Diablo • March 2023

Best Family-Friendly Day Trips: Need for Speed

"Whether your family includes young fans of 'Blaze and the Monster Machines,' shifting-attention-span teens, or professionals on the go, you'll all enjoy this high-speed tour of the Tri-Valley.

Petaluma Visitor Magazine • August 2022

Handmade in Petaluma

"Shop these local goods, and find the perfect piece to take home."

Diablo • August 2022

From Spectacle to Sanctuary: 100 Years of the Oakland Zoo

"Growing up in early 1980s San Leandro, my oldest memory of the Oakland Zoo is watching a gibbon swing effortlessly around a cylindrical metal enclosure. It would pause, seemingly observing me, then swing away. I was mesmerized. Not unlike the sway of a gibbon, the history of the East Bay’s beloved institution feels a lot like an arc..."

Diablo • August 2021

Insider's Guide to Pleasanton, California

"It’s hard not to use “pleasant” to describe Pleasanton. After all, the city is quiet and pretty, with a plethora of parks and patio dining, and the ridgeline along its western border is dotted with old oaks. Its history, though, can veer toward the dramatic."

Diablo • June 2021

Insider's Guide to Dublin, California

"Long before the 580 and 
680 freeways converged in a multilane, cloverleafed cluster of commuters, Dublin was at the crossroads. Native American trading routes passed through here, as did Gold Rush prospectors, Spanish explorers, cattle ranchers, and stagecoaches 
full of migrating families. For years, the local Alamilla Springs was a place for travelers to stop and freshen up, change horses, and check in with each other on the journey ahead."

Cubby • May 2021

The Top 10 Road Trips for Families

"Six years ago, the first road trip my husband and I took as new parents was a journey from the San Francisco Bay Area to Southern Oregon, for a funeral. Our 1-year-old had always been generally happy riding in the car, but she chose this opportunity to snooze and scream, alternately, every 15 minutes. It was the longest seven hours of our lives."

Diablo • October 2020

Insider's Guide to Livermore, California

"About a day's journey by wagon from San Francisco and San Jose, the Livermore Valley became a popular rest stop for Gold Rush prospectors heading to the Sierra Nevada foothills. Within a few years, a small town formed amid the ranchland."

Diablo • June 2019

Traffic Report

"Is there anyone who truly enjoys commuting? The endless braking of the cars in front of you. The rising temperature of a packed BART train. The gamble of a casual carpool. With population on the rise and notably low unemployment, more people in the East Bay are testing the transportation infrastructure while getting to work."

Via • November 2018

5 Things We Love: Pasadena, California

"Just northeast of L.A., Pasadena is a world apart: a place where you can stroll streets lined with craftsman-era homes and contemplate the galaxy in the spirit of Einstein and Hubble."

Via • January 2018

A Trip to Your Roots

"Connection. That's the drive behind heritage tourism. Also called diaspora, homeland, or roots travel, genealogy trips combine the search for a personal relationship to the past with a traditional vacation."

Via • November 2017

Mystery Spot

"Where in the West? Follow our clues to this AAA TourBook attraction." (Included: International Rose Test Garden in Portland, Ore.; Taliesin West in Scottsdale, Ariz.; and Kirkwood Ranch in Hells Canyon National Recreation Area, Idaho.)

Via • September 2017

100 Best Travel Ideas in the West

"To celebrate Via's centennial, here's an all-season list of wild places, cool rides, modern art, microbrews, and more." (editor and contributor)

Via • March 2016

Yosemite: The Greatest Hits

"Yosemite National Park has so much to offer, it can seem overwhelming to attempt a quick trip. Schedule all of these and you'll make the most of a long weekend."

Diablo • March 2013

Wine Country Northwest

"Sipping Pinot Noir on the deck of Sokol Blosser's tasting room, looking out over vineyards that slope gently down the hillside to a line of evergreens and rooftops, I'm only partially reminded of Napa. There's that same serenity that comes from being surrounded by such stunning beauty and bounty. But while Napa is more flash, Oregon's Willamette Valley is quiet, family farm focused, and laid-back."

Diablo • February 2011

Pick Your Own Great Date: Tri-Valley

"The Tri-Valley isn't just an intersection of valleys but an epicenter of casual date fun, from tasting the fruit of local vines to horseback riding through golden hills to burning rubber on the racetrack."

Diablo • January 2011

Secret Ingredient: Bardessono

"It's mostly the wine, of course, that lures us to Wine Country. But at Bardessono, a 62-room luxury hotel, restaurant, and spa in Yountville, it's clear that wine appreciation goes beyond drinking: It's in the rejuvenation offered by a grapeseed oil massage and the beauty of recycled wine casks in the lounge's rich wood-plank ceiling."

Diablo • January 2010

Healing Retreats: The Clement Monterey

"My baggage: I'm an overweight 30-year-old who loves being outdoors and is looking for a fun and natural way to shed some pounds."