What to do in Carmel Valley

We were at the NE end of the field. We walked out of the airfield past the notice board, passed between the Post Office and the Acacia Lodge and were on Carmel Valley Road in front of the Running Iron restaurant. This looked very interesting, but we wanted to explore a bit before lunch so we set off down the road, looking at each of the restaurants on the restaurant list.

On the way we passed some shops and picked up a Chamber of Commerce brochure. It had this to say: "Carmel Valley Village, at the head of the Valley, is a quaint hamlet thet reflects the relaxed country spirit of the entire Valley. This easy-going little town has shops, stores, restaurants, inns and services to supply the needs of residents and visitors alike. It is well worth your time to visit this friendly village, to take a pleasant stroll of discovery along its sunny streets."

It was indeed pleasant. The Chamber brochure also had a great map of the Village,  (84kb).

After our usual study of the menus of each restaurant we passed, we settled on The Sole Mio, and its outdoor patio.

The food was good Italian and we stuffed our faces with pasta and bread.

After lunch, we felt like taking a nap, but persevered nevertheless in our exploration. It was a Sunday in summer and we expected more visitors, but we found the village very quiet and peaceful. A whole bunch of wonderfully preserved antique cars and lowriders came through - the Monterey Classic Car Club on an outing. There's antique furniture, there are old British phone booths (big red cast iron things), a wonderful garden center, and wineries. One of the great things about a small plane is that it will not carry antigue pine wardrobes or cast iron phone booths, however attractive!

For those inclined towards a picnic, Kasey's Market/Gas station at the Y junction between Carmel Valley Rd and Delfino Place has a range of picnic staples. It also has a good wine selection, including local wines you may not be able to find elsewhere.

The Carmel Valley has a number of wineries, and three have tasting rooms in the Village, Georis, Durney, and Bernardus. We were familiar with Durney wines and like them very much. We hadn't heard of either of the other two. and Bernardus was on our way back so we went for a tasting. They looked strangely at me when I spat out everything I tasted! That is a drawback of being the designated pilot. I keep trying to get my better half to take lessons. A small plane can nevertheless take quite a few bottles of wine!

On a different occasion we took a Piper Archer and a couple of friends and this time went to the Thai Cafe. Great Thai food, and we had plenty to take home for dinner that night too. I also discovered that a fully loaded Archer takes longer to stop than a 172 - need to practice those landings. 1800' was plenty to take off in, but in the heat of the summer you may wish to recheck your performance since there are some decidedly non-FAA standard trees to climb over.

We had a great time and this will be one of the places we go to often.

For other information see the Carmel Valley Village Web Site.