Dining and Imbibing in the Conejo Valley

By Don Sonderling

No matter where you go on the Central Coast, this region is always ready to serve up new surprises. Among our favorite new discoveries are the enticing, creative restaurants in the eastern portion of 
Ventura County. Often referred to as the Conejo Valley or simply East County by locals, this enclave has been making a name for 
itself amongst food and wine enthusiasts. Here are a few we love.

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The Complete Package: Downtown Paso Robles

Explore libations, food, shopping, and adventure — all within just a few blocks

Photos and story by Katherine McMahon

Paso Robles is known as wine country — a place for getaways spent driving through oak groves and rolling hills to visit vineyards. But the heart of Paso, the Downtown area, has an incredible life of its own with enough dining, wine tasting, shopping, and places to stay to make an amazing vacation in itself — all without venturing more than a few blocks.

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Destination: Unknown

Surprise road trip adventures with One California Day

By Marlowe Hast

So many of us have every aspect of our daily lives and routines planned out. Team meetings, doctor’s appointments, soccer practice, dinner dates, it’s all on the calendar.

Time for a break! But … to where? Before you know it, you’ve spent three hours browsing photos and reviews, but you’re still not sure where you want to head. So nothing gets set. Another week stuck in town, with the same old routine. California has so many unique and interesting places to visit, it can be hard to choose one. The information online is endless and all you want to do is unplug and drive, but you don’t know where to go.

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Edible and Medicinal Herbs of the Southern California Coast

by Lanny Kaufer

The Southern California Coast stretches from the Santa Maria River in the north to the U.S.-Mexico border. This fertile region is home to countless edible and medicinal herbs prized by foragers and herbalists. Both native and non-native species can be found in Southern California’s springtime mountains, canyons, valleys, yards, and gardens.

 

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Cruising the Central Coast be the Pacific Surfliner and Coast Starlight

Amtrak’s historic railway offers an alternative to Highway 101

Story and photos By Katherine McMahon

 

Concerned about rising gas prices and wasting time sitting in traffic? There is an alternative way to explore the Central Coast: Amtrak’s Pacific Surfliner and Coast Starlight!

Long before U.S. Route 101 was commissioned as a highway in 1926, the region was connected to the rest of California by the Southern Pacific railway. When the road through the Gaviota Pass was still just a narrow dirt track, Southern Pacific had established a train route from Los Angeles through Ventura and Santa Barbara, to San Luis Obispo, Paso Robles, and beyond.

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