We picked up our hot red convertible VW Bug on Friday afternoon from the wonderful team at the McNevins VW dealership. They handed over the keys, gave us a quick tour of the car, and presented us with a cool VW goodie bag stuffed with gear just for us girls...plus a Frisbee for my dog, Picasso. Dogs love Frisbees and convertibles!

With the top down (naturally!), we drove away from the SF Bay Area and its 53-degree evening temps in search of the 90-degree heat of the hills. Two hours later we arrived at our home for the next two days, Folsom's lakeside Natoma Inn, where we were sure to tell everyone about our Wild Weekend adventure. Bragging done, we headed out for the evening and tried to put the wild into the otherwise sleepy town of Folsom.

We woke with the rising sun on Saturday and drove over to Current Adventures to meet Jess, our own private Kiwi kayak instructor. She showed us the ropes on the South Fork of the American River, a dam-controlled river with mostly class II rapids this time of year. Jess was a phenomenal, patient instructor who took us from intimidated novices to wild kayakers in just eight short hours—and we have the pictures to prove it! That evening, after an intense day on the river, we really just wanted to crash in our room, but we did manage to rally and revive with a wonderful meal at Folsom's Zinfandel Grill...then we passed out.

Sunday was yet another ragtop day. With the cool morning and sunny skies we started our trek back toward the city. But only after a stop at the Nike Store and a wander through the Folsom Gourd Festival for an in-depth look at 203 ways to use a gourd. Who knew they were designed with so much diversity? With our appetites up, we met some friends in Sacramento for a leisurely Sunday brunch before finally making our way back to the 63-degree bayside city of Emeryville, California, and the curtain call of our "Girls Gone Wild Weekend."