Even as we linger outdoors, we turn our attention toward home in time for the harvest. This instinct may be cultivated more by ritual than necessity, especially in California, where generous soils, a world of microclimates and technological fiddling with nature's rhythms produce generous crops nearly year-round. Either way, the impulse to partake in the bounty or feather the nest is too strong to resist. That might explain the pilgrimage north along Highway 101 toward Healdsburg. Wine lovers who find the crush at the well-groomed Napa Valley too overwhelming migrate to the more bucolic Sonoma County.
Homebodies sift through antique stores for artifacts to the manor borne.
Those who insist on painting their image of fall with brilliant vermilions, magentas and ochres trace a route along country roads. Young country Healdsburg is a new European settlement, relatively speaking. The late start might explain why Healdsburg hasn't been completely subsumed by boutiques and gourmet grocery outlets, although it is catching up to its Napa Valley neighbors to the east. What's miraculous is the lack of chain stores in the streets immediately flanking Healdsburg Plaza, the tree-shaded ground zero for events and shopping. The town of under 10,000 also hosts regular outdoor events, often of the antique fair and music concert variety.