts. Locals tip: the seasonal fruit galette from Jen Demarest at Baker & Cook goes fast. Get there early. Missed her at the market? She also runs a popular café in The Springs, a vibrant community just north of the city of Sonoma.
To explore the Valley’s farms, Sonoma County Farm Trails has a unique interactive map that leads the curious to farms, beekeepers, and all elements of the region's robust agricultural community. In addition to u-pick and family-friendly barnyards like Charlie’s Acres, a farm sanctuary, you can follow the trail to farm stands, nurseries, and a spectrum of DIY workshops.
Embrace wellness here
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Step into the Wild
The Sonoma Valley landscape, comprised of rolling hills, oak woodlands, and redwood forests, is ideal for casual strolls and half-day hikes. Early blooming wildflowers greet explorers in Trione-Annadel State Park, the first blossoms in a months-long succession of photo-worthy botanical beauties.
Cyclists and equestrians in Sonoma Valley Regional Park often begin on the Valley of the Moon Trail before branching off to ride the ridgelines above the surrounding hillsides. The trails lead over the hill to the quaint town of Glen Ellen, where a stop for an espresso or a smoothie rejuvenates walkers looking for a break. The park is also unique in that it offers a paved experience for visitors in wheelchairs.
Nature lovers will also discover opportunities to explore with local naturalists from the Sonoma Ecology Center and elsewhere to learn about plant communities, complex ecosystems, and, at Sugarloaf Ridge State Park's Ferguson Observatory, the celestial heavens.
With over 25 miles of trails, Sugarloaf Ridge State Park highlights the local environment via a one-mile-long nature trail. From the canyon floor to Bald Mountain peak, accessible from the rigorous 8.2-mile hiking loop, Sugarloaf Ridge exploration is a must for nature and fitness enthusiasts. And don’t miss the Sonoma Creek headwaters, where winter rain rushes over a 25-foot waterfall, a rare sight in Sonoma County.
Meanwhile, the city of Sonoma connects to the area know as the “The Springs” via the Sonoma Bike Path, which passes through vineyards, a farm and historic park with a museum. The path is paved and very popular with locals and visitors out for a morning stroll or heading out to catch lunch.
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Sonoma Valley is rich with stunning hiking paths, bike trails, local parks, and botanical gardens
- Ari Weiswasser, chef/owner of Glen Ellen Star
From Trail to Town
What isn’t unusual in Sonoma Valley is combining travels in the wilderness with cultural experiences in the adjacent towns. Downtown Sonoma presents an Art Walk on the first Thursday of every month, a chance to peruse the local galleries, speak with the artists, and enjoy the festive atmosphere as live music emanates from the historic Sonoma Plaza throughout the evening.
“I believe that the small town feel of Sonoma allows people to enjoy a beautiful place and take time to escape the everyday hustle and hectic schedules life may provide,” says Jen Demarest.. "Over winter, we like to provide healthy options, including protein bowls, egg bites, and freshly pressed juices."
Sonoma Valley is also home to excellent art museums. The Sonoma Valley Museum of Art curators mount contemporary exhibits throughout the year. The di Rosa Center for Contemporary Art showcases Northern Carolina artists within a landscape featuring walking paths and outdoor sculptures.
Not surprisingly, given Sonoma Valley’s Mediterranean climate, outdoor sculpture parks and botanical gardens thrive here. The Sonoma Botanical Garden celebrates the diversity of East Asia and California flora and rotating exhibits. The Pepperwood Preserve features an outdoor and indoor gallery with environmentally evocative exhibitions, workshops, and classes throughout the seasons. The McEvoy Ranch invites visitors to stroll Poplar Tree Lane among the artwork on regularly scheduled public tours.
Spa Down in Sonoma Valley
The Indigenous Miwok, Patwin, and Pomo were drawn to the health-giving properties of Sonoma Valley's waters and land for thousands of years. Today, these natural resources support a healing community dedicated to wellness and self-nourishment, from yoga retreats to bodywork. The Kenwood Inn and Spa, the Fairmont Sonoma Mission Spa, MacArthur Place and the Lodge at Sonoma present an ever-changing menu of wellness programming and packages to help you unwind and reenergize.
The Sonoma Mountain Zen Center invites us to practice on Sonoma Mountain. Euphoria Retreats offers wellness and yoga retreats set among the Sonoma foothills. Situated in the Lodge at Sonoma, as well as offering experiences at the parks and vineyards in the valley, Sonoma Yoga invites all levels of practitioners for single and multiple classes. The cool winter season lends itself beautifully to warmth through movement.
Gather Round Sonoma Valley
Sonoma Valley in winter ignites rejuvenation by slowing us down to appreciate the first daffodil bloom, taste a fresh, dry jack cheese, and soak in waters naturally infused with minerals—no need to consider resolutions past, present, or future. Wellness embraces you in Sonoma Valley. Visit the Sonoma Valley visitor site to plan your wellness sojourn today.
Embedded Object Space
Sponsored by Sonoma Valley Visitors Bureau