A Brannan Island Getaway.....

We are surrounded by a myriad of superb recreational locations.  Brannan Island SRA, near the town of Rio Vista, proved to be a great after-Easter retreat. 

We stayed a week, enjoying the miles of trails and lazily reading and watching the water traffic or gazing at the peaceful farmland setting from our site fronting Three Mile Slough. After months in the desert, the green dust-free environment and a day of rain provided a welcome change.  The camera became my constant companion on walks and scenic drives around the Delta area. 

Clouds building over Three Mile Slough

The 3-mile loop trail is paved

These flowers were a nice surprise!

Boat launch & small marina

And speaking of the camera, I've been forcing myself to use the Adobe Lightroom photo editing and management program I downloaded ages ago.

Sweet Peas from the farm stand made a good subject for practice..

The local farm stand became an almost daily destination for just-picked strawberries, peas, asparagus, and tomatoes.  I threw together a dry concoction of dark cocoa and cinnamon with a dash of cayenne. The strawberries were so small and sweet and easily handled a light dusting of this interesting combo.   Bouquets of Sweet Peas perfumed our little home. 

Our local strawberry patch!

Asparagus...perfect size for sauteing

Small, sweet, & fresh-picked..

The California Delta is a huge web of inland waterways and islands formed by the confluence of the Sacramento and San Joaquin Rivers and situated between the cities of Sacramento to the north, Stockton to the east, Tracy to the south, and the Suisun Bay to the west.

Delta waterways are major transportation corridors for agricultural products making it one of the most productive farming regions in the US and the core of California's statewide water system.  The Sacramento River's deep ship channel allows for the passage of giant cargo ships, and thousands of small marinas dot the 57 or so islands, so fishing and pleasure boating are prime.

Here are some photos taken from a couple of drives around the area:

Sacramento River shoreline

Vineyards thrive

Rolling along the river..

Many smaller swing bridges along miles of waterways

Memorial in town of Rio Vista

Since we are avid readers, I put the word out on Facebook that book recommendations would be welcomed.  This produced a wealth of suggestions, running the gamut of reader preferences. I immediately downloaded and read Where We Belong...good; but I'm pretty blown away by The Signature of All Things, currently reading.  And I have a long and diversified wish list on Amazon.

We returned to Petaluma feeling as though we had a mini-vacation.