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.

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!

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.

Another Granny Travels

Granny Susu has been having senior moments and hasn't posted for a while!

That doesn't mean I haven't been busy! In fact, I met with a granny who is more adventurous than me, by far. Jeanne Socrates is a 70-year old granny from England, who just finished her third - yes, her third - single handed, around the world non-stop, unassisted sailboat voyage! It took 259 days to go from Victoria all the way south and wind back at the starting point on July 8.

Jeanne is an amazing lady - she is fit, very positive and down to earth about the whole thing. She said, when I asked her about fixing things that go wrong or break on the boat, "It helps to be logical." She endured knock downs, storms, broken computers, wind vanes and a multitude of other breakages, being becalmed and the frustration of drifting off the coast of Vancouver Island, within spitting distance of the finish as the wind died. She hails from England, but her boat is her home. When I got there, she had been in port for several days but the boat was chaotic! A huge box with her new radar array was taking up most of the main salon, there was stuff everywhere and I thought she would be anxious to get on land for a while - but she wasn't! She has one picture taped up on the bulkhead - her three grandchildren who will have great stories to tell about their grandma!

But she was short on hugs, which don't translate well over the radio! She got a lot on her arrival and as people kept showing up on the dock to congratulate her. She kept a blog going, which you can read here.

Jeanne only started sailing in her late 40s when she and her now-passed-on husband took early retirement to go cruising, something she recommends everyone should do.

"Life is precious," she said. "Make the most of it."

They had several years of sailing together before cancer took him and now part of her mission is to raise money for the Marie Curie Cancer Care, which according to their description, "provides high quality nursing, totally free, to give people with terminal cancer and other illnesses the choice of dying at home, supported by their families. It runs nine Marie Curie Hospices across the UK offering free specialist care for patients and support for families. The charity conducts palliative care research to find better ways of caring for terminally ill people and also funds scientists who investigate the causes and treatments of cancer."

Jeanne appreciates any support you can give.

The article I am writing will be in a future issue of Sailing Magazine - not sure which, but I will post it here when it is published.

Victoria the Garden City

Shopping Downtown Victoria

Victoria, British Columbia is a delightful city to visit and probably to live in too!

My friend and colleague Betsy Crowfoot was up visiting from Southern California and as I have a story to do for HARBORS magazine about shopping in Victoria, it was a great chance to have company on my trip. Although we didn't fly there on Kenmore Air (we would have had to drive to Seattle to get the flight) we had a good ride over on the Black Ball ferry M/V Coho. 

Our overnight was hosted by The Magnolia Hotel & Spa, a boutique hotel in the heart of old Victoria, making it the ideal place for visitors to stay. It is within easy walking distance of the ferry dock and the Air Harbor, where all the seaplanes have bases. We were treated like royalty with a lovely, newly decorated room, a bottle of excellent wine and chocolates on arrival! We had a view of the Parliament Buildings which are beautiful during the day but spectacular at night, when they are all lit up!

Victoria is a walking city. Numerous crosswalks and cars actually obey the rules and stop for pedestrians. The downtown area has shops of every imaginable kind. From Cuban cigars to Irish linen; from tourist t-shirts to exquisite artisan-crafted jewelry. I can happily skip the tourist stuff, the cutesy stuffed animals, the silly t-shirts etc., all made in China. But once you get past the front row, the stores are wonderful and I could easily have spent a fortune - if I had one!

We saw dainty Irish linen hankies like I used to have as a child; etched crystal glasses with First Nation art beautifully done; clothing stores proudly displaying "Hand Crafted in Canada" signs. And cooking stores galore! To go along with the foodie nature of the city! Victoria ranks 2nd in number of restaurants per capita in North America; San Francisco is number 1! What a pleasure! From the traditional "Tea at the Empress" to hole-in-the-wall places selling ethnic foods to The London Chef, whose establishment doubles as a cooking school and cafe, your taste buds are covered.

And there's Chinatown, the 2nd largest in North America apparently. Here old world meets new and unfortunately, in some cases new is winning. But the old stores are wonderful; colorful and unpretentious! We went into the local grocery store and were the only white faces there - but the food! Wow - what a wonderful assortment of weird and wonderful stuff!

All this, all within walking distance of the hotel. We barely scratched the surface of what's available and the City of Victoria definitely warrants several more trips from Granny Susu.

Tourism Victoria

Gin Tasting in Roche Harbor

Another fun jaunt! This one for an article for the summer issue of  Harbors Magazine. This time, I took the Kingston ferry over to Edmonds. The Kenmore Air Base on Lake Washington is just 15 or so minutes from there. I thought I was going directly to Roche Harbor on San Juan Island, but I was shuttled (by seaplane) to Lake Union. The short flight, about 10 minutes was very cool though and I had a young woman pilot! I was the only one on board, too but chose to not fly right seat as the windows in the back are bigger! Even though it was a misty day, the view was spectacular! At Lake Union I changed planes to the bigger Otter that seats 11 people. I flew right seat which is always a kick, especially taking off and landing!

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The flight is less than an hour and we came in from the west with the marina laid out below. OK - so this is where the money is! Roche Harbor Marina puts Newport Beach, California to shame. These boats are big and well maintained, and you can tell they are used as boats, not party platforms.

But I wasn't there to look at boats!

Hawk Pingree, one of the owners of the San Juan Island Distillery and Westcott Bay Cider picked me up outside the lovely old Roche Harbor Lime & Cement Works building that sits right on the dock. He was driving a cute little blue Mini with the license plate Distiller - so I couldn't miss him. Of course, I could have walked but it was a little drippy so appreciated the ride.

The next couple of hours was very educational and I learned a lot about cider making and distilling spirits! The ultimate goal behind the distillery is to produce Calvados, the lovely apple brandy popular in France. But that takes at least three years to mature, so Suzy and Hawk decided to produce something that takes a lot less time - gin! And what makes their gin so special is that they forage for the botanicals to make their gins. Things like rose hips, orris root, madrone bark and local juniper berries. They brew small batches in their Portuguese pot still and vary the ingredients, depending on the season. The also brew a wide range of othe spirits including Apple Eau de Vie, Blackberry Brandy and cocktails like Red Sky at Night, a popular one with the yachties, which is a clever blend of Spy Hop Gin, Lavender and Wild Rose Liqueur and Westcott Bay Cider Syrup.

Westcott Bay Cider bucks the flavoring trend and produces three wonderful ciders - Traditional Very Dry, Traditional Dry and Traditional Medium Sweet - all of which have clean, clear flavors.

Even though it was a gray day and at times, rather drizzly, there was a steady flow of visitors ready to taste test all the wares! And as I considered myself a visitor, I taste tested right along with them! And I was so impressed! I'm a gin lover so when we got to the gin tasting... well, I broke down and bought a bottle of Salish Juniper Spy Hop Gin! It's distilled using wild roses, blackberries, lavender and madrone bark with local tiny juniper berries. This is the most amazing gin - sip it neat - I cannot imagine diluting it or adding anything to it, the flavor is just so special.

Time ran out and Hawk took me back to the harbor and I watched my ride materialize over the water and gently land in the harbor among all the boat, then taxi to the dock. We loaded up and made the return flight back to Lake Union and then to the Kenmore base.

I was home by 8 pm, still light outside and well informed about cider brewing and gin distilling - and wondering how difficult it would be to set up a still in the garage! Hmmm... let's see... Sand Spit Gin, Bridgehaven Brew....

San Juan Island Distillery and Westcott Bay Cider 12 Anderson Lane, Roche Harbor 360 378-2606

Jazz at the Ajax

I love the Ajax Cafe in Port Hadlock. I've been going there since - well, way back when! Back when a man named Lonny owned it and was the chef. At that time, the place was cramped and dollar bills, women's undies and heaven knows what else was pinned to the ceiling with the restaurant's own cutlery! And the walls held a wild assortment of hats! As Lonny cooked, flames would flare in the kitchen which was open to the restaurant. Today's Ajax is a bit more refined - but not enough to lose its appeal. And the hats sill adorn the walls; from tricorns, to sunhats; from cowboy hats to garden party affairs. No chair matches any other and the menus still appear in LP covers dating back to when music came on large, black plastic disks.

So last night's visit was in honor of my friend Jim whose jazz band was playing. They are going to be playing there on Tuesday nights, from 6-8. Mardelle, Jim's wife and several of her friends, including me, sat at the groupie table! What fun! The restaurant was packed, some wearing silly hats, others just getting silly over drinks!

The menu focuses on local, with grassfed beeffrom Short's Family Farm, wild caught fish and the freshest, local veges from Red Dog Farms and poultry from Spring Rain Farms. I don't think I have ever had a bad meal there. And Ryan, who goes to some very high-end restaurants in Hollywood and LA, loves the place and the food. So high praise indeed!

Last night, I opted for the clam chowder, for the first time. And was blown away! This is not ordinary clam chowder - this is filled with real, whole clams in their shells, not a lot of potato and the most delicious, creamy broth. I think I just found my all-time favorite clam chowder.

Ajax Cafe - 21 Waters Street, Port Hadlock, Wa

(360) 385-3450

Open for Dinner Tuesday through Sunday, at 5pm. Closed Mondays

Seattle's Underground Tour

You must understand that the last two posts, on the Seattle Wheel and to Chihuly Glasshouse and Garden and this one all happened IN ONE DAY! What a sensory overload! But I loved every minute of it. This is something I have wanted to do but never got around to, since I moved up here to the Pacific Northwest 26 years ago. It's taken me this long to go Underground Seattle.  Years ago, when a group of us came over from Port Townsend to do up the town, we were at a jazz club in Pioneer Square and I saw a sign for Bill Spiedel's Underground Tour. That was when I learned that the current city of Seattle is built right on top of the original city!

But I learned more from the tour - that the original city fathers neglected to factor in the tides when building the original city, with major consequences. Some not too pleasant, like sewage backing up and exploding uphill in the houses on the bluffs; building being swamped on the incoming tides and the eventual rebuilding of the city after a disastrous fire wiped it out.

Walking through the dusty corridors, listening to our chipper tour guide, you can imagine what it must have been like. Of course, the rooms and old sidewalks are all reinforced and there is electric light down there, but looking up, the old purple-tinged glass lights or prisms are a reminder of times gone by.

Bill Speidel's Underground Tour

608 First Ave, in Seattle’s Pioneer Square, between Cherry Street and Yesler Way.

[206] 682 4646

Ticket Prices

$16.00 Adults (18-59 yrs) $13.00 Seniors (60+ yrs) $13.00 Students (13-17 yrs or w/valid college ID) $8.00 Children (7-12 yrs) Kids 6 and under are admitted free, but may find the 75-minute tour challenging

Eye Candy

That same weekend that Ryan was visiting, I was trying to keep pace with what he wanted to see and do. Our next stop in Seattle after the Great Wheel was the Chihuly Glass House and Garden. I had seen the Chihuly Bridge of Glass in Tacoma but hadn't even heard about the Glass House and Garden! Shows how isolated and out of touch I have been. This place should be on every person's bucket list. What an awe-inspiring, mind-blowing, spectacular place! The colors, the art, the the the the ....just everything! How beautiful!

And to be able to see it with my wonderful son was the icing on the cake.

This is a place that defies description. It is eye candy for the soulr. It is a place you have to experience. And although photos don't do it justice, I took a lot of pictures. Interior lighting was spectacular, illuminating the art so it stood out from an often black infinite space.  Impossible colors pop and even though there are numerous people around, I felt as if this was done just for me.

The gardens were a mind-blowing experience, and I can only wonder what it would have been like if the sun had been out! Complementary colors, shape against shape, impossible colors glowing among nature's own, natural flowers.

How could I have missed seeing this place? Now I know it's there and whenever a visitor comes to my house,  this is on the  list of must-sees.

I do have one suggestion, though. DO NOT take small children! There is just far too much priceless glass around for exuberant youngsters! Send them to Grandma's house and show them the pictures later! You will be so on edge and nervous, making sure they don't touch anything, that you won't be able to enjoy the beauty.

Chihuly Garden and Glass

305 Harrison St Seattle, WA 98109

HOURS

Sunday - Thursday	10am  –  9pm
Friday & Saturday	10am  –  10pm

Regular	Ages 13-64	$19
King County Special	Ages 13+	$15
Senior	Ages 65+	$17
Youth	Ages 4-12	$12
Child	3 and Under	Free