The cliff-lined Sonoma coast is breathtaking all year long, despite the driving rain of winter and wind-whipped summer fog. Today, as I drove up Highway One, clouds hung low, but the wind was calm, a good-enough day for a sketch outing.

In the tiny town of Jenner, I stopped at a little shop for a bag of nuts to snack on until lunch. Across the street, Cafe Aquatica bustled with customers, an acoustic guitarist sat on a bench, strumming away. I wandered over to the entrance to scan the posted menu. Lavish descriptions of soups, sandwiches, coffees, and teas, made my bag of nuts seem just like, well, peanuts.

Weaving my way through the busy cafe, then outside to the wooden patio deck, I found an empty table with a bay view. Surrounded by the outdoors, I pulled out my watercolors to sketch. A salty ocean breeze kept me cool as the sun parted the morning fog, warming my skin. Even though I was sketching alone today, I felt in good company overhearing the conversations of diners traveling along Highway One, discovering the California coast for the first time.