Treehouse Adventure

Lothorien Woods

The treehouse

Treehouse

I've been wanting to stay in a treehouse.  My original plan was to stay in Taklima at the Out'nAbout Treesort.  It was going to be part of our Southern Oregon adventure.  However, I waited to long to book a treehouse.  By the time I got in contact with someone, all weekends were booked and her waiting list was full.  YIKES!  (I will be staying at the Treesort in Taklima next summer).  So I researched and found Lothorien Woods.  It looked quaint and quiet.  I adjusted some plans to stay in the treehouse....possibly go on a hike, hunt for huckleberries, do some wine tasting and pick up some fresh fruit in Hood River along the Fruit Loop.

Well the treehouse was quiet and quaint.  It was not the easiest to find, dark and along a windy gravel logging road.  No cell service.  I attempted to be funny and say it reminded of Blair Witch Project which completely freaked Karen out.  The house was nestled and built within multiple trees...there was a hot tub and ski lift chair swing - which we did not really partake in.

An attempt at picking huckleberries

Huckleberry season was just ending so we decided to go into Gifford Pinchot National Forest and make our attempt at hunting some down.  The ranger said that the past two years have not produced much fruit and wished us luck.  I have a new appreciation for those who pick huckleberries and would gladly pay for the high priced berries anytime.  The are not easy to find and are hidden amongst the leaves.  The ranger was not lying there was not much fruit and between the 3 of us we did not collect many berries.  We decided to head back toward White Salmon and picked up 5 lbs of berries.  The berries looked completely different.  They were big, beautiful, juicy berries.

Wine tasting in SW Washington

So you may have noticed I'm a wine connoisseur and in the sense that I enjoy wine.  I'm definitely not an expert but love finding new small vineyards.  I have personally not gone to many wineries in Washington.  We made our way to Aniche which provided and food and wine pairing.  The manager was working alone that day and have sevderal large groups.  She handled everything well and remembered everyone's wine they were on.  This is why she is manager.  I didn't love anything.  Then we attempted to find Ziegler wines which went out of business. Our next stop was White Salmon winery and we met this sweet woman who was the owner's wife.  We tasted three wines and again I was not really loving anything.  We then drove to Bingen and stopped into AlmaTerra.  It was like girls night out....as the three of us chatted up during out tasting with a local and the server.  They were super cool and we talked about wines (VA makes fantastic Viognier - now I need to make a trip to VA!), the area, things to do, restaurants and even about my blog.  I bought 2 bottles of the Terres White - a blend of Viognier, Roussane and Marsanne.  Our plan to have dinner at the Solstice Wood Fire Cafe, but there was a wedding.  We crossed the toll bridge into Hood River and decided to hit one more wine tasting at Cascade Cliffs tasting room.  Wines - eh and the woman serving wasn't really interested in us as much as the other couples there.  But Karen took a pretty picture of their Rose.

Rose on the bar

My cell phone died and I had her take a picture of my future bar stools.  My friend, Ken, has not responded to my request to create these for me.....this may be another venture like the bookcase he said he would build me.....as in if I want them I will have to go buy them.

My future bar stools

Fruit Loop in Hood River

First thing is first - I must have coffee in the morning.  Everyone should have a vice, mine is coffee and all things considered it's not that bad in comparison to other vices.  So first stop was at Dog River Coffee Co.  The day prior we stopped in a cute town called Trout Lake and had possibly the most sickening sweet coffee.  We went to Rasumussen Farms.  I purchased peppers (they had purple bell peppers), squash (zucchini, yellow, acorn and butternut) and flowers!  For $5.25 I stuffed a bunch of you cut flowers into a cup.  They did bear the heat on the way home but still provided two gorgeous bouquets.

Fall Sunflower Bouquet

Pretty in Pink Bouquet (see my second hand blown glass piece - the green bowl

Our next stop was the Gorge White House and did a pear cider and wine tasting.  After our tasting we checked out their selection of pears but didn't buy anything.  Well Kelli and Karen bought some pear hard cider.  

Next stop was Marchesi vineyard.  We enjoyed wines outside with lunch.  They have a great set up to enjoy their wines and vineyards.  After lunch we headed out and stopped by McCurdy Farms and bought crimson and bartlett pears.  I think they have the best selection of pears by far.  

Then the loop brought us back to I-84 and our adventure came to close.  We headed back to Portland with pears, laughter and memories in tow.

Southern Oregon Adventure Day 5

Crater Lake

Rim Village

Wizard Island

Our first stop was at Rim Village.  We walked around and the village has a great view of Wizard Island.  I read all the signs with information about the lake and the area because I'm just that much of a nerd.  I know this about myself.  On a trip to Denver I forced everyone to go see the Mint...which was a 50/50 split on excitement.  You are not allowed to bring anything in and must schedule a time to visit the Mint....of course I had to be present as an examiner and missed out!  My 2 friends who were not keen on going said it was the coolest thing ever as they were minting pennies and the whole building was shaking.  Someday I will go to one of the U.S. Mints and visit.....on another adventure, another year.

Some facts about Crater Lake:  

• The average daily temperature in September is 63 degrees with an average snow fall of 3 inches 
• The park was established in 1902
• The depth of Crater Lake is 1, 943 feet
• Crater lake is inside the caldera of Mt Mazama which had an eruption around 7,700 years ago and collapsed
• The lake is filled by rain and snow and is so clean only a couple of species of fish can survive
• Whitebark pine is dying due to a fungus....some of these trees are 500 years old
• Clark's Nutcracker is a bird that lives in the area (and may be possibly related to Kelli)

Looking down from Rim Village

Pinnacles

The hike is very short, maybe a mile and pretty flat.  The Pinnacles are volcanic spires, not soda straws which we learned about in Oregon Caves.  The woman at the inn called them soda straws.  Anyhow, after an eruption, the hot ash cooled created these spires not soda straws.

First sight of the Pinnacles

Pretty impressive

Another shot

This is my favorite shot

On our way to north we stopped at an overlook to get a view of the Phantom Ship.  It is considered Crater Lake's "other island" and looks like ship.

Phantom Ship

Beautiful Crater Lake

Crater Lake with Wizard Island in the distance

Hike into the Caldera

The hike into the caldera is called Cleetwood Cove.  It is 2.2 miles and there is an elevation gain of 700 feet.   Karen noticed that no one was talking as they passed us on the way back up due to the steep grade. The boat launches from the here to Wizard Island.  People were swimming and jumping off the rocks into the water.  We opted for relaxing and letting our feet soak instead of submerging especially since we didn't have our swimsuits.  The water was brisk but still felt good.  

Look how close this chipmunk got to me

Soaking our feet in the cool water

On the shore 

On our way back up from the lake

Looking back on my Southern Oregon adventure....my top favorite experiences overall were visiting the Oregon Caves and Crater Lake.  It sparked the outdoor enthusiast in me.  My hope in the future is that I will be spending more time exploring our national parks.

44 days to go....

Progress Report

I'm behind on writing my experiences in my blog and I'm realizing I'm running out of time too.  The last couple of weeks/weekends have been packed to try and complete all of my experiences.  It's been wild how much I have done this past year.  I have been afforded with the adventure of a lifetime and it's been fantastic!  Here is my list and as you can see I'm completed quite a bit.  

1. Create and write a blog of my 39 experiences before I'm 40 In Progress and you are reading it!
2. Sky dive Done
3. See a psychic or have my cards read or both Done
4. Run a marathon  Done
5. Run a half marathon in sub two October 14
6. Organize my office  - no really - organize my office Done at work - In Progress for my home office 
7. Travel somewhere I have not been Done
8. See Herman the sturgeon  Done
9. Do a full spa day retreat  October 20 
10. Ride on a train to anywhere Done
11. Raise $1000 for breast cancer  I'm at $860 consider giving up your coffee or lunch and donating the money you spend on it for one day October 7 - If you are interested in donating, please do! http://www.active.com/donate/GirflriendsForCure12/sonyabedient
12. Improve my vocabulary and ability to speak Japanese October 1
13. Hike to tunnel falls Done
14. Stay overnight in the aquarium Done - post coming soon
15. Learn to knit or crochet a blanket and give it to a shelter  In Progress I will be donating blanket (s) & clothing to a shelter in lieu of knitting a blanket
16. Take an art class - Glass blowing Done
17. Attend a timbers game Done
18. Be an extra in a film or tv show In Progress - no call backs :(  if you can pull strings for me, please help me out!
19. Brew my own beer Done
20. Attend an opera performance Done
21. Go whale watching in the San Juan Islands Done
22. Go crabbing Done 
23. Snowmobiling Feed the homeless October 21
24. Do a scavenger hunt Done - post coming soon
25. Buy a bouquet of flowers every month In Progress (see below)
26. Go to Portland Japanese Garden (it's been a long time) Done
27. Go to Lan Su Garden Done
28. Go to the Oregon Garden Done
29. Spend from sun up to sun down not talking to anyone Done
30. Purge - get rid of my wedding dress and items in that large bin I haven't looked in In Progress 
31. Have one evening or day per week where I take time for myself In Progress & need to say "no" more often
32. Wear more dresses/skirts In Progress & doing this quite well
33. Have Afternoon Tea  Done
34. See Crater Lake  Done - post coming soon
35. Go wine tasting in Applegate Valley Done
36. Go to the house of Vortex Done
37. See the Oregon Caves  Done
38. Stay the night in a treehouse  Done - post coming soon
39. Ride one of the top three tallest roller coasters Attempted 

August flowers from the PSU farmers market

If you feel like pledging towards a fund for me do it in the form of donating your monies for breast cancer here http://www.active.com/donate/GirflriendsForCure12/sonyabedient

Southern Oregon Adventure Day 4

Chocolate, Cheese, Wine & Prospect

Goodbye Jakcsonville

Our leaving would not be complete without having a good cup of coffee.  A recommendation from the woman pouring at Quady North we found our caffeine addiction fulfilled.  Onward to Prospect....with a few stops on the way.

Lillie Belle Chocolate

Situated next to Rogue Creamery is Lillie Belle Chocolates.  They have Rogue Blue Cheese truffle (and no I didn't try it).  I bought my parents a variety of chocolates including one made with bacon and pork fat.  My dad informed me that it was awful....but all of the other chocolates were good.  I did try a fig and marzipan chocolate and a nutter-fluff (peanut butter and marshmallow).  Not that I'm a chocolate connoisseur but I think Bernard C has the best chocolate in Oregon.  My second choice would be a Lindt Dark Chocolate bar with fig and caramel.  I found it on a roadtrip to Zurich in a gas station of all places.  I should have bought the whole case as I have never seen it since.

Rogue Creamery

We literally walked across the parking lot to Rogue Creamery.  There we sampled some cheeses.  I didn't realize that Rogue made their own cheddar.  They also have a cheese club (much like a wine club).  We bought some pesto and jalepeno curds.  I bought the Crater Lake Blue and a boar sausage and some pickled olives.

Folin Vineyards

Sitting on the patio at Folin Vineyards

After leaving Rogue we headed North to Gold Hill and stopped at Folin Vineyards.  Folin was recommended but is part of the Rogue Valley appellation of wines.  I didn't buy wine but found a great map with all the wineries of Oregon and parts of Washington.  Then we made our way toward Prospect.

On our way to Crater Lake we stopped by a park along the Rogue and had lunch with the recent purchases and some fruit we brought along with us.

Prospects in Prospect

My original plan was to stay at Crater Lake but I waited to long to book a room and by the time (two weeks later) I figured out an itinerary, everything booked up.  I started researching places to stay on the way to Crater Lake and found the Historic Prospect Inn, a bed and breakfast.  Unlike most bed and breakfast places, the Prospect Inn offered a room for the three of us.

After checking in the staff informed us that Crater Lake was roughly a 45 minute drive from Prospect.  They directed us to go for a short hike nearby to see some waterfalls and the Avenue of the Boulders.  When Mt Mazama blew, boulders flew from the top and landed near Prospect.  It created some spectacular formations.  Water has such power and force that I find I'm drawn to it.

First waterfall on our hike

Avenue of the Boulders

Sitting on one of the boulders - this was my view

Waterfall #2

Waterfall #3

Chilling on the rock - enjoying the view

Magnificent tree

Then we headed north and did a small hike to see the natural bridge.  The water flows through the rock creating a natural bridge over the rushing water. 

Natural Bridge

Our fourth day had a little of everything happening. I am happy that our plans did not turn out so that we could stay in Prospect....otherwise I might have missed seeing the Avenue of the Boulders, which was the highlight of the day for me.

Raising $1000 for Breast Cancer

Raising $1000 for Breast Cancer

I have raised money for many years for this cause through Race for the Cure, been a team captain and since last year have participated and run the the Girlfriends Half Marathon.  I have also put in $100 of my own funds to kick off the fund raising for this year.  Unfortunately, I am short by $215 and time is running out.  

If you are reading my blog....you know that I am having 39 experiences before my 40th birthday.  I need you to help me and be a part of one of the most important experiences.  It is to raise a $1000 for breast cancer research (in addition to running the Girlfriends 1/2 marathon in a sub 2 on October 14).  I am asking you to consider giving up your latte or lunch sometime this week (take your coffee/tea and/or lunch) and donate the money you would normally spend on that latte or lunch.  

11 women every week die from breast cancer in SW Washington/Oregon.  Look around at the women in your life - do they have or have they had breast cancer or maybe someone you know has passed away from cancer.  

Eleanor Roosevelt said "One's philosophy is not best expressed in words; it is expressed in the choices one makes. . . In the long run, we shape our lives and we shape ourselves. The process never ends until we die. And the choices we make are ultimately our responsibility".  

What choice can you make today to make a difference for everyone?

http://www.active.com/donate/GirflriendsForCure12/sonyabedient

Best,

Sonya

Southern Oregon Adventure Day 3

A day of wine

You can say I'm a morning person.  I was up early and ready to go.  My poor traveling companions had to endure my enthusiasm around wanting to get the day started.  Our first stop was for coffee.  When arriving in Jackson we drove past a cute coffee house called Pony Espresso.  We ordered our coffee and attempted to choke down the worst coffee ever.  I try to focus on the positive but I have to warn you all if you are in Jacksonville, pick another coffeehouse...seriously.

Stop #1 Wooldridge Creek Winery

Snapped a picture while waiting for the tasting room to open

We arrived 30 minutes early.  Ok so I overshot the time on how long it took to get to the winery.  We were the first tasters there.  The winemaker poured and talked with us about the wines and his recent trip to Spain.  I inquired about the bear on the label.  The wine maker informed us that there is a family of bears that live on the edge of the property and eat the fruit.  It's interesting to learn about how the name or logo come about for different wineries.  Wooldridge Creek wines can only be purchased at the winery.  My favorite wine of the flight was the 2007 Cabernet Sauvignon.

Stop #2 Troon

Food & wine pairing

When we pulled up to Troon I felt like I had stepped into Napa.  Dick Troon planted in 1972 - so essentially the vines are as old as me.  The day we were there the tasting room was packed with so many people, it was chaotic.  They offered a food and wine pairing which is the best in my opinion.  I have learned that every bite you take should taste like your first...that wine is to not only compliment but cleanse your palate.  Think about the first bite of something incredible...to have that over and over.  Troon also has a tasting room in Carlton, OR.  My favorite wine was the Vermentino.  

Stop # 3 Cow Horn

Cow Horn is an organic and biodynamic winery.  The owner does not think of himself as a wine maker and attribute that to those who have studied for 4 + years.  He claims he lets the yeast work with the grapes, collects them, crushes and out comes wine.  He and his wife moved up from Berkeley and he ran around in his bare feet completely stained green.  I inquired about how they came up with the name "Cow Horn" and he said that they put manure into the horns and bury them.  In the spring they dig them up and the manure turns into a rich black soil, so they decided to call the winery by a practice they do.   

I have to say I loved all four wines we tasted at Cow Horn - Viognier, Sprial 36 (blend of Viognier, Marsanne, Rousanne) Grenach and Syrah.  I loved them so much I became a wine member.  

Another thing to note in Robert Parker's Wine Advocate Cow Horn received the following accolades:

2009 Reserve Syrah: 93 Points

2009 Syrah 80: 92 Points

2010 Syrah 58: 92 Points

2010 Grenache 58: 92 Points

2010 Viognier: 91 Points

2011 Spiral 36: 91 Points

2011 Marsanne Roussanne: 91 Points

I think I made a good choice as I received this information after coming home from my trip and you can only purchase wines from the winery.

Stop # 4 Valley View Winery

Valley View has a nice tasting room with patio seating to look out over the landscape of vines.  As we walked up, a woman informed me that I looked strong and asked me to open her juice bottle.  I learned later that the woman was the owner, Anna Maria.  Valley View has a lot of wines and Anna Maria is part of the name for many of their wines.  Valley View wines are good but after Cow Horn, not much was standing out for me.  With one exception, the Anna Maria Late Harvest Sauvignon Blanc.  The grapes were frozen right after harvest and then pressed providing a high residual sugar and sweet wine.  We were asking so many questions about the vineyard and how the wines were made that we were invited to do a tour.

Stop # 5 MacLevin's Whole Foods Deli 

Tasting wine increases one's appetite so we headed into town and attempted to have a late lunch at the Jacksonville Inn but we were between lunch and dinner.  We looked at Bella Union Cafe but they were limited on gluten free options.  Next we spied a small deli called MacLevin's and they had gluten free items, so that Karen could have something other than a salad.  We all had the same thing (well except the bread)  It was ruben made with pastrami.  The meats were smoked at the deli and they made their own dressing.  It was so good.  I recommend stopping in for lunch!

Stop # 6 Quady North

The label for the Rose

After our late lunch we walked a couple of blocks down the street to Quady North.  Quady North labels are reminiscent of tattoo artwork.  My favorite of all the wines was the Rose which sells for $13.50 which is a steal.  As we were tasting several groups came in asking for the Rose.

Stop # 7 Valley View Winery - Private Tour

We returned to Valley View Winery to do a tour.  I actually learned quite a bit about first and second clusters of grapes...pruning...tasted viognier, tempranillo and syrah grapes right off the vines.  I personally liked the tempranillo and could have stood there eating a whole cluster.  Most wineries will wait a couple of years before harvesting the fruit.  So when a winery plants vines it may be several years before they can use the fruit to produce wines.  I also learned about grafting vines.  It was pretty interesting to get a behind the scenes tour and learn about wines outside of the tasting room.

Southern Oregon Adventure Day 2

The name says it all!

Day 2

The Oregon Vortex

House of Mystery

Our first stop is the Oregon Vortex - House of Mystery.  I have driven past the sign so many times wondering about it.  As we walked up to the entrance, Kelli noticed that her heart was fluttering.

The vortex is circular, magnetic fields that can slightly shift.  Native Americans considered the grounds as sacred and their horses refused to enter the area.  Of course the white man, influenced by gold and greed moved their way onto the land.

What appears to be off balance is balanced and what is straight is not.  Levels were provided and measuring tapes/sticks.  I don't know if words can express what I experienced and saw but here's my best shot at it.    Based on the magnetic fields your molecules shrink and grow.  As you will see in the pictures there are times that my friends and I have switched in height or are the same height.

Level

Kelli is 5'8"
Karen is 5'4" (unless she is wearing heels which she is clearly not)
I'm 5'7" ok I'm actually 5' 6 1/2" if we are going to get technical and was just measured on 9/4

Almost the same height

Now I'm taller

There are different spots where the there are round rocks to stand on where the magnetic field is.  If you relax you start to sway in a a circle.  At certain points you can shrink or grow in size.  The house has plumbs and you can stand a broom up on the magnetic field.

Kelli is standing on a platform that had the level and the broom is standing up by itself

What appears to be sloped down, a glass bottle or golf ball appears to roll up.  But based on the slope of the house it is actually rolling downward.  It's interesting how our eyes can be deceived in some ways by our perception.  Is that what happened?  Possibly but I still can't explain how my friend who is 5'4" is starting at me eye level and if we change places I'm looking at her forehead.

The 3 of us in the middle are pretty close in height

As you can see we increase in height from left to right

You can decide for yourself by the pictures or if that is not enough, I suggest a visit.

We then headed to Oregon Caves with a stop for lunch at Taylor Sausage Company in Cave Junction per recommendation through our stop at Spangler.  We ended up having lunch and taking home some trailbuster jerky and sausage.  If you are interested check out their website http://taylorsausage.com/

Oregon Caves

Oregon Caves!!! Caving!

The tour of the Oregon Caves National Monument takes roughly an hour and a half to forty-five minutes.  The ranger would make several stops to discuss highlights of the caves (although I think they were planned check ins) and presented each section of the cave as if it was a home (living room, basement, kitchen, attic, etc).  Definitely plan to wear layers as the cave is drafty and a cool 45 degrees. The caves are unique in that they have all three forms of rock:  igneous, sedimentary and metamorphic (maybe that Geology course in college was a good thing after all).   Within the marble one can find formations of soda straws, popcorn, drapery, and moons milk.  Moons milk is a bacteria that has a healing properties.  Hopefully my pictures can do some justice.

Soda straws

Marble

Heart formation and moons milk

Caving with the girls

Column

Jellyfish in the attic

Notice the jagged rock - is a barrier - water cannot permeate which leaves the cascade of white down the cave

In some ways I wish we had stayed at the Chateau at the Oregon Caves and done a couple of hikes.  On our way back from the cave we came upon 3 deer foraging.  They were not alarmed by our presence.  Personally this guy was my favorite.

After the caves we headed to Jacksonville, a cute historical town on the fringe of the Applegate Valley (more wine), got settled and headed to Ashland for the Oregon Shakespeare Festival to see a play.  It was a packed day of amazement and wonder!