Visit Your Own Country

Route 66 via 65

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2014-03-12 17.45.34

What does that title mean?

Just that I am planning a trip along part of Route 66, something that I have wanted to do for eons. And that I will have just turned 65 the week before I leave. I am not doing the entire route, just part of California, Arizona and a section of New Mexico, before I turn north through Santa Fe to Colorado.

Originally, I had intended to go north from Los Angeles, through Las Vegas, Salt Lake City and over the top through Wyoming and down to Eaton, Colorado where I am headed to visit my BFF Susan. But when Ryan suggested going the southern route, and I discovered that US40 runs right along the old Mother Road, it didn't take much to persuade me to go that way. Obviously, it will take longer, but I don't have to be in CO any particular day, so can take my time, pottering along, taking pix, and enjoying the ride.

I went to AAA this morning, got real maps (nothing like real paper maps for planning), the tour books and the Route 66 book. I will also download one of the Route 66 apps for my iPhone.

There isn't a lot of time for preparation but my car will be serviced tomorrow, tires rotated etc. And I will have just about everything I own in the car with me as I head out on an epic road trip.

Another adventure! I hope you come along for the ride.

Strawberry Fields Forever

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Look at the size of these strawberries! One of the joys of a rural or suburban lifestyle here in New Zealand, is the availability of locally-grown fresh produce. The rolling fields are dotted with grass-fed cattle and sheep, and locals have smallholdings where they grow vegetables and fruits. Some will have honor stands on the roadside where you can get avocados, plums and much more. Just drop your coins in the box, and off you go.

Berries ready for picky

But some have ... pick-it-yourself fields! Eat as much as you want, and pay for what you have in your container.

As strawberries are in season, that's what we've done, a couple of times. And you really cannot compare the flavors of a freshly picked, sun-warmed strawberry to those available in the supermarket.

Somerfields berry fields

Somerfields is one of the local growers. They also grow blueberries and raspberries so we have to keep those picking dates in mind!

Punnets of juicy ripe strawberries

With our containers in hand, we headed into the field, thinking we might have to really hunt! But no, the berries were literally begging to be picked. So it was onefor the container - and one for me! As I popped them into my mouth, the flavor was exquisite, like nothing I can remember. The warmth of the sun had intensified the flavors  and the berries burst with the first bite. One that I picked was so big, it took four bites to finish it! If I hadn't eaten so many, we probably would have finished picking a lot sooner.

But who can resist just one more? And one more... And one more...

And as we had meringues, we had to have them with our luscious strawberries

By the time we were done, we were completely satiated.

What a lovely way to go local and have a little fun!

Tauranga Farmers Market

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What's on I LOVE Farmers Markets and love to visit them wherever I am. It's a great way to get a feel of  'local' and they give me a real sense of 'place.' Most areas have markets - some areas of the world there are so many that they have them just about every day of the week. Visiting a market is one of the easiest and least expensive way to enjoy the local area without breaking the bank. Everyone has to eat, so why not do your shopping at your local market and make it an adventure! Here in New Zealand, the Tauranga Farmer's Market is every Saturday, all year and is held on the local primary school grounds. What a wonderful market it is! A real community affair with farmers and vendors coming from all over the Bay of Plenty area. And they don't call it Bay of Plenty for nothing. This area is so fertile, just about everything grows. And the market has a very good representation of the abundance in this area.

Naturally, I was keeping my eyes open for story ideas and local presents to take back with me. There was so much there, I was almost overwhelmed!

For instance, Macadamia Liqueur, anyone?  This stuff is absolutely heavenly! Smooth and silky, slips down very easily. The plus for me was they have the little mini bottles so I can take a couple with me. The market is full of the traditional market ware - seasonal vegetables, flowers, plants, cheeses, local and organic meats, prepared food stands with amazing baked goods. And there was a great food demo going on presented by Peter Blakeway, a well-known New Zealand cookbook author who prepared some wonderful-looking scallops! Everything he used in the recipes was available at the market, that day.

Then there was all the tasting to do! Delicious Kiwi cider, as good as any I have had anywhere! Lots of fruit wines and wonderful cheeses. We even tasted local olive oils, pressed by a local farmer who uses biodynamic farming methods.

 

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Tauranga Farmers Market Primary School Arundel Street Trixie Allen, Market Manager 07 5525278

Harbourside Macadamias  402 Matahui Road Katikati New Zealand Phone : +64 7 552 0718 Fax : +64 7 552 0718 Mobile : +64 27 552 0718 Email:   info@harboursidemacadamias.com

Ocider 50 Oikimoke Road, Te Puna Tauranga New Zealand Phone: 07 552 4558 Email: info@ocider.co.nz

Katikati Frantoio Limited Bert van Heuckelum 117 Lindemann Road RD1 Katikati, 3177 New Zealand Phone 07 549 1467 Email:info@olive-oils.co.nz

Peter Blakeway 027 571 2518 Email:peter@peterblakeway.com

Going Local, Wherever You Are

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View from Moturiki When we think of going local, we generally think of doing stuff, buying stuff, close to home.

But that isn't necessarily the case; well, not in my case, anyway. My current local is The Bay of Plenty on New Zealand's North Island, near the city of Tauranga on the east coast. I'm here visiting family, the main purpose of my stay. So we are not keen to be traipsing all over hell and gone, doing and seeing. Budget constraints are keeping us close to home, but we haven't found that to be a detriment. In fact, it adds to the adventure, as we sometimes have to dig a little deeper than published activity brochures!

From the start of my visit, we have stayed local, discovering, and in some cases, depending who is with me and my sister, re-discovering the sights and attractions that are close by.

Cats on the beach at The Mount in New Zealand. Note Ultimate Sailings cool bag!

Our first trip was simply to the beach at The Mount, or Mount Maunganui, a small town with an old, volcanic mountain that guards the point. As it's a very popular place to visit, with not a lot parking, we took the bus which dropped us right at the base of The Mount. There's a popular walking trail around the mountain and a steep one to the top, neither of which was on our agenda. I was more interested in walking on the beach and enjoying the waves, which were pretty small, with no surfers out, except for a whole flock of them at a surf school, learning to ride on foam boards. It's a pretty bay, with a small spit of land that becomes an island called Leisure Island, or Moturiki, at high tide. Back in the 60s,  apparently Marineland built an amusement park on the island and in 1981 it was rebuilt to include a saltwater swimming pools, bumper boats and a hydro slide! In 1990 the park was removed and now it is a lovely reserve, with an easy walking trail to the top, where the views are amazing.

Breakfast at the Deckchair Cafe

Still being a little jet-lagged, we popped in for breakfast at the Deckchair Cafe, one of the many cafe's that line the strand. It was wonderful to sit under the umbrellas, drinking good coffee and watching the human traffic wandering along the sidewalk. Know what? There are strange shapes all over the world!

Because I had just arrived from the Northern Hemisphere and relatively cold weather, I felt like I was the palest person around. The locals are all nicely tanned, lots of young (and not so young) women in mini skirts or shorts and the men in shorts too, everyone in sandals or Jandals as they call flip flops here! The UV here is extremely strong and the smell of sunscreen permeated the air. I was just hoping for a mild tan, instead of being neon, glow in the dark white!

Our return bus dropped us off just down the road from home, making it a very pleasant, interesting and scenic outing, one of many to come, by going local in New Zealand.

Granny DOES Travel

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Photo Nov 02, 15 04 28  

I've been very remiss in posting my travels recently.

I am in New Zealand, on the trip that inspired me to start this blog back in February. So the posts about some of the places I've been and the things I've been doing may be a bit out of order until I catch up.

So... With my house leased out, kitties taken care of, "stuff" discarded and donated, I loaded up my car and headed south to Southern California, yet again, taking the get-there-quick route down I5. I was very lucky - the day after I left, the first winter storm came in and apparently, it has been frigid since then. I am very happy to be here, and not there where weather is a balmy 70-75 each day.

Giant shuttle wheels

Spending time with my son, Ryan is always a pleasure and we went off the California Science Center to see the Endeavour. It was my first visit to the Museum and I was wonderfully impressed. What a great place to take young children, or any age child, and show them the wonders of science. Although we went specifically to see the Shuttle, we peeked into some of the other exhibits. The innovative, interactive exhibits that cover ecosystems, science innovation and so much more. Just walking into the exhibits is fascinating, with floor-to-ceiling screens of giant bugs, birds and Ryan's least favorite - maggots!

2013-11-02 15.24.58-1The Endeavour is awe-inspiring, situated in its own hanger, suspended not too high above our heads! Exhibits surround the Shuttle - you can see and touch a huge set of the landing wheels and, in answer to the question most asked astronauts, a fully-operational shuttle toilet and instructions how the astronauts, both men and women, have to use it. But of course there is the scientific information too.

Entry to the main exhibits is free but as we were there, we bought IMAX tickets and we chose to see The Flight of the Butterflies. I was completely enthralled with the Monarchs, seeing their life cycle before my 3-D eyes, experiencing them almost colliding with me and sensing the breathe of air as they flew by. Absolutely wonderful, and I added their final destination in Reserva de la Biosfera Mariposa Monarca (Monarch Butterfly Biosphere Reserve) in Mexico to my bucket list!

The California Science Center is open daily from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. except for Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year's Day. Admission to the Science Center's permanent exhibition galleries is FREE. IMAX admission prices vary depending on age.

California Science Center 700 Exposition Park Drive Los Angeles, CA 90037

(323) SCIENCE (323-724-3623)

Road Trip: Hamilton, MT via Lake Chelan

Benson Winery Another fun, but too short, road trip.

With Cody and Mel and my grandboys all moved into a little house in Hamilton, Montana, it was time to take a drive over the mountains to visit them before the winter storms set in. As an added benefit, I would stop in beautiful Lake Chelan to visit one of my best friends, Janet and her partner, Patrick. As it is only 600+ miles, I figured a day trip, but broke it in Lake Chelan going east. Naturally, I had been checking the weather reports and it all looked good. Neighbors agreed to watch the kitties; oil changed in the car and ready to roll. It was an easy, beautiful drive on the country roads after navigating away from the freeways. Through sleepy little towns, rushing rivers alongside the road, spectacular mountain vistas around the bends.

Lake Chelan is a 50.5 mile glacier-fed lake. It 1.5 miles at its widest and 1,486 feet at its deepest point. It a year-round playground, enjoying four distinct seasons and 300 days of sun a year. Janet and Pat spend the summers there, with warm, sunny days, sailing and boating. The area is one of Washington's prime wine regions and we took advantage of that, driving to several of the beautiful wineries, doing a little tasting on the way. The booming hard cider industry is appearing there, too, and we did a little cider tasting as well.

The town of Chelan's population is just 4,000, but it swells during the tourist season. Everything you can possibly need is available there, but being fairly close to Seattle (160 miles) and Spokane, (150 miles) if you are really desperate...

On the eastern shore, the village of Manson, where we went wine tasting and sightseeing, is a quaint little place that grew up around the apple industry. Before wine, apples were the mainstay of the area. Now that cider is back, that might happen again. Fields and fields of orchards, fruit hanging lush on the branches. Winding roads and tractors taking up the two lanes. A nice, slow pace.

And then there is Stehekin, a small settlement at the head of the lake, accessible only by boat or float plane. I didn't get there on this visit, but Janet and Pat do a boat trip there every year. I will most likely join them for a few days, by taking the Lady of the Lake ferry and meeting up with them. Perhaps I will also do a wine tasting tour via float plane! And go for the wine crush during October!

Downtown Hamilton

The following day, we woke to grayness! And my drive to Hamilton was through mist and rain. After winding up out of the river valley, hairpin turns and steep hills, the endless flat wheat fields stretched to the horizon, occasionally broken by a single barn or tiny hamlet. My sense of direction was completely annihilated and I had to keep checking my iPhone navigation to make sure I wasn't heading back the way I had come!

Then onto I90, a highway that runs from Seattle to Boston and through the town of Missoula, where I turned right to Hamilton. The Bitterroot Valley is spectacular, with the Bitterroot mountains to the west and Sapphires to the east. And although it was cold, with mist and snow shrouding the mountain tops, it was still gorgeous.

Hamilton is a quaint, throwback little town with a pretty, historical  downtown area. It's a very sleepy place on the weekend! Everything closes early on Saturday and it is all shuttered on Sunday! Except for a couple of coffee shops which we managed to find! It is the up and coming area of Montana, with Hollywood-types buying up and building there summer getaways. So I don't think it will be long before the little town will be sporting artisan beer and cider joints, art galleries and ritzy restaurants.

But for now, it's the perfect place to raise children, with almost zero crime, sidewalks on the streets (perfect for bikes and little boys) and small class sizes!

 

Lake Chelan Chamber of Commerce PO Box 216 102 East Johnson Ave Chelan, WA 98816 509-682-3503

Driving, Driving, Driving

What a good drive down to Southern California.

I avoided the freeways as long as I could, getting off the I-5 just north of Vancouver, WA and crossed the Columbia River into Oregon close to Gresham and then followed the Mt. Hood Highway south. The scenery was spectacular, ranging from vast cattle ranches to lava beds to forest and desert. It would be a wonderful trip to take without a destination in mind. So many photo ops! But if I has stopped and climbed out of the car every time I saw something breathtaking or fun or unusual, I would still be driving! Lots of farming - and the a lot of the farmers are quite considerate as they put signs up alongside the road which label what is growing! There was one area in Oregon where the fields looked like they were full of weeds but then I saw a sign that indicated that what was growing was a hybrid carrot and they are being grown for the seeds! And potatoes! I had no idea Oregon and Northern California were in potato country. Actually, I thought maybe it was McDonald country as on one side of the road were cattle and the other potatoes! Hamburgers and French Fries!

The lava area was amazing too. Rocks strewn everywhere but in some areas, industrious farmers have cleared the land of the rocks and planted crops. I just cannot imagine the back-breaking work it must have been. In other areas, what looked like wild horses were grazing. And there were rivers and lakes and mighty peaks, still snow-capped.

My first night was in Klamath Falls, Oregon, after a 505 mile day. Cute town hosting the county fair! Which meant I had a hard time finding a room - and snagged the last one at the Comfort Inn! The lake was beautiful and it is a place a would like to spend more time.

The next day was a long one, 700 miles, and I ended up in Ridgecrest, California - a nowhere place but rooms available. I had tried several towns before and all sold out! So I had to keep driving but I had visions of myself sleeping in my car!

And hot! I love the heat but this was too much for me - it was in the 100s coming through Reno and Carson City. I didn't even stop to play any one-armed bandits! And thank goodness for my air-conditioning!

It was just a short 1.5 hour drive to Apple Valley with nothing but desert for miles and miles and miles.

solar array

Except for a massive solar array with 46,322 solar panels! I saw these structures way off in the distance and couldn't figure out what they were until I got closer. I had to stop and take pictures! The big semis went roaring past me as I tried to stay way off the road, but there was very little shoulder and I think the drivers thought I was nuts! But the setup is so impressive and one has to wonder why there aren't more of these installations.

Road Trip!

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Seems like I haven't done anything or been anywhere for ages!

But tomorrow I head out on a road trip south to California to see Ryan, Cody, Mel and the grandboys, Oliver and Everett. It's been far too long since I saw them, so I decided to bite the bullet (financially) and head down there. It's not a long trip, just 10 days, as I have to rely on others to take care of the kitties while I am away.

The drive itself is about 1300 miles each way so I am planning two nights on the road.

First stop should be Klamath Falls in Oregon, then Bishop in California. I am taking a different route than normal as I am going to Cody first. It will be fun driving these secondary highways instead of Interstate 5, which is a very uninteresting highway through Central California. My "new" way goes down through the mountains, and according to google maps will only take maybe an hour more! So that is going to be very exciting.

And because I am traveling on my own, I can stop for pictures wherever or how often I want.

Today I am getting the car ready, checking tire pressure, oil is good and I just had it serviced.