Moving Beyond Sonora This Morning After a Night of Family at the Hotel & a Day Hike for a Lifetime. So Glad We Did This Trip.

Chitunga and I did old school Columbia, CA (western, gold mining town) and followed it with a hike at New Melones Lake and did the Heron Point Trail. At one point, a bald eagle flew out of the tree and flew over our heads. It was stunning, and then we realized the mate was in the tree and she soon followed. It was a majestic experience for the ages.

At night, after we watched the Knicks for a while at the pool bar, we met Patrick, Hanna, Samantha, Jane, and her friend for Perch Rooftop Dining, the foo-foo-fee scenic restaurant on the top floor. It was one of those once-in-a-lifetime dinners and we all ate like royalty. I've never had oysters before, but they were delicious and I will be ordering them in the future again. I had Sea Bass which was also outstanding. 

At dinner, we really dug into great conversations and gained tremendous respect for the beauty and brilliance of Samantha and Hanna, but also at the amazing strength and perseverance of Patrick holding the West Coast family together. A lot more of the t's were crossed and I's dotted. It was a healing and necessary meal.

My face got a little read today while hiking, which became a topic for conversation because Jane is a skin cancer survivor. This led to moisturizing conversations as Hanna is obsessed with never having wrinkles. She is brilliant like her dad and I knew after we broke bread together why it was necessary to do this trip. 

Today, though, we head towards San Francisco. We'll see what comes from it all.