My 15 year old daughter would love to take a bike trip in August, the only ones I have found are on the East coast. Does anyone know of any local trips (like to Sonoma)?

You may be able to put together something similar yourself, depending on how skilled of a cyclist your kid is, and how experienced. If he/she can share a road with cars and trucks doing 50 mph, and has a friend or two to ride with, and if the rest of the family is willing to ride in the sag wagon, a piece of the Coast Highway might be nice--just pick a chunk of appropriate length, with stopping places that appeal to most of the family, make reservations at the appropriate campgrounds/motels, and go. My sister, my nephew and I did something similar from Gualala to Half Moon Bay, with my wife and kids in the sag wagon, and we all had a good time. (I wouldn't recommend the stretch between Gualala and Tomales Bay, though--too many gravel trucks!). The Silverado Trail, up Calistoga way, is nice too. --John

The Albany YMCA on Kains St. has had bike camps during the summer for grade school and teens. I heard they are quite good. They are set up for various levels of biking, with some sessions bike tours with overnites. Lisa