Enjoy a Secluded Retreat in
California’s Santa Cruz Hills
Chaminade a Great Base for Winery Tours

By George & Ninette Medovoy

While staying at Chaminade, in the wooded hills of the Santa Cruz Mountains above Monterey Bay, we happened to walk in on a medical conference on… bio-terrorism!

The AAA 4-Diamond Mission-style hotel was our base for touring the region's many wineries and doing the downtown Santa Cruz gallery walk.

With 152 guest rooms, plus restaurants and other amenities, the resort is surrounded by 300 acres of woods and gardens — just the place for a relaxing weekend.

The bio-terrorism conference, complete with a guard checking guests driving up the hill, gave the tranquil setting a rather out-of-place feel to it.

It was a sure sign of the times. People from the medical profession wearing nametags from this hospital and that medical group were milling around, exchanging notes. Apparently there would also be a guest speaker on the subject.

We thought about sneaking in, but then discretion got the better of me — and we retreated to Chaminade's quiet pathways for a contemplative walk, something we figured we all could use.
Later on, someone from the resort told me that the conference had been called to discuss what to do in the event of a disaster in the Santa Cruz area of all places. Meanwhile, back to the history of Chaminade… and quieter times.

Before it was a resort, Chaminade was the location of a Catholic Marianist Brothers high school in 1929. The Chaminade Boys High School, now fully renovated, forms the core of Chaminade's Executive Conference Center. Everyone in the area raves about Chaminade's Sunset Dining Room Sunday Brunch buffet, and believe me, it is a memorable affair.

Served from 10 a.m. to 1:30 p.m., it comes with items like ravioli with feta cheese, Eggs Benedict, whole poached salmon, and the pastry chef's dessert table. Linwood's Bar and Grill, featuring an open view of Monterey Bay, is another Chaminade eatery with entrees like burgers, specialty salads, grilled salmon, and filet of beef.

Chaminade has a fitness center with free weights, Stairmasters, stationary bikes, rowing machine and treadmills, steam rooms, saunas and whirlpools for men and women, an aerobics room, massage and relaxation exercises, and an indoor basketball court.
Outdoors are four lighted tennis courts, heated swimming pool and Jacuzzi's, volleyball, badminton and croquet on the sports lawn. On one of my outings into the center of Santa Cruz, we visited Pacific Avenue. We walked from the landmark clock tower to the eclectic mix of art galleries and shops.

We liked the Corbin Gallery, at 1537 Pacific Ave. (on Plaza Lane), with art glass from more than 50 artists, paintings and fine candles, and the Artisans Gallery, at 1364 Pacific Ave., with local and American handmade glass, jewelry, pottery, black-and-white photography, and some intriguing wooden boxes.

The Museum of Art & History & Museum Store, located off Pacific at 705 Front St., features changing exhibitions of modern art and regional history. The store sells contemporary mobiles and gifts of local and European design.

The Santa Cruz Gallery Walk takes place on the first Tuesday of every month, when galleries stay open until 8 p.m. with refreshments and special displays.

For more information, visit www.santacruzgalleries.com.

If you enjoy wine, the Santa Cruz region has over 40 small, family-owned wineries.

Winemakers in the Santa Cruz Mountains area first began to receive notice for their wines in the late 1800's. In 1981, the Santa Cruz Mountains Viticulture Appellation became one of the first such areas to be defined by geographical and climactic factors.

The appellation includes the Santa Cruz Mountain range, defined by Half Moon Bay in the north and Aptos in the south, touched by cool coastal breezes and rugged landscape.

If your time is short, you really don't need to go far from the center of Santa Cruz to sample wines. We discovered Storrs Winery right in the downtown part of town, in the historic Old Sash Mill at 303 Potrero Street. Storrs tasting room is a kind of hole-in-the-wall place, but well worth the visit. The winery produces a marvelous array of reds and whites from area vineyards.

On our afternoon there, it was drizzling, so it felt good to be inside, especially with some fine wines.

We loved the Storrs 1999 Christie Vineyard Chardonnay ($22 a bottle), made from grapes in a sheltered little valley nestled between Aptos and Corralitos. This vineyard has yielded grapes filled with lush varietal fruit, pineapple, pear and mango, to which you could add hints of vanilla and spice.

Storrs' 2000 Viento Vineyard Gewürztraminer ($14 a bottle) was also really great, with notes of litchi nut, honeysuckle and spice.

What a treat!

In 2000, Storrs won the San Francisco International Wine Competition Sweepstakes/Best Red Wine of Show and a Double-Gold Medal for its 1997 BXR, a red Bordeaux blend.

The wineries of the Santa Cruz Mountains offer a special Passport Program for $15, which provides you with a passport to the wineries, including many not open to the public at other times. The program allows wine lovers to tour the facilities, meet the winemakers, and sample wines.

Each winery stamps the passport, and when a completed passport is turned in, the holder receives a reward. Passport wineries are open on the third Saturday in January, April, July and November, as well as during regular hours.

The Santa Cruz Vintners' Festival takes place two weekends in June at wineries and restaurants throughout the area, with many locations offering special wines, food, music, art shows and other entertainment. For more information about Santa Cruz wineries, call (831) 479-WINE or visit www.scmwa.com. To reach the Storrs Winery, call (831) 458-5030.

For more information about Chaminade, contact 1-800-283-6569 or visit www.chaminade.com.

With more state parks than any other county in California, Santa Cruz County is a Mecca for mountain bikers, with fire roads and trails geared for mountain biking.

From winding single-track trails through shaded redwoods to climbs with stunning vistas of Monterey Bay, you will find trails for many skill levels.

For details on mountain biking in Santa Cruz County, contact the Santa Cruz County Conference and Visitors Council at 1-800-833-3494 or visit www.santacruzca.org.