1859 Oregon's Magazine + Special Insert: Ski Northwest | November/December 2022 by Statehood Media

TRIP PLANNER: MCMINNVILLE PG. 92

Winter Cocktails

DIY: Wood-Fired Hot Tubs

A Festive Leavenworth Itinerary

PLAN YOUR

WINTER ESCAPE

COZY CABIN GETAWAYS

LUXURY BUNKING IN WINE COUNTRY

DESTINATION RESORTS

PLUS

SK I GUID E

TO N O RT T H E HWE ST

1859oregonmagazine.com $5.95 display until December 31, 2022

LIVE

THINK

EXPLORE

OREGON

November | December

volume 77

Discover yourself here.

Close to everything but away from it all, Discovery West is conveniently located in the heart of Bend’s west side. New custom homes are intermingled with nature, trails and bike paths—and close to schools, parks, shops and restaurants. Coming soon, a vibrant community plaza, specialty retail and even more amenities will continue to differentiate this unique neighborhood. Discover your best Central Oregon lifestyle by learning more at discoverywestbend.com or visiting our Discovery Pod at the corner of Skyline Ranch Road and Celilo Lane.

Unit Souzou performing as part of Deschutes Public Library’s “A Novel Idea” series. Funded in part by the Oregon Cultural Trust.

Want Oregon to invest more in arts and culture? You can make it happen. When you donate to any of Oregon’s 1,500+ cultural nonprofits, you become eligible to direct a greater portion of your state taxes to cultural activities around the state with Oregon’s Cultural Tax Credit. This doesn’t mean you pay more in taxes. It means you choose what your taxes fund. To receive your tax credit, give at CulturalTrust.org and claim it on your tax return. You will get 100% of your donation back* as a tax credit. To learn more, scan here, contact us, or consult your tax preparer. *Tax credit limit is $500 for individuals, $1,000 for couples or $2,500 for C-Class corporations.

Oregon Cultural Trust | (503) 986-0088 | CulturalTrust.org

LANE COUNTY

ITINERARIES FOR WINTER SOLACE Winter brings opportunity for destinations along the Oregon Coast, in Eugene and into the McKenzie River area, when the crowds substantially dissipate and snow wraps the mountain scenery in a handsome white blanket.

Indeed adventure awaits those who love these areas but not the bustle of the high season. During summer, Florence and the Oregon Dunes on the coast are typically teeming with visitors hiking, sandboarding and riding dune buggies over the 40–mile-long hills of sand. Winter on the coast can bring rain, but planning for the crisp, clear days for a hike along the dunes is a rare treat. Try the four-mile round trip Oregon Dunes Loop Trail with stunning views and the opportunity to make sandy excursions from the main trail. Likewise Florence can be a busy hub in the summer and fall as windsurfers and kiteboarders ply the nearby surf and beaches. Old Town Florence, however, has four-season charm, boutiques and restaurants that make it more desirable for those who avoid crowds. This town—known as Oregon’s Coastal Playground—is also known for its chowder. From the famous Mo’s, to Lovejoy’s Restaurant and the Waterfront Depot, Florence is a champion of chowder served in cozy settings for winter wanderers.

Eugene also makes a compelling case for exploration through holiday and winter itineraries. Saturday Market’s Holiday Market is the perfect place to find a unique holiday gift, or, better, find the self-gift only you could buy for yourself. Earrings, hand-stitched scarves and candles—all made by hand and local artisans—are just a few reasons to put this on your holiday shopping list. When you’re done with shopping for the day, take to the Eugene Ale Trail as a hoppy reward for your shopping fortitude. Stretching from Eugene’s Whiteaker neighborhood to downtown to the Westside Warehouse District, the ale trail features some of Oregon’s best brews. Craft brewers such as Falling Sky, Ninkasi and Claim 52 are just a few of the brewers that you’ll taste along the way. Wine is definitely on the itinerary in Eugene, too. Indeed the South Willamette Wine Trail brings some of the state’s best wine and food pairings to visitors. Further, personally connecting with winemakers and learning about their wine is much easier after the busy harvest months, which can last into November. The fantastic wines of Silvan Ridge, LaVelle, King Estate and Rainsong are just a few of the wineries

where you will swirl, sniff and sip along the way. Pair this with farmto-table restaurants along the South Willamette Valley Food Trail and your itinerary now includes world-class wine and food. After the chaos of the holidays, the body and mind truly demand solitude and beauty. Head east from Eugene into the Cascades and along the McKenzie River, where it runs beneath towering Ponderosa pines, alongside miles of trails, past Cascade lakes and waterfalls and adjacent to old-school resorts and lodges, where cell service is scarce. It’s here that you hear the babble of the river, feel the crunch of snow underfoot and find your post-holiday zen.

Plan your trip today at eugenecascadescoast.org

Experience Estacada Unexpected Small-Town Charm and the Holidays

Small-town Oregon is the best place to be for holiday traditions and leaving yourself open to the unexpected. Estacada is 30 miles southeast of Portland but feels 180 degrees different. With a population of 5,000, that was once home to Clackamas Indians who fished on the river that now bears its name, Estacada became a mill town whose fortune rose and fell with the railroad. Today the small town is a balance of arts and agriculture with a dash of recreation and a splash of craft beer. During the holiday season, you’ll stroll the classic downtown, past boutique clothing and gift shops, a gallery, a saloon, restaurants and local tap houses. The historical downtown brings charm, especially in early December, when the town comes out to City Hall for the annual tree-lighting ceremony, hot cocoa in hand. Known as the Christmas Tree Capitol of the World for its tree farms, Estacada goes big for its own holiday tree ceremony. The small but vibrant arts community comes together in December for the Winter Artisan Show. Artists come out of the woods and their studios to present paintings, photography, crafts and handcrafted musical instruments. Shopping locally and small, especially for the holidays, is what makes Oregon special. It’s easy to remain true to that ethic in Estacada. You’ll find the work of local artists at Spiral Gallery; clothing and handmade jewelry from Julie Cooper Designs at Lennox Jai Boutique; Bigfoot souvenirs and nature-themed gifts at Mossy Rock; vintage furniture, home décor and much more at Wade Creek Vintage Marketplace; and handmade body care items for women at Hillockburn Farm.

As with many small towns, murals tell the story of the area. In the case of Estacada, more than twenty murals are wonderfully conceived and executed images of the natural world, the earliest people, the settlers, its mill era, ﬁshing on the Clackamas, even a mural devoted to the arts in Estacada. There are murals and then there are murals. This is the latter. Find the walking tour online at artbackmurals.com. Mt. Hood Territory’s Tap Trail brings trail imbibers into Estacada for the excellent Stone Circle Cider, a traditional British cider brewed to crisp, dry perfection. The cool factor goes up on the second Friday of the month when Stone Circle Cider hosts Vinyl Night on its 36-acre farm just outside of Estacada. Not to be missed is local craft brewer Bent Shovel Brewing, located on a viewpoint overlooking Estacada. Creative beers such as Key Lime Pie Sour, Sonova Peach fruit beer, and coﬀee stouts are served to beer connoisseurs while area bands come in and belt it

CLOCKWISE FROM LEFT The holidays are a magical time in Estacada. Murals adorn many of the local buildings. Estacada is known for its tree farms. Visitors to Clackamas River Growlers are encouraged to order in American Sign Language.

out on the weekends. Bent Shovel Brewing also hosts a Second Saturday Popup Market, through which local artisans and farmers present their best to the public. The food scene is small but not without hidden gems and classics. Locally owned and operated food carts offer a variety of eats— logger-sized, made-to-order meals at Timber Town Grub and authentic Mexican street food from Pepe’s Tacos are local favorites. Harvest Market is a true venue for local foods from the surrounding agrarian areas. Cazadero is a steakhouse named for the town’s first dam. Here you’ll find hearty Hunting Lodge salads and tender steaks of all cuts. For breakfast, try Harmony Baking Company on Wade Street. Almost forty years of perfecting their trade, Harmony is known for its homemade croissant danish, bagels and maple bars. There’s also The Country Restaurant, home to killer omelettes such as the Polynesian (ham, cream cheese and pineapple) or the BOSC (bacon, onion and sour cream).

Over the course of your visit, perhaps you’ll encounter many unexpected things in this small town on the banks of the Clackamas River that may make you change your own holiday traditions.

VISIT ESTACADA FIELD GUIDE Both locals and visitors alike can pick up a free ﬁeld guide in town. This pocket-sized guide provides a history and overview of recreation, dining, arts and culture, craft beverages and shopping, and makes for a great keepsake. You might ﬁnd things you didn’t know, and discover something new!

TO EXPLORE MORE, VISIT: mthoodterritory.com/estacada

Andy Lytle partnered with Emily Schmiedel, lead beekeeper of Jacobsen Salt Co., to introduce six hives of Italian honeybees to his vineyard.

1859 OREGON’S MAGAZINE

NOVEMBER | DECEMBER 2022

Honey? I’m Home photography by Aubrie LeGault THE CENTER of the universe is pollinating honeybees. Honey is just a happy byproduct of their other work, keeping agriculture buzzing. (pg. 34)

NOVEMBER | DECEMBER 2022

1859 OREGON’S MAGAZINE 7

When the temperatures drop, warm up around a fire at Brasada Ranch.

FEATURES NOVEMBER | DECEMBER 2022 • volume 77

66 Winter Wanderlust in Oregon Eight winter getaways—from pampered on the coast to cozy on the Columbia and rustic and woodsy in the Cascades. written by Jean Chen Smith

Will the State of Oregon Do the Right Thing?

An Icon Up Close

Will Oregon mar our heritage on the Oregon Trail for a few bucks and … to send Oregon power to Idaho residents?

Brasada

74 written by Lee Lewis Husk

1859 OREGON’S MAGAZINE

NOVEMBER | DECEMBER 2022

Aquatic life teems on this iconic Oregon seastack. The Haystack Rock Awareness Program looks to educate its visitors. written by Kerry Newberry

seaside is for Rain means rainforests

We can’t make the rain go away. But we can invite you to come for a long weekend in Seaside where you can hike through ancient rainforest to some epic views of Tillamook Rock Lighthouse. Oh, and plan on some biking, kite flying, river kayaking, salt water taffy enjoying and arcade playing, too.

@visitseasideOR seasideOR.com

DEPARTMENTS NOVEMBER | DECEMBER 2022 • volume 77

LIVE

100

22 NOTEBOOK

New total sensory virtual reality storytelling; Diary of a Misfit; music from Jenner Fox and more.

30 FOOD + DRINK Leavenworth Chamber of Commerce

White Out Cider cocktail, Willamette Valley’s wine auction for worker healthcare, gourmet s’mores and small-batch chocolates.

34 FARM TO TABLE

Honeybee pollinators. A winery opens its doors to bees and craft honey. Recipes: A honey-sweetened cocktail and butternut squash ravioli with raw honey.

42 HOME + DESIGN

One beautiful home in Mosier blends visually into the Columbia Gorge. Plus DIY wood-fired hot tubs.

50 MIND + BODY

Emily Menges of the Portland Thorns.

52 ARTIST IN RESIDENCE

Jenay Elder finds a new palette after the Alameda fire.

THINK 56 STARTUP

Why Blake Turner’s Corvair could be the next big thing in CO2 reduction.

58 WHAT’S GOING UP Slabtown gets a facelift.

60 MY WORKSPACE

Baker City’s old Churchill School becomes a small-town art hub. Northwest Timber Tubs

62 GAME CHANGER

Tambi Lane

Portland’s Proud Ground finds home ownership opportunities for families earning less than the area median income.

EXPLORE 84 TRAVEL SPOTLIGHT

16 17 102 104

Editor’s Letter 1859 Online Map of Oregon Until Next Time

Leslie Gulch in Eastern Oregon is beauty in isolation.

86 ADVENTURE

Four winter cabins and two cold-weather cocktails for your next exploration.

90 LODGING

Luxury bunking in wine country.

92 TRIP PLANNER

McMinnville uncorked in the winter and why you should go.

100 NW DESTINATION

Leavenworth: Bavarian by day. Snow-globe charming by night.

COVER

photo by Louis Arevalo/TandemStock.com (see “Winter Wanderlust in Oregon,” pg. 66)

1859 OREGON’S MAGAZINE

NOVEMBER | DECEMBER 2022

A WINTRY GETAWAY

CONTRIBUTORS

KERRY NEWBERRY Writer An Icon Up Close

CATE ANDREWS Illustrator Game Changer

AUBRIE LEGAULT Photographer Farm to Table

JONI KABANA Writer My Workspace

“I’ve never seen so many sea stars clinging to rocks—purple, orange and pink—as I did one early morning when I walked around Haystack Rock during low tide. I also learned fun facts about green anemones, prehistoric chitons and other tide pool creatures thanks to my guide with the Haystack Rock Awareness Program. It was a reminder to me that no matter how much time you’ve spent in an area, there’s always something new to discover.” (pg. 78)

“I love stepping through the innocuous and illuminating portal of illustration to get a small glimpse into how much is outside of my awareness. It’s a delight to learn something new each project. The creating process, stepping through that door, is only aided by what’s surrounding me—the glittering ocean, thickly forested trails, the dreamiest sunsets. Ephemeral Pacific Northwest inspiration made accessible through a world of images.” (pg. 62)

Kerry Newberry is a freelance travel and lifestyle writer based in Portland. One of her favorite places to seek out stories is along Oregon’s rugged coast, where she’s reported on oyster farmers, tugboat tours and the Dungeness crab fishery.

Cate Andrews is an illustrator and designer by moonlight, working in the horticulture industry by daylight. She lives a little north of Oregon with her enormous kitty cat, Panna Cotta. You can find more of her work at www.cateandrewsmakes.com.

“Standing among thousands of buzzing bees as Emily and Andy pulled out wooden frames covered in honey was a thrilling moment in my photography career. I was able to capture intimate moments of the bees’ creation all while listening to Emily explain ‘bee space’—a purposeful structured hive where the combs are always spaced 3/8ths of an inch apart to keep the core around 9395 degrees, perfect for the queen and her eggs. Emily and Andy’s love for all things bees and honey was intoxicating, and this photo shoot was not only exciting (my ﬁrst time in a beekeeper suit!) but also educational.” (pg. 34)

“The first time I walked into the Churchill School in Baker City, I found co-owner Corrine Vegter high up on a ladder with a smile on her face. I had just purchased the old, vacant Spray mercantile building, and I was looking for inspiration before tackling restorations. Corrine and her husband, Brian Vegter, are extraordinary ‘can-do’ people. Need to tear into a cement wall? No problem. They redefine ‘figure it out via YouTube and a bit of community help.’ If you visit them, bring them chocolate, which they love. They deserve a treat.” (pg. 60)

12 1859 OREGON’S MAGAZINE

NOVEMBER | DECEMBER 2022

Aubrie LeGault is a freelance food and drink photographer. She lives in Portland with her husband and black lab.

When not working on programming and restorations of the Spray General Store, you can find Joni Kabana out on backroads digging up stories and visuals of small-town rural America or gazing at wilderness night skies for inspiration.

The components for a great romantic weekend are all here–mountain views, quiet serenity, time to reflect. If adventures are more your style, we’re the perfect jumping-off place for yearround outdoor activities: ski, hike, bike, ride, swim, soak...and then head to the Spa. Enjoy a glass of wine by the fire, while you take in the panoramic mountain views. Discover all the ways to love BBR. View packages at BlackButteRanch.com.

866-242-5532 BlackButteRanch.com

EDITOR

Kevin Max

CREATIVE DIRECTOR

Allison Bye

WEB MANAGER

Aaron Opsahl

SOCIAL MEDIA MANAGER

Joni Kabana

OFFICE MANAGER

Cindy Miskowiec

DIRECTOR OF SALES

Jenny Kamprath

HOMEGROWN CHEF

Thor Erickson

CONTRIBUTING WRITERS CONTRIBUTING PHOTOGRAPHERS CONTRIBUTING ARTISTS

Cathy Carroll, Jean Chen Smith, Melissa Dalton, Joni Kabana, Julie Lee, Lee Lewis Husk, Kerry Newberry, Daniel O’Neil, Ben Salmon, Jonathan Shipley, James Sinks, Jen Sotolongo Christopher Dibble, Tambi Lane, Aaron Lee, Aubrie LeGault, Brandon Nixon Cate Andrews

Mail

Headquarters

70 SW Century Dr. Suite 100-218 Bend, Oregon 97702

835 NW Bond St. Suite 200 Bend, Oregon 97703

www.1859magazine.com/subscribe @1859oregon

All rights reserved. No part of this publiCation may be reproduCed or transmitted in any form or by any means, eleCtroniCally or meChaniCally, inCluding photoCopy, reCording or any information storage and retrieval system, without the express written permission of Statehood Media. ArtiCles and photographs appearing in 1859 Oregon’s Magazine may not be reproduCed in whole or in part without the express written Consent of the publisher. 1859 Oregon’s Magazine and Statehood Media are not responsible for the return of unsoliCited materials. The views and opinions expressed in these artiCles are not neCessarily those of 1859 Oregon’s Magazine, Statehood Media or its employees, staff or management.

14 1859 OREGON’S MAGAZINE

NOVEMBER | DECEMBER 2022

FROM THE

EDITOR

AROUND THE holidays our minds return to a place they have strayed during the busy year—kindness and helping others along their journey. In this issue, we shine a light on a few examples of people and organizations coming together to help others. Portland-based Proud Ground is our Game Changer on page 62. This organization works assiduously to provide stability through homeownership to those who earn less than the area median income and would otherwise have no path to home ownership. Another organization convened around a problem—health care of workers in the wine industry. ¡Salud! raises money by auctioning off the best wines of the local industry to bring medical care to those who had a hand in creating those wines. A third act of generosity comes from an art gallery owner in Ashland, who continued to exhibit the work of Jenay Elder, a local artist who lost her home, studio and artwork in the devastating Alameda fire. Artist in Residence on page 52 tells the story of how Elder emerged from that experience as a newly inspired artist. We wouldn’t be doing our civic duty as Oregonians if we didn’t return to the tragedy in slow motion in Eastern Oregon. Idaho Power pushes forward in its plans to build power

16 1859 OREGON’S MAGAZINE

NOVEMBER | DECEMBER 2022

lines from the Columbia Gorge, over the Oregon Trail and into Idaho, where a community there, in Idaho, can plug in their TVs, while Oregonians pay the bigger price. The Oregon Energy Facility Siting Council approved Idaho Power’s plan. What now? Turn to page 78 to read and rage. At last the holidays are here and with them family travel. Our Adventure feature (pg. 86) takes you to four winter cabins of various states of rusticity but armed with two seasonal drink recipes for your sipping pleasure. Trip Planner on page 92 takes us into the heart of wine country in McMinnville. Once an obscure town known for its oddities such as an annual UFO festival, today McMinnville is the adorable warren known for really good wine and food far beyond small-town expectations. The UFO festival continues. If you can’t put recreation aside for the holidays, consider having both the outdoor adventure and snow-globe idyll of Leavenworth. In Northwest Destination (pg. 100), you can find and follow our steps in and around Leavenworth or do a theme and variation of your own. Happy holidays! If you’re a true Oregonian, you’ll send a holiday card to the Energy Facility Siting Council with your well wishes, energy. siting@oregon.gov.

1859 ONLINE More ways to connect with your favorite Oregon content www.1859oregonmagazine.com | #1859oregon | @1859oregon

HAVE A PHOTO THAT SHOWS OFF YOUR OREGON EXPERIENCE? Share it with us by filling out the Oregon Postcard form on our website. If chosen, you’ll be published here. www.1859oregon magazine.com/postcard photo by Bob Bryant Rime ice formations top the windswept summit of Black Crater in Central Oregon.

URE T N E ADV AIL M GIFT OREGON 1859 Oregon’s Magazine celebrates all things Oregon, from its incredible destinations and colorful personalities to its rich history and local food and drink. Gift a subscription to family and friends this holiday season, and share the state you love! www.1859oregon magazine.com/gift

NOVEMBER | DECEMBER 2022

SIGN UP FOR OUR NEWSLETTER More PNW, delivered to your inbox! Sign up for our Adventure Mail newsletter and get access to the latest Northwest getaways, giveaways, dining and more. www.1859oregonmagazine. com/live/subscribe-tooregon-adventure-mail 1859 OREGON’S MAGAZINE

Often, the ﬁrst thing that pops into mind for Central Oregon’s winter visitors is Mt. Bachelor. With 4,300 skiable acres, 101 runs, ﬁve terrain parks and 3,365 feet of vertical, Mt. Bachelor is indeed a good cornerstone around which to plan your adventure, but just one of many worthy winter pursuits in the area. Bend and Central Oregon are also the setting for countless outdoor opportunities, a spirited arts community and, inside of the city, a hub for craft breweries and a growing portal to Oregon’s best wines. In its evolved state, Central Oregon’s

winter itineraries now include a range of exciting culinary offerings and arts experiences to bookend your day on the slopes. Plan for a more well-rounded agenda this year that takes in all of these amenities. Families with varied interests in the winter outdoors will ﬁnd many ways to meet those interests in Central Oregon. One obvious resource stands 9,065 feet tall and offers more than just downhill skiing. Mt. Bachelor was founded and developed by old-time skier Bill Healy sixty-four years ago with a tow rope and a vision. Today,

ADVERTISEMENT the ski area has a tubing park, cross-country trails, snowshoeing and sled dog rides, not to mention bars and restaurants to keep up with your appetite. Kids will have a day hitting Marshmallow and Dilly Dally Alley from the Sunrise chair, then burgers and hot chocolate at Sunrise Lodge. More advanced skiers and riders will find glorious turns under the Outback chair, serving mostly blue and black runs. When conditions permit, the summit chair opens and takes skiers and snowboarders up to some of the resort’s best powder stashes. With its sweeping views of the Cascades and expansive terrain, Mt. Bachelor is a winning winter destination. Across the parking lot lie nearly 60 kilometers of pristine crosscountry skiing. Buy your trail pass and rent gear (if needed) at the log cabin Nordic Center, then fan out on the well-groomed Nordic trails that will challenge your stamina at every turn. Not to be missed is the Nordic Center brown rice and chicken burrito at the end of your day. If skiing is not your crew’s gig, try a guided snowshoe tour into the Cascades with Wanderlust Tours. There are moonlight and starlight outings, and snowshoe trips with local craft beers and bonfires. For the budding geologist, Wanderlust offers lava cave tours, during which you hike into the underground lava formations that make up the substrata of Central Oregon’s volcanic geology. If you have your own snowshoes and a sense of adventure, head to Upper Three Creeks Sno Park in Sisters for a secluded and idyllic snowshoe experience. For the ultimate snowshoeing prize, find a knowledgeable local friend, a thermos of hot chocolate and plenty of water and make a pre-dawn snowshoe summit of Tumalo Mountain for a memorable sunrise on the top of a volcanic peak. Back in Bend, the small town is bustling with activity along its boutique- and restaurant-laden downtown streets and just a short hop over to the Old Mill District along the banks of the Deschutes River. Beyond common themes of great retail

"Greetings from Redmond" Mural

shopping, downtown Bend and the Old Mill share a boom in tasting rooms for some of the Paciﬁc Northwest’s best wines. Five years ago, we wouldn’t be having this conversation. Wine is now abuzz in the home of craft beer. After a day outdoors, stop in for a glass of Oregon pinot noir or a Washington blend in the cozy tasting rooms of Bledsoe Family Wines, Stoller Wine Bar or Va Piano in the Old Mill. Downtown Bend has recently added Domaine Serene Wine Lounge to pair with Good Drop Wine Shoppe, where they are always pouring something good, and The Wine Shop, another low-key cellar with great bottles. The relatively new wine scene joins an already robust arts scene in Central Oregon. The Tower Theatre is the hub for headline musicians as well as live stage performance. In Sisters, The Belfry—a converted church from 1914—and Angeline’s Bakery both bring outsized musical acts to their small spaces. The burgeoning arts scene has lured many talented artists as well. One window to their work is through murals and public art. Two notable local artists—Karen Eland and Katie Daisy—created a series of “Greetings From” murals throughout Central Oregon that evoke vintage postcards and capture the character and history of the towns. You can view their work in Madras, Maupin, La Pine, Sisters, Bend, Sunriver, Redmond and the Redmond Municipal Airport. An expedition to these murals combines travel, history and art as a different way to experience the region. If you want to get back to Central Oregon’s roots, ﬁnd a cozy table for the family at one of the area’s legendary breweries—from Wild Ride Brewing’s new taproom in Prineville to Bend Brewing Company in Bend, and English-style beers on the cask at Porter Brewing Co. in Redmond.

Domaine Serene Wine Lounge, Bend

NOTEBOOK 22 FOOD + DRINK 30 FARM TO TABLE 34 HOME + DESIGN 42 MIND + BODY 50

pg. 32 1927 S’mores Company in Portland brings the campfire aesthetic to you but in more decadent bites.

Brady Bates Photography/1927 S’mores Company

ARTIST IN RESIDENCE 52

Season's Greetings from:

The

Southern Oregon Coast TRAVELCURRYCOAST.COM #southernoregoncoast

notebook

written by Cathy Carroll

Portland Art Museum

Tidbits + To-dos ur R yo DA k ar N m LE

Sibeiho Adding the flavors and textures of Singapore (with Chinese, Malay, Indian and Nonya culinary influences) to dishes at home may sound labor intensive. Sibeiho, a Singaporean food startup in Portland, makes it easy with their Sambal chili sauces: Boomz Sambal, OMG! Sambal and AF Chili Chunka Sambal. Co-founders Holly Ong and Pat Lau craft these bold, umami-packed family recipes in small batches with natural, local-wheneverpossible ingredients in their fledgling retail store and online shop. www.sibeiho.com

National Debut: Extended Reality Experience Ever wondered what it would be like to be a plant, frog, slug or orchid-butterfly hybrid? Don a soft robotic suit with body-manipulating sensors, virtual reality headsets with olfactory fixtures and nibble vegetarian snacks designed by master chefs—all five senses will let you experience “Symbiosis.” The U.S. debut of one of the first fully sensory extended reality (XR) storytelling experiences, from Dutch experience design collective Polymorf, happens at PAM CUT // Center for an Untold Tomorrow in Portland, Nov. 12 through Feb. 12. www.pamcut.org

CAmLark yo END ur AR Wine-Giving Season

Tas te N ewb erg

A range of Willamette Valley wineries and wine country businesses are offering wine-giving ideas and deals, and are donating to Willamette Cares Food Share, too. Harvest celebrations stretch from the Willamette Valley to the Applegate Wine Trail’s Uncorked on November 19, with special events, pairings and live music at a diversity of wineries. Exploring Newberg is easier with a new, free, mobile app for navigating restaurants, wineries, shops, activities, hotels and more.

1859 8 OREGON’S MAGAZINE

www.willamettewines.com/the-giving-season/giving-season-offers www.applegatevalley.wine/events Search for Taste Newberg in app stores for iOS or Android devices

NOVEMBER | DECEMBER 2022

notebook

Photos: Ground Up

Ground Up co-founders Carolyn Cesario (left) and Julie Sullivan.

Portland Pet Food Company

Ground Up Nut Butters Dear Peanut Butter, meet your cousin from Portland with so much more going on. Ground Up, handcrafted nut butters combine quality ingredients with creative flair, from: Toasted Macadamia Nut w/ Chia + Flaxseed and Chunky Almond, Cashew and Coconut Butter to Oregon Hazelnut Almond Butter. These healthy, delicious nut butters also #spreadgood, providing job training, confidence and skills to local womxn overcoming adversity need to get back on their feet. www.grounduppdx.com

Portland Pet Food Company was launched by veteran health communications consultant Katie McCarron, whose aging, finicky standard poodle, Rosie, no longer liked canned food and was losing weight. After McCarron began cooking Rosie’s meals with locally sourced, natural ingredients, Rosie regained the weight, and now the local product line (including cat food) is sold nationally. The shelf-stable meals in lightweight, earth-friendly pouches are perfect for camping and hiking with pets, too. For Thanksgiving, there’s even Turkey & Yams, with cranberries, apples and sea salt. www.portlandpetfoodcompany.com

Cheryl Juetten/Arborbrook

Arborbrook What do you get when you blend a 100-year-old barn in Newberg, the design talents of an acclaimed Portland interior designer and a local legacy grape-growing family? One of the Willamette Valley’s newest, most charming wine tasting rooms—including the intimate, converted horse stalls—Arborbrook by Cooper Mountain Vineyards. Cooper Mountain, which pioneered holistic, ecological, and ethical wine making in the Northwest, creates Arborbrook’s premium wines at their certified biodynamic winery, from pinot noirs to tocai friulano. www.arborbrookwines.com

NOVEMBER | DECEMBER 2022

1859 OREGON’S MAGAZINE

notebook Jenner Fox

Jenner Fox recorded his new album, Good Luck Road, in Sisters.

Musician

Town Folk Jenner Fox finds stories worth telling along Good Luck Road written by Ben Salmon

EVERYTHING YOU NEED to know about Jenner Fox’s new album, Good Luck Road, you can find in the first verse of “Jack Russell,” its opening track: Made my way to the little town To stay two weeks in a little house Down at the mouth of the river called Tongue Where it empties out from the mountain I came with eyes open wide And a box of words I couldn’t rhyme I hoped to leave with an open mind And a box of songs for the hard times OK, maybe not everything you need to know. But that’s a pretty good summary of the story behind Good Luck Road, a collection of ten songs Fox composed mostly during an artists’ residency in Dayton, Wyoming, a small town in the northern part of the state, tucked in between the Big Horn Mountains and the southern border of Montana. “The idea was to write songs about people in the town,” said Fox, who lived in Sisters until very recently. “I loved the journalistic aspect of it. I went and had dinner with some people and asked them who I should talk to and then I asked those folks who I should talk to, and pretty soon all these characters came out of the woodwork.” Those characters included the aforementioned Jack Russell, a mountain man and local legend whose voice can be heard in spoken-word bits on the album. It was his stories—plus stories 24

1859 OREGON’S MAGAZINE

NOVEMBER | DECEMBER 2022

from other Daytonians and Fox’s own experiences in the town— that fueled Good Luck Road, which features ten songs that range from minimalist folk to full-band folk rock. Fox recorded them in Sisters, where he and co-producer Keith Banning converted an airport hangar into a studio big enough to hold a band of six. That band included, among others, Central Oregon musicians Mark Karwan, Justin Veloso, Jeff Ingraham and Beth Wood, as well as Aaron Guest and Jeremy Elliott, two former members of the Bellingham, Washington, bluegrass band Polecat. Together, the group brought Fox’s songs to life in the middle of winter during the pandemic. “The first time the whole band got together was with the microphones on, and with masks on, too,” he said. “It was a beautiful experience in the snow and in the middle of everything being shut down.” It was also the culmination of a project that ultimately has given Fox more than just ten new songs and a town full of new Listen on Spotify friends, he said. “For me, this has really solidified the idea that it’s more important to be interested than interesting,” he said. “One of my favorite things about the songwriting process is that you have to be open and you have to really listen to people. And that’s a nice way to be in the world.”

717 SW 10th Ave Portland, OR 97205 503.223.4720 www.maloys.com

Into the blue For fine antique and custom jewelry, or for repair work, come visit us, or shop online at Maloys.com. We also buy.

Reasons to Visit OSF Before the End of ’22!

Make the most out of this holiday season by planning a trip to Oregon Shakespeare Festival! When you are fortunate enough to bear witness to Ashland, Oregon’s beauty every day, it is impossible not to share it with others, especially during the fall and winter months. There is no better way to cap off an afternoon of skiing down picturesque hills; an evening sampling delicious, local wines; or a night dining in nationally renowned restaurants than with a visit to Oregon Shakespeare Festival (OSF)! An artistic staple in our Southern Oregon community for more than eighty

It’s Christmas, Carol! hits the OSF stage this November through January 1. | photo by Jenny Graham

years, OSF is a permanent fixture on the “must-see” lists of visitors and locals alike! Here is where the world’s greatest contemporary artists innovate right alongside Shakespearean and classical works of the theatrical canon. Like the generations of art lovers who have grown up with us over the decades, we never get tired of a beautiful evening of live performance under the stars. This November, we’re thrilled to welcome It’s Christmas, Carol! — a hysterical, irreverent, musical adaptation of ADVERTISEMENT

Charles Dickens’ masterful tale — back to the OSF stage. This zany, song-skewered comedy was such a hit with 2021 audiences that we’re bringing it back for a second spectacular holiday. Come see it — or see it again!

It’s no secret that we could name hundreds of reasons for you, your family, and friends to round out 2022 at OSF, but here are 22 (see what we did there?) to get started!

Start planning your trip today www.osfashland.org 800.219.8161

Winter season is magic season in Ashland!

11. Behold the smiling faces of our friendly staff, all here to ensure you have the best time at the Fest. 12. Accidentally bump into a starry actor or director at our world-renowned venue. 13. Directly support the writers, performers, and designers in our community. 14. Laugh along to new jokes and new cast members in It’s Christmas, Carol! 15. Walk, hike, or jog along Ashland Creek, right in our backyard! 16. OSF abides by ADA ticketing rules and mobility — we want our art to be enjoyed by everyone! 17. Delve deeper into It’s Christmas, Carol! at one of our free, post-show discussions.

1. You can (literally!) give your loved ones the gift of uncontrollable laughter with a ticket to It’s Christmas, Carol! 2. Explore the history of our Elizabethan Theatre, the oldest in the nation. 3. Bathe in the beauty of an OSF winter. 4. Enjoy delicious fare in our theatres’ lobbies. 5. Cold outside? Our selection of local wine and coffee will warm you up!

6. OSF is appropriate fun for the whole family. 7. Dress how you feel best — whether that’s to impress, wrapped up in an old puffer, or in costume! 8. Discover what’s behind It’s Christmas, Carol! on a guided walking tour. 9. Stop by OSF’s gift shop and secure a unique holiday present. 10. Warm up after a day jam-packed with winter adventures! ADVERTISEMENT

18. Immerse your senses in The Complete Lavender Experience®, just steps away from OSF! 19. Pamper yourself before the show with a service from our neighbors at Waterfront Spa. 20. Directly impact the growth of Southern Oregon’s labor economy. 21. Take a romantic winter stroll along OSF’s gorgeous grounds. 22. It’s never too early to introduce the little ones in your life to the power of live theatre.

Amanda G. Allen

notebook

Bibliophile

Portland author Casey Parks’s articles have appeared in The New York Times Magazine, The New Yorker and many other publications.

Misfits, Revealed Diary of a Misfit blends memoir, mystery, investigative journalism interview by Cathy Carroll

CASEY PARKS came out as a lesbian in college in 2002, and in her Louisiana hometown, her mother shunned her, and her pastor asked God to kill her. But Parks’s grandmother, a stern conservative who grew up picking cotton, pulled her aside and revealed a secret: “I grew up across the street from a woman who lived as a man.” She implored Parks to find out what happened to him. In the acclaimed Diary of a Misfit, Parks, a reporter for The Washington Post who lives in Portland and spent a decade at The Oregonian, embarks on a ten-year journey to unravel the mystery of Roy Hudgins, the small-town country singer—and discovers more about herself in the process. 28

1859 OREGON’S MAGAZINE

NOVEMBER | DECEMBER 2022

How has writing this book influenced your life today? When I was young, I convinced myself that I was ‘tough.’ I thought if I didn’t think about the things that hurt me when I was young, then nothing could hurt me now. Writing my book forced me to confront the past in ways I really didn’t want to. I had to really sit with the idea that my home state had rejected me. I had to think about the ways my mother hurt me, even as she was trying her hardest to love me. At first, all that reckoning just felt painful, but with time, it has allowed me to return more openly to the good things from my past. I can go to Louisiana without a million walls up. I can remember the ways my mother danced through Walmart. All of this is a work in progress, but I think it has made me a more open person, someone who can love more easily. It ain’t easy to travel back, and I totally sympathize with anyone who would rather return than reckon, but for me, at least, it has led me toward a new, fuller way of healing. You’ve said that you think people write because they want to be understood and remembered. How is it true with this book? I have received two dozen emails from gay people in their 70s and 80s! That has probably been the most exciting part of the book’s release. Many of those people grew up without community. They didn’t have books that reflected their lives. They see themselves in Roy.

To me, journalism is at its best when it forms bridges between people. I usually like writing profiles best because readers can grow to feel attached to one person, and that attachment leads to a deeper understanding of policy issues or whatever else I’m covering. Journalism can also be a mirror, a way of showing lonely people that they are not, in fact, alone. Hopefully my book is doing a little of both. In returning home, did you view it differently? When I was a kid, I didn’t fully understand that there was a world outside of the South. I had never heard of Oregon, and as far as I knew, Montana was as good as the moon. Not seeing other places also meant that I couldn’t quite see my own place. Everything looked so much smaller when I finally returned. I could smell the air because I knew what air elsewhere smelled like. I could hear the way my aunts drag out the syllables in vowels. I noticed that the trees turn brown, in part, because the trees in Oregon stay green through the winter. Maybe it’s odd to say, but learning about Oregon allowed me to see Louisiana in a clearer way. It also gave me a foundation of safety that allowed me to dare a little deeper into my past. I could go to Louisiana, in part because I knew I could always come ‘home’ to Portland. That time in Louisiana taught me that people there do actually love and want to know me. I just have to let them.

Introducing Caramel Confections For A Sweet Holiday At Fine Oregon Retailers and Always Online at wildwoodchocolate.com

food + drink

Cocktail Card recipe courtesy of Timberline Lodge / GOVERNMENT CAMP

White Out Cider • • • • • • •

1½ ounces Timberline Vodka ¼ ounce Clear Creek Pear Brandy ¼ ounce St. Elizabeth Allspice Dram 6 ounces apple cider Whipped cream Ground nutmeg Cinnamon stick

Heat apple cider in a saucepan over medium-low heat. Once hot (do not boil), remove from heat and add Timberline Vodka, Clear Creek Pear Brandy and St. Elizabeth Allspice Dram. Stir, then pour into an 8 ounce mug. Top with whipped cream, dust with ground nutmeg and garnish with a cinnamon stick. Let it snow.

Timberline Lodge’s Whiteout Cider is perfect for waiting out the snowstorms on Mt. Hood and elsewhere with a coziness at heart.

1859 OREGON’S MAGAZINE

NOVEMBER | DECEMBER 2022

The First American Single Malt Distilled, aged and bottled in Hood River, Oregon at Clear Creek Distillery.

The annual ¡Salud! wine auction event in the Willamette Valley raises money for the healthcare of industry workers.

Gastronomy

¡Salud! The Oregon Pinot Noir Auction raises funds for health written by Kerry Newberry WINE TAKES on a deeper meaning every year at a signature event held in the Willamette Valley just after harvest. At ¡Salud! The Oregon Pinot Noir Auction, a passionate group of vintners and wine enthusiasts join together to raise funds that provide healthcare services to the state’s vineyard stewards and their families. For more than thirty years, the region’s vintners and physicians have partnered to address the barriers to healthcare for vineyard workers. Through funds raised from the wine auction, they are able to bring free services directly to vineyard worksites via a mobile medical unit along with a dedicated staff of bilingual, bicultural medical professionals. After a two-year hiatus, the leading wine auction is returning to in-person events. Held each November, the auction draws collectors from around the Northwest to bid on highly sought pinot noirs created by top Willamette Valley wineries exclusively for the cause. Over the course of two evenings, guests can bid on one-of-a-kind cases along with rare wine collections, unique culinary experiences and international getaways. The Big Board Auction & Pinot Party will be held on Friday, November 11, at The Allison Inn & Spa. Guests can mingle and taste barrel samples poured by the participating winemakers. The following night, there’s a Grand Dinner & Live Auction Gala at Domaine Serene’s Clubhouse. For tickets and ¡Salud! brings medical services more information on the program and particidirectly to workers in the vineyards. pating wineries visit www.saludauction.org. (photo: ¡Salud!) 32

1859 OREGON’S MAGAZINE

NOVEMBER | DECEMBER 2022

CRAVINGS:

DECADENT CHOCOLATE 1927 S’MORES COMPANY Cozy cabin vibes will easily warm up any winter night. But if you can’t escape for a weekend, just head to 1927 S’mores in downtown Portland. The lantern-lit space offers a festive way to gather with friends and swap tales at their “s’morefront.” Each batch is made to order and torch-fired to nostalgic perfection. In addition to the popular whiskey salted caramel version, the boutique offers seasonal flavors. The sweetly packaged kits are fun party favors and holiday gifts. 1126 SW ALDER ST. PORTLAND www.1927smores.com

ARROWHEAD CHOCOLATES There’s only one place in Oregon where you can eat locally made chocolate surrounded by the “Swiss Alps of the Northwest.” In Joseph’s charming downtown, the family-owned Arrowhead Chocolates serves up truffles with creative twists from hot chili to honey-lavender. Other standouts include a nibble blended with locally made Stein Whiskey and a truffle sprinkled with Douglas Fir spring tips. Come winter, you can’t beat a steamy mug of hot chocolate and their view of the majestic snowcapped Wallowa Mountains. 4 S. MAIN ST. JOSEPH www.arrowheadchocolates.com

BONS AMIS That moment when friends and family come to town and you wonder where you can take them for an only-in-Portland afternoon? This wine and chocolate tasting room is it. A collaboration between Willamette Valley’s Brooks Wine and Portland’s Woodblock Chocolate, you’ll find creative wine and chocolate pairings along with savory snacks like salt-brined cocoa beans and cocoa-dusted nuts. Beer fans can sub a seasonal pick from Wolves and People, an artisanal brewery set on a historic hazelnut farm in Newberg. 1715 NE 17TH AVE. PORTLAND www.brookswines.com/bons-amis

Photos, from top: Brady Bates Photography; Eugenie Frerichs/TravelOregon.com

Kathryn Elsesser Photography

food + drink

BEST PLACES FOR

FESTIVE GATHERINGS ABIGAIL HALL From the elegant hand-painted floral wallpaper to the glowing fireplace, this hidden bar tucked into a corner of the Woodlark Hotel hums with good cheer. It’s the perfect spot to get decked out and meet friends for their annual Holiday High Tea. Expect a tower of sweet and savory snacks from peppermint tea shortbread to a roasted beet and goat cheese sandwich. Sip from a selection of Smith Teamaker blends like Rose City Genmaicha or for a more spirited afternoon, opt for a creative tea-themed cocktail. 813 SW ALDER ST. PORTLAND www.abigailhallpdx.com

HIFI WINE BAR Located in the wine country town of McMinnville, this insider spot pairs a global wine list with an extensive vinyl collection. You’ll find live jazz nights and DJs spinning the classics on two turntables in the middle of the bar. A focused menu includes Dungeness crab toast, caviar and chips and puffy, cheesy gougères filled with Oregon bay shrimp. The vinous decor stars a chandelier made out of twisty old rootstock.

Photos, clockwise from left: Eva Kosmos Flores; Steve Freihon; Eva Kosmos Flores

food + drink

CLOCKWISE FROM LEFT Gregory Gourdet, of Everyone’s Table cookbook and Top Chef, opens Kann, a Haitian inspired restaurant. The clean and bright interior of the Portland restaurant. A peek at Kann’s griyo, twice-cooked pork.

Dining

Kann

written by Kerry Newberry

When the Durant family founded their olioteca in 2008, they adopted the Italian tradition of hosting an Olio Nuovo Festival, where millers invite the community to taste the freshly pressed olive oil. Their celebration includes an open-air olive oil tasting bar, mill tours, a marketplace with local food producers, cooking classes and guest food carts each weekend for the month of November. Plan ahead and make it a wine country weekend while staying at one of their two lodging options surrounded by hillside vineyards and olive orchards.

IN HIS James Beard Award-winning cookbook, Everyone’s Table, Gregory Gourdet wrote: “For me, food has always been about connection—the stews in my mom’s pot, the spices ferried to Queens by my aunts and cousins, the first grilled fish I ate on a Haitian beach all brought me closer to the place I’m from but didn’t really know.” Lucky for Oregon, food enthusiasts can now explore these bright and vivid flavors at one of the nation’s few Haitian-inspired dining destinations, also Portland’s most coveted reservation in town. A four-year dream in the making, the chef, who catapulted to national fame on Bravo’s Top Chef, opened his first solo restaurant this August. A first-generation Haitian-American, Gourdet named the restaurant Kann (“cane” in Haitian Creole) as an ode to his childhood memories of sugar cane vendors carting wheelbarrows stacked with the sweet stalks in Haiti. On the menu, expect a celebration of Haitian dishes made with Pacific Northwest ingredients from crispy taro root fritters to griyo (twice-cooked pork) served with fried green plantains and pikliz (a spicy pickled slaw). Other standouts that take advantage of the eight-foot wood-burning hearth in the kitchen include perfectly tender coffee-rubbed smoked beef ribs served with charred green beans and whole grilled fish packed with tangy layers of citrus, herbs and chilies. The chef ’s reverence for place carries through the dessert offerings from a grilled pineapple upside down cake to charred banana tarts served with guava-habanero ice cream.

5510 NE BREYMAN ORCHARDS ROAD DAYTON www.durantoregon.com

548 SE ASH ST. PORTLAND www.kannrestaurant.com

711 NE 3RD ST. MCMINNVILLE www.hifiwinebar.com

DURANT AT RED RIDGE FARMS

NOVEMBER | DECEMBER 2022

1859 OREGON’S MAGAZINE

farm to table

“I’ve been fascinated with bees for a long time. There’s a higher purpose for bees. Untouched by human hands, they create one of the most amazing products that doesn’t spoil.” — Andy Lytle, co-founder of Lytle-Barnett and owner of Aubaine Wine, Windfall Vineyards and AtTheJoy

1859 OREGON’S MAGAZINE

NOVEMBER | DECEMBER 2022

farm to table

Farm to Table

The Buzz About Bees Our future depends on these friendly little pollinators written by Julie Lee photography by Aubrie LeGault THE FUTURE of our food depends, quite literally, on honeybees. Honeybees pollinate $15 billion worth of crops each year, and roughly one-third of food we consume in this country depends on honeybees and other pollinators. Managed honeybees are critical to American agriculture because they pollinate a wide variety of crops, contributing to food diversity, conservation and viability. Andy Lytle has always known this about honeybees. Once a vice president for Jackson Family Wines, now owner of Aubaine Wine, Windfall Vineyards and AtTheJoy, a luxury retreat nestled in the heart of Willamette Valley, and co-founder of Lytle-Barnett, Lytle grew up in a family distribution business with an ardent eye on sustainability and knowing that what we eat and drink in the future is all intricately connected to honeybees. In 2019, Lytle partnered with Emily Schmiedel, lead beekeeper of Jacobsen Salt Co., to introduce six hives of Italian honeybees to his vineyard. It was the best kind of self-fulfilled prophecy; twenty years before he started beekeeping on his farm, Lytle inked an ornate arm tattoo with God, his wife and his kids’ names in a grape leaf entwined Yin Yang circle, and in the center of it all? The honeybee. “Here’s what’s weird,” said Lytle, “I’ve always had an affinity for honeybees. I’ve been fascinated with bees for a long time. There’s a higher purpose for bees. Untouched by human hands, they create one of the most amazing products that doesn’t spoil.” Honeybees have a strong association with the heart chakra, also known as Anahata, which translates to unstuck, and they have been both symbol and source of spiritual practices and traditions around the world for thousands of years. When Schmiedel recommended Lytle label his honey as he does his wines, Anahata Honey was born. The bonus for Lytle of beekeeping is that honeybees create and sustain a healthy soil and environment for his vineyard. “As the vineyard starts to mature,” said Lytle, “if you are a live certified vineyard, you must have other organic ways that create an ecosystem that sustains itself. The one species that creates this is AT LEFT Andy Lytle passes a wooden frame filled with honeycomb to Emily Schmiedel, lead beekeeper with Jacobsen Salt Co. The two teamed up and built beehives to aid in a sustainable ecosystem.

NOVEMBER | DECEMBER 2022

1859 OREGON’S MAGAZINE 35

farm to table

bees; they are natural pollinators. All agriculture is pollinated by bees; good bugs eat bad bugs, and bees create the environment for the good bugs. It’s an extra step. It’s a lot of work. It would be so much easier to go and spray. But by doing that, we shorten the lifespan of the vineyard and the quality of the wine.” It’s also risky business in a lot of ways. The number of managed honeybees has decreased, rather than increased, in the past half century. Since 2006, about 30 percent of beehives have collapsed each winter due to an array of issues including disease, parasites, poor nutrition, and exposure to pesticide. The honeybees on Lytle’s property were recommended by Schmiedel. “Our honeybees do well in Willamette Valley,” said Lytle, “They are non-aggressive and won’t sting you. I’ve never been stung.” Honeybees are also captivating. “When the worker bee flies out, they are on a path. The worker bee goes into the hive and does a dance. That dance tells the bee where to go to pollinate. The bees take off and go to the source. They are on a beeline to the source. The only way they will sting is if you are in the way.” This is the second harvest year for Anahata honey. The extracting process all happens in one day and the honey goes

into five-gallon buckets, with the frames getting spun to get the honey off. Lytle and his team harvest roughly 60 percent of the honey, leaving 40 percent for the bees as their food source. There is indeed meaning behind the expression “queen bee”— Lytle has one queen and 600,000 to 800,000 Italian honeybees in ten hives. “Just move the queen, and they all follow,” said Lytle. Lytle harvests and sometimes jars honey with his team, which includes his daughter, Avery, and he sees this all as a full circle, like the tattoo on his arm. “Here is a cool interesting fact,” said Lytle. “Our family business originated and still is in timber, started by my great grandfather. Today I’m back to the land putting vines in the ground, just like my father planted fir in the ground. If you take care of the land, it will take care of you. That is why we have honeybees making this land healthy for generations to come.” Anahata honey is sold in Lytle’s tasting rooms and through his wine club as well as at Zupan’s in Portland and Lake Oswego. Chef, butcher, forager and fellow farmer Karl Holl spins Anahata honey into culinary gold with his take on butternut squash ravioli, and Robbie Wilson, head bartender at Amaterra, shares his recipe for his popular None of Your Beeswax cocktail.

ABOVE Emily Schmiedel likes to include a few beehives that are natural combs. For these, wooden frames are not supplied for the bees to build their honeycomb; instead the bees will create a natural honeycomb with the same spacing as wooden frames. AT RIGHT, CLOCKWISE FROM TOP LEFT Andy Lytle and his team harvest roughly 60 percent of the honey, leaving 40 percent for the bees as their food source. Lytle uses a knife to scrape off the first layer of the honeycomb, trying to leave as much of the honey as possible; after the layer is scraped off, the frame is placed into a honey extractor. Schmiedel spins the honey extractor while Lytle prepares the frames. Golden honey pours out of a honey extractor spout into a bucket.

36 1859 OREGON’S MAGAZINE

NOVEMBER | DECEMBER 2022

farm to table

Butternut Squash Ravioli with Anahata Raw Honey, Sage Brown Butter and Hazelnuts AtTheJoy and the Anahata Vineyard / SALEM Karl Holl, Portland Chef and Forager SERVES 4 FOR THE PASTA DOUGH • 3 cups pasta flour • 3 whole eggs • 3 egg yolks • 13 tablespoons olive oil • 2 tablespoons water • 1 pinch salt

Oregon Recipes

Honey Season None of Your Beeswax

Amaterra / PORTLAND Robbie Wilson, Head Bartender SERVES 1 • 1 ounce Balvenieus 14-year-old Caribbean cask scotch • 1 ounce Martini Ambrato Vermouth • ½ ounce Allspice dram • ⅛ ounce Banyuls grape vinegar • ⅛ ounce Semillon verjus • 1 ounce Oregon Bees Wax Vacuum seal the whole cocktail in a bag and sous vide at 160 degrees for 3 hours. Strain and add ⅓ by weight of mineral water to mix. Serve over a large cube of ice and garnish with a twist of orange.

Robbie Wilson’s None of Your Beeswax is a popular cocktail at Amaterra. (photo: Amaterra)

1859 OREGON’S MAGAZINE

FOR THE RAVIOLI FILLING • 1 butternut squash • 4 Amaretti cookies (optional) • 2 ounces brown butter • 4 ounces ricotta • 1 tablespoon Anahata Raw Honey • 2 sprinkles nutmeg • 2 ounces grated parmesan • Salt and pepper to taste TO FINISH DISH • 32 butternut squash raviolis • 4 ounces butter • ¼ cup hazelnuts, roughly chopped • 6 sage leaves • 1 tablespoon Anahata Raw Honey • Parmesan for shaving TOOLS NEEDED • Pasta machine • Ravioli stamps (circular/fluted cookie cutters) • Small brush for egg wash FOR THE PASTA DOUGH Weigh and put all dry ingredients into a bowl. Add to your tabletop mixer bowl. Weigh all wet ingredients together in a cup. On low speed in a mixer slowly incorporate wet into dry, let mix until dough comes together. Remove dough and knead by hand on a hard work surface for 1-2 minutes. Let dough rest for a minimum of one hour before rolling out. FOR THE RAVIOLI FILLING Preheat oven to 350. Roast squash for 30 minutes until fork tender. Once roasted, scrape the meat of the squash into a food processor. Add

NOVEMBER | DECEMBER 2022

remainder of ingredients to the food processor with the squash and pulse until well mixed. Scrape sides of the food processor and pulse again. Adjust seasoning, if necessary, and scoop filling into a piping bag. Set aside while making pasta. TO MAKE THE RAVIOLI Makes 32 Raviolis Prepare egg wash by cracking egg into a small vessel and lightly whisk. Set up your pasta machine by clamping it to a table, countertop, or sturdy cutting board. Set the dial to its widest setting, normally corresponding to the highest setting (most likely 7). Cut dough into (4) equal slices. Feed the flattened sheet of pasta through the machine. Fold the sheet and repeat at least 3 times to work the dough. Move onto the next setting, no longer folding the sheet and repeat this process making your way from the thickest setting to the thinnest. If need be, dust the sheet of dough with flour to prevent it from sticking to the machine. Once ready, lay your pasta on a clean surface dusted with flour. Lightly press your stamp of choice onto the pasta so you have a rough guide of where to put the filling. Then brush sheet lightly with egg wash. Add your filling to a piping bag and a dot (1 heaping tablespoon) in the middle of each ravioli mark. Next, place a second sheet of pasta directly over the first and use your fingers to cup around the filling. Press lightly as you go to seal the pasta together and get rid of any air. Finally, use your stamp of choice to cut out each ravioli. Line up punched ravioli on a lightly floured sheet pan. TO FINISH DISH In salted boiling water, cook pasta for 3-4 minutes. While pasta is cooking, in a sauté pan add butter and melt on medium-high heat until butter starts to brown and has a nutty smell, roughly 30 seconds. Once butter has browned, add chopped hazelnuts and sage leaves to the pan. Remove pasta from boiling water and add directly into the pan over the butter mixture. Remove the pan from heat, drizzle honey and toss all contents to fully coat the pasta. Divide pasta equally in the vessels of choice, finish by grating parmesan over each dish.

farm to table

Karl Holl

Karl Holl creates an Anahata Honey-inspired Butternut Squash Ravioli.

NOVEMBER | DECEMBER 2022

1859 OREGON’S MAGAZINE

farm to table

Homegrown Chef

Pickled Beets

written by Thor Erickson | photography by Tambi Lane

PREPARE THE BEETS • About 2 pounds of yellow or red beets

Beet Poetry

“LOOK, I HAVE mud gloves!” I shouted to my older sister Heidi as we dug in the wet sandy-loam soil in the backyard of my grandparent’s house in San Francisco. It was a foggy late fall morning, and we were digging for potatoes and beets with my Norwegian grandfather. The rich, earthy aroma of the beets was intoxicating as we pulled them one by one out of the ground and shook off the dirt. “Do we have to eat these now?” Heidi questioned. “We get to eat them.” Grandpa replied as he washed the root vegetables and our dirty hands and arms with the garden hose. Grandpa boiled the beets and then the potatoes. While still warm, he carefully sliced them and placed them on a plate where on top he sprinkled salt, pepper, vinegar, and finished off with a large pat of butter that slowly melted. Grandpa made a small plate for me and Heidi. “We’re not going to like it!” Heidi proclaimed. The fog lifted and the sun came out as I took my fist bite. My 5-year-old palate was delighted with the sweet, perfume like, iron-rich flavor of the beets. “Beets are my favorite!” I declared with a smile (and a crimson stain) on my face. And they have been ever since. In the 1970s, canned beets were easier to find than fresh beets in grocery stores. As time went by, that started to change as more restaurant chefs began incorporating beets into their menus. Roasted beets with balsamic vinegar, beet salad with goat cheese and beet horseradish soup were a few of many delicious preparations. Beets soon became staples at farmers’ markets and, later, grocery stores. When it comes to beets, my favorite preparation remains simple—cooked and pickled. Beets prepared in this way preserve all the sun, soil and aroma they had when freshly pulled from the dirt. Mud gloves sold separately.

When it comes to beets, my favorite preparation remains simple—cooked and pickled. Beets prepared in this way preserve all the sun, soil and aroma they had when freshly pulled from the dirt. 40 1859 OREGON’S MAGAZINE

NOVEMBER | DECEMBER 2022

YIELDS APPROXIMATELY 1 QUART

Note: Smaller beets are preferred, as bigger beets tend toward woodiness, though they’re better than no beets at all. Par cook the beets by placing them in a large saucepan and covering them with cold water. Bring to a simmer/light boil over medium heat. Cook beets until a paring knife can easily be inserted (about 20-30 minutes). Remove beets and drain the liquid, replacing it with cold tap water to stop the cooking. After they’ve cooled, slice the beets into ¼ inch slices. TO PICKLE • 1 cup cold water • ½ white wine vinegar • 6 tablespoons organic cane sugar • 2¼ teaspoons kosher salt • Par-boiled yellow or red beets cut into ¼ inch slices Combine the water, vinegar, sugar and salt in a saucepan. Place the pan on a stove over medium heat. Cook and stir until the sugar and salt dissolves. Pack the prepared sliced beets into a one-quart Mason jar. Pour the hot brine over the beets, cover with lid and refrigerate. Allow the beets to sit undisturbed in the fridge for 3 to 4 days at a minimum, or a week for optimum flavor. These pickled beets will keep for at least a month. Note: If you have both yellow and red beets, pickle them in separate batches to highlight their flavors and colors. Enjoy these beets as part of salad, as an accompaniment on a charcuterie plate, or by themselves.

farm to table

Pickled beets from beet poet and Home Grown Chef Thor Erickson.

NOVEMBER | DECEMBER 2022

1859 OREGON’S MAGAZINE 41

home + design

Natural fibers and warm colors follow the aesthetic of the Columbia Gorge below this Mosier home.

42 1859 OREGON’S MAGAZINE

NOVEMBER | DECEMBER 2022

home + design

Views abound at this home in Mosier.

Natural Beauty A house in Mosier captures everything special about the Columbia River Gorge written by Melissa Dalton photography by Christopher Dibble RICHARD BROWN is no stranger to working on esteemed sites. Consider the architect’s deft addition to a 1949 Pietro Belluschi house in Oak Grove—Belluschi being perhaps Oregon’s most famous modern architect and known worldwide. But when the owners of 10 acres near Mosier in the Columbia River Gorge reached out, it wasn’t an existing house that struck awe in Brown. It was the land. “My first thought was, ‘This is a rare opportunity for us to work with a really beautiful site,’” said Brown. “I felt a great responsibility to be respectful, in order to take advantage of as many aspects of it as we can.” The Columbia River Gorge is indeed dramatic: a canyon 80 miles long and 4,000 feet deep in spots, cut by the Columbia River and marking where Oregon and Washington meet at their north-south border. Picture a meandering riverscape, bordered by steep tree-covered cliffs, dotted with waterfalls big and small, the amble of the Cascade Mountain Range in the distance. As the largest National Scenic Area in the country, there’s a vista at every turn. This site in Mosier partakes of the natural wonder, perched high enough to have panoramic views looking down into the Gorge, as well as out at Mount Hood and Mount Adams. The primary challenge for Brown and the team at the Portlandbased Telford + Brown Studio Architecture was to site a new home that captured those views without impinging on the neighbors’ as well. “But the challenges that you have to build with are also the opportunities,” said architect and principal, Hope Telford. NOVEMBER | DECEMBER 2022

1859 OREGON’S MAGAZINE 43

home + design

ABOVE, FROM LEFT The light-toned wood of the interior is in contrast to the exterior. The kitchen nook with floating benches and sweeping views makes for intriguing meals.

The architects joined local contractor John Bloomster Construction to tuck the new home into its slope. From higher up, its rooflines seem to duck below the vista, and a charcoal standing seam metal roof and inky-colored siding, being wood that’s been heat-treated to its dark hue, let it remain unobtrusive. “The exterior colors play really well with a lot of the colors in the landscape,” said Telford. (Such siding also has notable fire-resistance, said the architects, which is important when it comes to range fires.) The team divided the plan into three gabled sections—including a two-story segment with the main living areas and bedrooms, a one-story guest suite, and garage—connected by a flat-roofed hallway. A concrete wall anchors the home into the hillside, with the wall running from the driveway into the house, through the length of the building along the spine of the hall, and into the open living areas. 44 1859 OREGON’S MAGAZINE

NOVEMBER | DECEMBER 2022

“We wanted to express that act of digging into the hillside by exposing the concrete wall, so you can understand how the building is holding back the hillside and how it’s burrowed in,” said Brown. “We wanted it to feel elemental and a bit rugged.” In contrast, the interior is decked in a medley of fine-grained woods, like white-washed hemlock and fir, their airy tones playing against the dark exterior and the concrete’s board-formed texture. In the guest suite, tongue-and-groove hemlock covers the walls and pitched ceiling, while the main living space has paneling, exposed rafters, and custom-built cabinetry. “We wanted a sense that this building was put together by humans,” said Brown. The pinnacle is the eating nook off the kitchen—the center of family life, said the owners—wrapped in wood with floating benches and a table that seems to hover on a single spindle leg. “The craftsmanship in that particular area is just extraordinary,” said Telford.

home + design

Keeping so many of the details streamlined and consistent, down to the same cabinet hardware from the kitchen to the principal closet, allows the owners’ more off-beat decisions to surprise. Things like a salvaged organ screen from a 1920s-era church bought years ago, which the owners asked the architects to incorporate into the finished design however they saw fit. “That was the only directive we got from them about interior finishes,” said Brown. The contractor sanded the finish to get the color just right, and installed it around the staircase, where it defines the space while also letting light and shadows pass through. Other delightful picks include vintage European light fixtures rewired for modern use, and playful tile colors, including a pink variety from Portland’s Pratt + Larson in the principal suite. As far as views go, the firm did not disappoint. There are dynamic panoramas glimpsed from just about everywhere: from the main bedroom, at the soaking tub, across from the living room couch, and ensconced in the dining nook. “Except for the garage and the guest bathroom, all the rooms have a view,” said Brown. Those large picture windows are balanced with smaller splices of glass that frame and isolate aspects of the setting, almost like they’re offering up a hillside or a distant mountain peak for contemplation. The owners chose Mosier as an alternative to urban life in Portland, and the drive there feels like a retreat, winding through hills flecked with grapevines and fruit trees, past meadows with grazing horses. “By the time you’re in the living room, you already feel comfortable,” said Telford. “You feel like you’ve shed a lot of your burdens.” There’s not much in the way of other cars, but there is a pond with a rare variety of frog that occasionally holds up traffic when the amphibians decide to cross the road. “You don’t get that going to Fred Meyer,” said Brown.

ABOVE A 1920s-era salvage organ screen serves as a space definer and architectural point of interest on the staircase. AT RIGHT, FROM TOP The airy living area is heated by an efficient wood-burning stove. Vistas of the Gorge from the bath are the crowning achievement of the home.

NOVEMBER | DECEMBER 2022

1859 OREGON’S MAGAZINE 45

home + design

DIY: Wood-Fired Hot Tubs A FEW years ago, Chris Martini’s friends asked for help with a project. They had bought property at the base of Mount Hood and wanted to build a hot tub there. The only catch? The tub needed to be completely off-grid and fueled by a wood-fired stove. Having extensive experience as a carpenter, and most recently managing production for a teardrop trailer company for five years, Martini thought the project sounded like a fun design challenge. “They sent me pictures of some fairly crude designs from the internet that they had found. Real simple stuff of an old tub with a copper coil set-up on the outside,” said Martini. “But the issue with that set-up is that it takes forever to heat up.” Martini got to designing and building, not only the tub, but the platform beneath it, the stove insert, and a retractable roof that can be cranked open to see the stars, or closed to protect sitters from snow and rain. His friends were thrilled with the result. “After doing that, I thought, ‘This would be something fun to do for people,’” said Martini. In 2020, Martini created Northwest Timber Tubs. For it, he builds his 58 Box Tub design, a 400-gallon volume, all cedar tub with a custom steel stove and firewood storage, which can fit up to four people for a soak. “A lot of people like the charm and the process of building a fire and running the tub that way,” said Martini. He gave us the basics for installing a wood-fired tub in your backyard: PICK A SPOT First, always check local code requirements before starting any project like this. The tub needs to be located in a flat and level area, with fifteen feet of clearance for the chimney. If placing the tub on a deck, make sure it can handle the weight with water. If clearing a spot on the ground, Martini likes to lay down river rock, as it’s nicer on bare feet than sharp gravel.

look, like Martini did for the Mount Hood project.

BUILD THE TUB Martini builds his tubs out of cedar, using overlapping joints to avoid leakage, with stainless steel fasteners inside so there’s no rust. If your carpentry skills are limited, consider using a six-foot-wide stock tank tub and wrap it in wood for a finished

FINISH AND SOAK Apply a water-based sealant on the exterior wood, and nothing on the inside, so as to avoid the finish peeling off in the water. Once the fire gets going, use a paddle for dispersing the heat through the water. Sit back, listen to the fire crackle, and soak.

46 1859 OREGON’S MAGAZINE

NOVEMBER | DECEMBER 2022

Photos: Northwest Timber Tubs

FENCE THE STOVE Martini designs and builds his own efficient stoves for his installations. There are also manufactured stoves available, like the Snorkel stove from Seattle. Just make sure the stove will be cordoned off from the rest of the tub by a fence – no one wants to accidentally graze hot metal while in relax mode.

home + design

CLOCKWISE FROM LEFT Chris Martini’s first wood-burning hot tub on Mount Hood. Fencing off the stove to avert unintended bodily contact. Martini uses overlapping cedar for a watertight and weather-resistant product, as in his 58 Box Tub design.

NOVEMBER | DECEMBER 2022

1859 OREGON’S MAGAZINE 47

home + design

The Modern Look of the Mosier House

In 1948, the Museum of Modern Art joined retailers to sponsor a contest called the International Competition for Low-Cost Furniture Design. California designers Charles and Ray Eames entered the prototype for the Molded Plastic Side Chair, which has been in production since 1950. These days, the chair’s shell is made with recyclable plastic or postindustrial recycled plastic, and available in three different bases.

Portland-based designer Matthew Philip Williams is known for products that are both playful and sculptural. Case in point: the Low Table, available at Woonwinkel. Measuring a little over a foot wide and 8 inches high, in solid maple with a pink or blue water-based lacquer, it adds a small-scale pop to any room. www.woonwinkelhome.com

The owners of the Mosier House found vintage European sconces and pendants to meet their lighting needs. If you want an old-school aesthetic without having to look far, try the Alto pendant from Cedar & Moss, available to hang by cord or rod in a variety of lengths, in finishes like matte black or heirloom brass. www.cedarandmoss.com

As the largest manufacturer of Yakisugi—that’s wood cladding that’s been heat-treated and is commonly called shou sugi ban in the U.S.—Nakamoto Forestry is based in Japan, and has a stocking warehouse and prefinish shop in Portland. Their Gendai finish, used on the Mosier House, is rugged and refined. The top layer of soot was removed to allow the wood grain to be visible. www.nakamotoforestry.com

1859 OREGON’S MAGAZINE

NOVEMBER | DECEMBER 2022

Photos, clockwise from top left: Woonwinkel, Cedar & Moss, Herman Miller, Nakamoto Forestry

www.dwr.com

mind + body Emily Menges shares a laugh during Portland Thorns training at Providence Park.

On the Ball The Portland Thorns’ Emily Menges makes her soccer dreams a reality IF YOU PUT a soccer ball in front of a 4-year-old, you don’t know that the ball might change the entire trajectory of that kid’s life. When Emily Menges was 4 years old, her parents, in Garden City, New York, put a soccer ball in front of her for her first soccer game. She played as one might imagine a 4-year-old to play soccer. Some twenty-plus years later she’s a professional soccer player who plays as a defender for the National Women’s Soccer League’s Portland Thorns FC. She’s won, as a member of the Thorns, the 2016 and 2021 NWSL Shield and also the 2017 NWSL Championship. She’s one of the league’s leaders in total minutes played and total games played. She’s a veteran and she’s good. 50

1859 OREGON’S MAGAZINE

NOVEMBER | DECEMBER 2022

Fletcher Wold/Portland Thorns

written by Jonathan Shipley

mind + body

Emily Menges

Craig Mitchelldyer/Portland Thorns

Portland Thorns Defender Age: 29 Born: Garden City, New York Residence: Portland

WORKOUT

Emily Menges (5) plays in a game against the Kansas City Current at Portland’s Providence Park in April.

Don’t tell her that, though. “I have major imposter syndrome,” she said. “I still haven’t gotten to the point where I think I’m all that good.” Her career begs to differ. “I know I belong on the team, but I am very critical of myself.” She thinks that’s a reason that she’s successful as a player. “I’m nervous that if I lose that feeling that I’ll begin to settle. That would be terrible for my career.” In her youth, she played for the Albertson Fury ’91, winning three consecutive Eastern New York Youth Soccer Association State Open Cups. She then attended Georgetown University where she became one of the most decorated players in their women’s soccer program’s history. She earned the Big East Defensive Player of the Year and NSCAA First Team All-American honors. She was a three-time All-Big East Selection, and a MAC Hermann Trophy semifinalist twice. She’s good. She played for the Long Island Fury, winning the national championship

in 2009. The Portland Thorns drafted her with the twenty-fifth overall pick in the third round of the 2014 NWSL College Draft. “My favorite thing about playing is the day-to-day, playing soccer outside while everyone else is stuck inside. Hanging out with my teammates. It helps when it’s sunny, but even when it rains it’s better than being in an office.” For Thorns fans who get to leave the office and watch Menges and the Thorns play, that’s a benefit, too. “I love our supporters,” she said. “They are not here because it’s the new cool thing to do. They come to games because it is akin to a religious experience for a lot of them.” Menges is happy that a soccer game can be a place where they can stand for something bigger than themselves. “They have a voice, a platform and a community.” Perhaps, before Menges takes to the field again, a Thorns fan will place a soccer ball in front of a 4-year-old. There’s no telling what future it may bring.

“My favorite thing about playing is the day-to-day, playing soccer outside while everyone else is stuck inside. Hanging out with my teammates. It helps when it’s sunny, but even when it rains it’s better than being in an office.”

“This is tough for a professional athlete to answer. We train more on a weekly schedule building up to a game. Generally, Monday will be off. Tuesday would be a light training and some physical range of motion stuff, band work, just things to get us activated properly for the next day, maybe a lift. Wednesday is our hard day where our load is highest. This is the day we run the most and cover more distance. Thursday we drop back down and do more of a recovery day. Friday we ramp up again to get us ready for the game. And then a game on Saturday.”

NUTRITION “I’m not the kind of person who needs a ton of variation in my diet. I have a smoothie every morning for breakfast. We’re given lunch at soccer, so I’ll eat that after training. For dinner, I put a bed of spinach or arugula in a big bowl, add some kind of carb, generally rice, whatever veggies I have and some type of protein. Very simple but somehow it never gets old. However, I have a sweet tooth. I eat dessert every night, generally chocolate of some sort or cookie butter from Trader Joe’s on a spoon.”

INSPIRATIONS “The older I get, the thing that inspires me most is trying to get better in every aspect of my life every day. I used to look for outside inspiration but now I try to celebrate the little wins in my life and go to bed a better person than when I woke up that morning.”

— Emily Menges, Portland Thorns defender

NOVEMBER | DECEMBER 2022

1859 OREGON’S MAGAZINE 51

artist in residence

Plein-Air Rising After a difficult 2020, Oregon’s Jenay Elder paints herself a revival written by Daniel O’Neil

AS A PLEIN-AIR painter, Jenay Elder knows the elements well. She has painted earth, air and water for the past seventeen years, mostly in southwestern Oregon, where she lives. Fire, though, has shaped her art by more uninvited means. Elder connected with nature as a young girl growing up in Spokane, Redding and Anchorage. Her parents allowed her to venture off alone, into the fields and forest, as far as her bike could take her. Such exposure helped cultivate her respect for the natural world.

On her own residency program in Hawaii, artist Jenay Elder rebuilt her art career from the ashes of the Alameda fire.

1859 OREGON’S MAGAZINE

NOVEMBER | DECEMBER 2022

After high school, Elder realized she needed to focus on a career pursuit, so she chose oil painting, which led her to the now-closed Ashland Academy of Art in 2006. For four years she studied portraiture and still life in a studio rather than a university classroom. Inevitably, Elder also took her paints into the open country, where she felt at home. “Plein-air painting makes me feel closer to nature,” Elder said. “When you’re painting outside, you observe things that you wouldn’t necessarily observe. You’re looking at something for a really long period of time, so you watch the light change, watch animals come and go, see the colors change.” Oregon offers plenty for Elder to contemplate—mountains, beaches, small towns—while also demanding flexibility from her as an artist. “It’s really hard to contend with rain, and now the prime time to paint, summer, we’re getting smoked out every year,” she said. In 2020, new challenges confronted Elder. As a result of the pandemic, her portraiture classes she taught were canceled, so too the Ashland gallery that represented her work. Then came the Alameda fire, one of the most destructive in Oregon’s recorded history. With little warning Elder, her husband and three children lost their home in Talent, just north of Ashland. Along with the house, Elder’s studio burned. The toll included at least 150 paintings, her academic works and a collection of sculpture casts she used for teaching. “I lost the cues of where I’m at, where I’m going. It was confusing, more than anything,” Elder said. “All of it can be replaced, except the art.” The local community quickly supported Elder’s family and the others affected by the fire. Elder took comfort in knowing that her best paintings, which people had bought over the previous years, survived across the country. But this left her with no art to show. Kathy Morawiec, owner of Art & Soul Ashland gallery, recognized the dilemma. “Artists put a lot of pressure on themselves to always create, and most artists have a large body of work to fall back on,” Morawiec said. “Jenay lost all that in the fire.” As Elder and her family waited to move into their rebuilt home, Morawiec kept Elder’s work on the walls at Art & Soul Ashland, allowing the artist time to refocus. “I think that freed her emotionally,” Morawiec said. Following the pandemic and fire, Elder said she has had to step back a bit. “I’m not starting over, not just picking up where I was,” she said. “I’m setting my intentions carefully now.” In need of something fresh and inspiring, Elder heard from family friends who had recently moved to Hawaii. They knew of an off-grid rental house on the Big Island. Elder had been applying for an artist residency at Hawai’i Volcanoes National Park without luck, so she decided to create her own. With her husband and children, Elder spent the month of July this year in Hawaii. Using her most saturated blues, teals and greens, Elder painted a half dozen tropical views before returning home to Oregon’s smoky summer skies. As an artist and a person, Elder found what she needed. “She came home with fresh landscapes and a still life that shows she was in a good place mentally and artistically,” Morawiec said.

Jazzy Photography

artist in residence

AT TOP Jenay Elder had to take chances and start over after the devastating Alameda fire destroyed her home and studio. She created her own residency in Hawaii and began to use new colors and paint in the plein-air tradition that brings out a new artist with a clean and colorful palette. BELOW, CLOCKWISE FROM LEFT Elder’s pieces Ocean View, Gunkel Farm at Noon and Mt. Nebo’s Reflection.

Rather than dwell on the destruction and setbacks of 2020, Elder embraces the aloha spirit. “We live in a crazy world, and I want to make things that uplift people,” she said. “I want to get back into teaching because people need art. Young people need it, they need to feel paint in their hands, not just on a tablet.” At present, Elder is working with others to organize pastel classes for people in the Medford-Ashland area. Her Hawaiian paintings, hanging at Art & Soul Ashland, represent her revival. The new year will usher her back into her home and studio. Only Elder’s instinct knows what lies ahead for her. “There was a moment when I knew that everything I painted after the fire had to be different,” Elder said. “What that looks like, I can’t really say. But it is different, because I’m not the same person. Everything I had to say before was what I had to say then, so I know everything’s going to be different now.” NOVEMBER | DECEMBER 2022

1859 OREGON’S MAGAZINE 53

STARTUP 56 WHAT’S GOING UP 58 MY WORKSPACE 60

pg. 58 A look at Slabtown’s changing landscape.

Saltwood

GAME CHANGER 62

startup

Turner Automotive

Turner Automotive team members (from left, Mel Turner, Blake Turner and Sean Krivonogoff) stand with the prototype car.

Driving to a Better Future Startup Turner Automotive is a breath of fresh air for combustion classic cars written by Jonathan Shipley THERE’S A sweet-looking mint green 1963 Chevrolet Corvair driving down the street. It’s in great condition. It’s polished and the interior is immaculate. It gleams in the Portland sun. Blake Turner, a 25-year-old program assistant at Portland State Center for Entrepreneurship, is behind the wheel. He rolls down his window and waves at you. You watch as it approaches and see that there’s no exhaust coming out of the back of it. If you knew anything about vintage cars, you might know that the Corvair was six cylinder and had about an eleven-gallon gas tank. So, there should be exhaust, fumes, something coming out the back of this fine looking automobile. But, no, it’s running on hydrogen and Turner, president of the startup Turner Automotive, thinks it is the smartest way to curb climate change as we drive into the future. “Climate change is the biggest issue we face and it must be addressed,” Turner said. “I try to live my life to be as carbon-neutral as possible.” That means taking his beloved Corvair and turning it into a hydrogen-run prototype. Hydrogen fuel cells are cleaner and more efficient that traditional combustion-based engines. This means a great reduction in greenhouse gas emissions. “I decided on hydrogen after learning about combustion in more detail in my chemistry class at Rogue Community College,” he said. “I decided to research hydrogen combustion further and, after doing some math, I found that it had potential!” This technology could be a potent weapon in the battle to save the planet. Your existing car can be converted with one of Turner Automotive’s kits. The kit can convert an existing gasoline engine to burn 56

1859 OREGON’S MAGAZINE

NOVEMBER | DECEMBER 2022

hydrogen instead. Though still in the prototype stage, he estimates the kits to cost around $4,000. “There is some cutting-edge technology in the hydrogen space when combined with scaling our production that could cut that cost in half a few years down the road,” he noted. The road to his company started when he was a little kid playing with Hot Wheels. He grew up in Medford, and his family would go to the annual Medford Cruise Classic Car Show. It inspired him. His family valued not only classic cars, but the ability to fix things, cars included. “When something broke, we didn’t buy a new one, we fixed it.” By extension, Turner is eager to help fix the environment. Turner Automotive started as a concept in 2017, but really got started in earnest in 2018 in the Invent Oregon prototyping competition that he entered. In two years, before the pandemic stalled the burgeoning enterprise, he raised $10,000 in funding. With Covid becoming more and more in our collective rear view, he said, “We are picking up where we left off.” In the coming year, he’s hoping to finish their first market-viable prototype. “Because of our focus on scalability, our kit must be very versatile so we can have a one-size-fits-all solution.” After that, they will launch a beta program where they’ll supply free kits and weekly hydrogen fuel-ups to volunteers to get real-world testing. Soon after, they’ll begin marketing to car enthusiasts. Then, perhaps, look into fleet conversions. “It is much more economical, and sustainable,” Turner observed, “to convert a fleet of a hundred delivery trucks than to throw them all away and buy new electric ones!” The average cost of an electric car is $35,000. Knowing that price point is out of reach for many, Turner is eager to make anyone’s car better for the environment and better for one’s checkbook. One day soon, Turner hopes, there will be more than just his hydrogen-fueled Corvair driving down Portland’s sun-dappled streets. He’ll wave out the driver’s side window at his neighbors, the ones next to him at the stoplight. They, in their Kia Souls and Dodge Chargers, Honda Fits and Jeep Wranglers–hydrogen propelling them all forward.

PREMIER BANKING AT YOUR SERVICE Premier Service Center

NOW OPEN!

2597 Cedar Hills Blvd. Suite 110, Beaverton LEARN MORE: NWCU.com/premier

EXHIBIT OPEN NOVEMBER 19, 2022 – JUNE 25, 2023

Photographs from America’s Only Touring Black Rodeo by gabriela hasbun

WITH SUPPORT FROM

highdesertmuseum.org

What’s Going Up

Building Up in Slabtown Housing is the new industry in the historically industrial area of Portland

The Saltwood Building is one example of how Slabtown is incorporating residential living into an otherwise industrial area.

written by Jonathan Shipley SLABTOWN, HISTORICALLY, was an industrial area of Northwest Portland. That’s all but history with the neighborhood having undergone significant redevelopment over the past handful of years. It’s now a neighborhood with shopping, local retailers, coffee shops, breweries, restaurants, boutiques, and with residents eager to make the most of the walkable neighborhood. People and businesses are putting down roots on the slabs as these recent buildings attest to: SALTWOOD BUILDING Saltwood is a new mixed-use residential development with two, six-story buildings and 354 units. Prometheus Real Estate Group developed the property in collaboration with Cairn Pacific. Designed by SERA Architects, R&H Construction and Bremik Construction were the general contractors. The building features luxury apartments, courtyard, rooftop desk, gather spaces, underground parking, a space center, and more. SLABTOWN SQUARE The seven-story Slabtown Square will feature 200 studio, one- and two-bedroom units. Community amenities will include a fitness center, yoga studio, clubhouse with kitchen and lounge, rooftop deck and 230 bicycle parking stalls. The building will also feature nearly 12,000 feet of groundfloor retail space.

Saltwood

FAIRMOUNT APARTMENTS Little remains of the 1905 Lewis and Clark Centennial Exposition that was held in Portland. One building that remains, the former Hotel Fairmont, has been extensively restored and renovated. The two-story Colonial Revival-style wood building now has eighty modern units, from studios to two-bedrooms.

1859 OREGON’S MAGAZINE

NOVEMBER | DECEMBER 2022

The power tool for curious minds.

Full Spectrum News | opb.org 1859_slogans-2020.indd 2

7/28/20 9:08 AM

my workspace

Brian and Corrine Vegter are never at a loss for cultivating ideas at the old Churchill School in Baker City. From conceiving unique art projects to stimulating highly successful community-building activities to clever fixes of pesky restoration problems, their combined can-do attitudes are nothing short of energetic combustion.

A creative couple found the perfect conversion and artistic license written by Joni Kabana 60

1859 OREGON’S MAGAZINE

NOVEMBER | DECEMBER 2022

Brian Vegter

School Time

Patrick Farrell

my workspace

When the couple heard that the old Churchill School had been bought at auction in 2007, they immediately sent the buyers many suggestions based upon a previous elementary school-turned-art-studio they had visited in Hamden, New York, in the early 2000s. For years, they longed to live and work in a unique space, so after watching the school sit idle for a while, they called the owners to see if they were willing to sell and in 2018 became owners of the dilapidated school.

Corinna Stadler

Today, the old school consists of art studios, livable rental space and a gym turned performance center. On any given day, they are hosts to family movie nights, musical shows that welcome toddler dancing (no babysitter needed for date night!) and an assortment of art-making. The crazier the suggestion, the more peaked is their interest.

Brian Vegter

Art, music, recreation bike hostel, AirBnB and historic preservation are the top activities that Churchill School is known for, according to Vegter and his wife. Once you step inside this renovated old school, visitors quickly see that not only does this couple manage all of this, they do it well and with creative flair.

Restoring a large old building is not without issues, some of them quite substantial. Brian advises anyone interested in doing something similar to start slow. “Things can always grow, and you don’t need to rush it,” he said. “Be open to possibilities and don’t be disappointed when something doesn’t work out the way you planned. Find people who believe in what you are doing who can be community cheerleaders and look to create things that don’t exist and build from there.”

MORE ONLINE

For more information and a list of events, see www.churchillbaker.com

NOVEMBER | DECEMBER 2022

1859 OREGON’S MAGAZINE

game changer

Game Changer

The American Dream Support As real estate prices surge, Proud Ground works with low-income families to keep houses permanently affordable written by James Sinks | illustrations by Cate Andrews

ONCE, TO Christin Carter, the dream of home ownership seemed unreachable. Her own place, she believed, would improve the trajectory of her own future, and also the long-term wellbeing for her two autistic sons. But after growing up in poverty and hopscotching among rentals for her entire life, Carter lacked money and the slightest idea how to even begin. She didn’t understand credit. Houses were so expensive. Her wages weren’t enough. Then she was connected to Portland-based Proud Ground. The nonprofit offered mentoring, financial literacy education, a spot on a waiting list, and hope. In 2011, she was able to close on a threebedroom home in east Multnomah County—and without having to come up with a mammoth down payment—thanks to Proud Ground’s innovative land trust partnership approach.

62 1859 OREGON’S MAGAZINE

NOVEMBER | DECEMBER 2022

The Pacific Northwest’s Treasured Outpost for Romantic Getaways Unwinding across 3,300 forested acres, just moments from Bend, Oregon, Sunriver Resort is a cherished mountain escape for couples to rekindle romance or simply get away and play. Set off on a wilderness adventure amidst the breathtaking foothills of the Cascade Range. Savor local flavors with an inspired meal at Lodge Kitchen. Revive your body and spirits at Sage Springs Spa, and celebrate time together in a special place within easy reach yet feels a world away.

Discover our specials on guest suites, vacation rentals, spa packages and more at SunriverResort.com/Offers

game changer

“They made it feel possible. I think that without an organization like Proud Ground, I strongly believe I wouldn’t have been able to do it. It changed so much for myself, and my children.” — Christin Carter “They made it feel possible,” Carter said. “I think that without homes. It’s on track to do a similar number this year. Government an organization like Proud Ground, I strongly believe I wouldn’t grants provide about $75,000 per house, and private fundraising have been able to do it. It changed so much for myself, fills the gap—which is widening as home prices climb, MORE ONLINE and my children.” she said. To learn more about Home ownership is a linchpin to both family sta“For every family we are able to match with a home Proud Ground, to donate bility and community health, but that only happens ownership opportunity, employment improves, or to inquire about the waiting list, visit when people—and particularly those who’ve had the health improves, educational attainment improves, www.proudground.org economic deck stacked against them—can actually and engagement in the community improves,” Linn buy, said Diane Linn, a one-time Multnomah County commis- said. “Many of them have stability for the first time. They are resioner who’s led Proud Ground for more than eight years. leased from the stress of renting, they can plant gardens, have The nonprofit, which was created in 1999 and has a full-time pets, and even paint their house whatever color they want. It’s a staff of nine, has helped narrow the affordability gap for hundreds game changer.” of first-time home buyer families in the Portland metro area, Lincoln County on the coast and, soon, in Southern Oregon. And more than that, Proud Ground also ensures that those houses will remain in reach financially for the next buyer, and the next. “We create opportunities for working families to purchase homes they can afford, and then we hold them permanently affordable,” Linn said. As part of the contract to buy a house with Proud Ground’s assistance, buyers receive financial assistance on the front end including the down payment—and they agree legally in the deed that Proud Ground has a stake in the land itself. Under the Community Land Trust model, the house belongs to the buyers, for as long as they or their families stay. Yet if they opt to sell for whatever reason, the house can’t be resold on the open market. Rather, through a shared equity agreement, the seller receives all the money they’ve paid toward the principal plus 25 percent of the house’s appreciation in value—which can be substantial— and then the property becomes available to another lower income family on the waiting list, which has hundreds of people, Linn said. Proud Ground is the Pacific Northwest’s largest land trust, with 420 houses in the portfolio. Buyers who are able to acquire houses with the help of Proud Ground typically earn between 60 and 80 percent of median household income. And since 2021, three of every four families come from communities of color—a guideline that was established after considering the stark disparity in home ownership rates based on race and ethnicity. For instance, white people own their residences 65 percent of the time in Oregon, while black people own them 35 percent of the time, Linn said. Last year, the nonprofit cobbled together enough funding from donors and public sources to help 44 home buyers get into 64

1859 OREGON’S MAGAZINE

NOVEMBER | DECEMBER 2022

Your Magical Winter Getaway I N AS H L AN D AWAI T S .

Experience European style charm of our picturesque town. Go ice skating in Lithia Park, skiing on Mount Ashland, wine tasting, watch a play, and more. Stay in comfort and choose from our unique hotels located in the center of it all. From historic landmark ambiance in downtown, mineral soaking tubs, cozy fire places in our specialty suites, Wine Garden, organic spas, and farmto-table restaurants, we have something for everyone.

Stop by the Silverton Christmas Market while staying at Oregon Garden Resort during the holidays. (photo: Oregon Garden Resort)

66 1859 OREGON’S MAGAZINE

NOVEMBER | DECEMBER 2022

Winter Wanderlust IN OREGON

Eight getaways, from rustic cabins to luxurious rooms above the tossing Pacific Ocean and along the tumultuous Columbia

written by Jean Chen Smith

Cold weather is no reason to stay home and wait out the days until spring! Falling temperatures offer a wide range of outdoor activities and dramatic scenery in our state. What better way to spend some of the holidays than exploring eight of our favorite resorts as you take in the wonders of winter.

NOVEMBER | DECEMBER 2022

1859 OREGON’S MAGAZINE

PACIFIC CITY

Headlands Coastal Lodge & Spa Nestled in idyllic Pacific City, right alongside Cape Kiwanda State Natural Area, Headlands opened in 2018, situated on a cliff offering spectacular Pacific Ocean views from all rooms. For larger families or family reunions, book a luxury Oceanfront Cottage that has a fully equipped gourmet kitchen that can also be stocked with groceries upon request. The cottages also have an oceanfront patio or

balcony along with indoor soaking tubs. Winter adventures abound at the resort, with on-site adventure coaches who are available to help customize experiences for all types of travelers. From summiting the Great Dune at Cape Kiwanda, searching for agates, which wash up on the shore to indulging in a spa treatment at the hotel’s Tidepools Spa & Wellness, there is something for everyone. Weather

permitting, book a bonfire on the beach, where hotel staff sets up the scene for you, and guests need only show up to roast s’mores and enjoy the scenery as the sun sets. The resort is a two-hour drive from Portland International Airport. Meridian, the on-site restaurant and bar serves up creative Northwestern cuisine with delicious dishes highlighting seafood and produce from local coastal farms.

DON’T MISS: Book the Culinary Adventure Experience which includes a three-night stay, featuring a unique and interactive culinary adventure. Available through December 2022.

68 1859 OREGON’S MAGAZINE

NOVEMBER | DECEMBER 2022

AT LEFT Headlands Lodge is in the ideal location for checking in and checking out. (photos: Headlands Coastal Lodge & Spa)

◦ AT RIGHT Cannery Pier in Astoria overlooks the mighty Columbia, where it meets the sea. (photos, clockwise from top: Cannery Pier Hotel & Spa, Cannery Pier Hotel & Spa, Joni Kabana/ TravelOregon. com)

ASTORIA

Cannery Pier Hotel & Spa Recently renovated, Cannery Pier Hotel is an intimate boutique hotel sitting 600 feet into the Columbia River and overlooking the iconic AstoriaMegler Bridge. Every room has a view and balcony gazing out to the magnificent working river. Cuddle up on the window seat with the provided Pendleton blanket, a good book and some hot chocolate. Binoculars are also in rooms so guests can watch Astoria’s winter storms and ships passing at the mouth of the Columbia. Or soak in the clawfoot tub after a walk along the Astoria Riverwalk, which stretches for approximately 6 miles and showcases

museums, restaurants and breweries along the way. A 1913-era trolley, which is open from March to December, runs along the Riverwalk and provides a historical overview of the area. For history buffs, step back in time and check out the Astoria Underground Tour, an underground walking expedition which runs underneath streets and through tunnels where visitors can gain a unique insight into old Astoria. This is a self-guided tour which takes about forty-five minutes to an hour and at the end, a guide will be available to answer any questions.

DON’T MISS: The hotel provides a sumptuous sunrise breakfast from 7 a.m. to 10 a.m. and is included in the room rate. A social and wine hour is from 5 p.m. to 6 p.m.

NOVEMBER | DECEMBER 2022

1859 OREGON’S MAGAZINE 69

LA GRANDE

The Lodge at Hot Lake Springs

CANNON BEACH

Stephanie Inn Splurge this season on the Stephanie Inn, an oceanfront hotel situated right on the north coast with premier rooms, indulgent spa treatments and delicious food. After a brisk stroll on the very walkable Cannon Beach with views of picturesque Haystack Rock, settle in next to the fireplace and warm up. The retreat’s restaurant offers a prix fixe menu of elevated Pacific Northwest cuisine with two seatings per night. The menu changes daily, so guests are in for a pleasant gastronomic surprise of the freshest ingredients the area has to offer. Prior to dinner, enjoy the hotel’s nightly Northwest Wine & Beer Gathering, which includes a selection of Northwest wine and beer poured daily from 4 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. Additionally, the boutique hotel offers its Good Nightcap beverage, from 9 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. in the library.

AT LEFT The food at Stephanie Inn takes all of the guess work away with wonderful cuisine and a prix fixe menu. (photos: Columbia Hospitality)

◦ AT RIGHT Hot Lake Springs near La Grande are a sight for sore eyes and body. Even better to visit in winter, when there are fewer people and more relaxation. (photos, clockwise from top: Bill Purcell/ The Lodge at Hot Lake Springs, The Lodge at Hot Lake Springs, The Lodge at Hot Lake Springs)

DON’T MISS: The Inn’s complimentary gourmet chef’s breakfast is out of this world and can be enjoyed in the dining room or delivered to your room.

70 1859 OREGON’S MAGAZINE

NOVEMBER | DECEMBER 2022

Rooted in history, the lodge was built in 1906 to offer visitors a wellness destination centered around the mineral hot springs. Historically known to have been used by Native Americans, the springs are believed to provide therapeutic benefits. The lake, originally named Ea-Kesh-Pa by the Nez Perce, eventually became popular with weary travelers along the Oregon Trail. Rooms have been restored to include modern amenities that include soaking tubs and air conditioning.

About two million gallons of mineral-rich hot springs water emerges from the earth daily into five soaking pools for guests to relax and rejuvenate. The property has a pub and movie theater for convenience and entertainment. The Thermal Pub & Eatery is now open seven days a week from 2 p.m. to 9:30 p.m., but there are plans to open additional pubs throughout the resort. The resort also offers dayuse hot springs soaking for $20 per person.

DON’T MISS: The Hot Lake Cocoa Bliss at Thermal Pub and Eatery is a decadent hot chocolate, which is perfect on a cold winter day!

POWELL BUTTE

Brasada Ranch

ABOVE, FROM TOP The Brasada spa is the ultimate retreat and at a time when you need it most. Brasada’s fire pits are at their finest when the sun sets on chilly winter evenings. (photos: Brasada)

Just thirty-five minutes from Bend and approximately forty-five minutes from Sisters, the Brasada Ranch sits on 2,000 scenic acres that offer enough seclusion but are close to everything. Known for its championship golf course, the ranch is an excellent destination for families and friends getting together for the holidays. The main building houses spacious guest rooms and suites while the property also offers fully equipped two-, threeand four-bedroom cabins, which provide privacy and all the comforts of home while on vacation. Holidays at the resort are in full swing with tree lightings, celebratory dining offerings, and festive carriage rides for the entire family. With Mt.

Bachelor a short drive away, skiing, snowshoeing and sledding are also options for the outdoor enthusiast. Want a warm, home-cooked meal but want to skip the prep and have all items delivered to your cabin? The Ranch Platters offer chef-prepared entrees and side dishes ready for easy baking or grilling. From burgers and chicken to salmon and pasta, there is an assortment to choose from. End an active day with nourishment to comfort the soul.

DON’T MISS: An added perk is the on-site athletic center, which offers state-of-the-art fitness equipment, heated pools and outdoor spas. Fitness classes such as yoga and Pilates are also available for guests. Round up the gang, snuggle up near the outdoor fire pit and roast some s’mores for the ultimate sweet end to the day.

On the outskirts of Bend, Brasada feels remote but close enough for day-time forays into the city. (photo: Brasada)

NOVEMBER | DECEMBER 2022

1859 OREGON’S MAGAZINE

SILVERTON

Oregon Garden Resort

Less than an hour from Portland, Oregon Garden Resort sits on 80 acres of The Oregon Garden and is ripe with opportunity for fun, especially in the winter. The 103-room hotel offers deluxe, pet-friendly accommodations along with a full-service spa and the Garden View Restaurant. Enjoy happy hour and live music in the Fireside Lounge. Holiday festivities feature the Silverton Christmas Market, just a short walk from the resort, where visitors can experience a traditional European-inspired Christmas market. Expect to be dazzled with spectacular holiday lights, plenty of vendors with arts and crafts for holiday shopping and eclectic international fare.

AT LEFT The Fireside Lounge at Oregon Garden Resort in Silverton. There are always events happening here and cozy rooms if you’d rather not. (photos: Oregon Garden Resort)

◦ AT RIGHT Lithia Springs in Ashland is the perfect balance of comfort, sophistication and recreation. (photos, top and center: Lithia Springs Resort)

DON’T MISS: The Garden View Restaurant has a variety of items on the menu but be sure to try the crab cakes with dill aioli and the lemon pepper salmon to satisfy your seafood craving. Save room for dessert!

72 1859 OREGON’S MAGAZINE

NOVEMBER | DECEMBER 2022

ASHLAND

Lithia Springs Resort Located in Southern Oregon’s Rogue Valley, Lithia Springs Resort offers visitors a chance to experience artisan waters reminiscent of the soft mineral waters of Europe in the comfort of their own room. The water is drawn up from deep within the earth where rain and natural spring water have mixed and lay cradled near the Earth’s crust to be warmed and transformed over a period of centuries. Rich in sulfur and healing minerals, the springs are known for their ability to energize, relax and restore. The resort offers different accommodations such as bungalows and suites for more space. If you are looking to bring your four-legged

companion, ask about the Patio Bungalows which are pet friendly for a $25 nightly fee. Nearby there is access to a 200-acre ski and snowboard facility, which is great for cold weather pursuits. Adults and kids can enjoy more than twenty-three ski runs, snowshoeing and snowboarding. Lace up your skates for a night of ice skating in Lithia Park or simply stroll through the charming town of Ashland. Each year, during the holiday season, downtown Ashland is aglow with more than a million holiday lights known as the Festival of Light. Wander through the magic wonderland and stop in one of the many bakeries for a delicious pastry.

DON’T MISS: Before departing, make sure to book a treatment at the on-site Waterstone Spa, which offers a full list of services from massage therapy and facials to couples’ treatments.

CAMP SHERMAN

Metolius River Resort

Experience the luxury of the great outdoors without sacrificing comfort and design. The Metolius River Resort is one such destination, offering twelve thoughtfully crafted cabins surrounded by nature and privacy. Set on the Metolius River, cabins are equipped with a full kitchen of stainless-steel appliances, a dishwasher and granite countertops. Important to note: The property does not allow pets. There is no cell phone service in Camp Sherman, however all cabins do have wifi. There is a restaurant on-site, however it is open from May to October and reservations are highly recommended. Located near Hoodoo Ski Area, there are many winter activities to choose from such as cross-country skiing and snowshoeing. Explore nearby Deschutes National Forest for hiking or window shop in the western town of Sisters and pick up a souvenir or two in this artsy town. Bedouin offers an assortment of women’s clothing and accessories as well as a new men’s section. Most of the artwork and jewelry are made by local artists and artisans. High Desert Chocolates serves up chocolates and sweet desserts using quality ingredients to satisfy a sweet tooth. DON’T MISS: Make reservations at The Open Door Wine Bar in Sisters and sit down to a menu that changes daily. Prepare to arrive hungry, save room for dessert and leave satisfied.

ABOVE, FROM TOP Hoodoo Ski Area has a great nighttime vibe and skiing. Truffles from High Desert Chocolates in nearby Sisters are supreme. The Open Door in Sisters offers one of the best dining experiences in the area. (photos, from top: Pete Alport/ Hoodoo Ski Area, Justinna Rosett, Sisters Area Chamber of Commerce)

NOVEMBER | DECEMBER 2022

1859 OREGON’S MAGAZINE 73

THE GRAND BARGAIN OREGON HERITAGE FOR IDAHO POWER

The B2H high voltage transmission line wins site approval, and an underdog group is headed to the Oregon Supreme Court written by Lee Lewis Husk

1859 OREGON’S MAGAZINE

NOVEMBER | DECEMBER 2022

HE UNDERDOGS have lost another round in the battle against Idaho Power’s plans to build a high-voltage transmission line across five Eastern Oregon counties.

In October, the Oregon Energy Facility Siting Council issued a site certificate (with

conditions) after hearing testimony from more than 400 people—farmers, ranchers,

environmentalists, wildlife protectionists and Eastern Oregon residents opposed to the 300-mile line known as B2H which would run from Boardman, Oregon, to Hemingway, Idaho. The council, which is

staffed by the Oregon Department of Energy, has jurisdiction over the entire project in Oregon—190 miles of private land and one mile of state land.

The Stop B2H Coalition, a nonprofit grassroots organization of disparate individuals, has

struggled for years to try to protect what’s theirs and what Idaho Power wants and may seize (via condemnation). At stake are seven treasured miles of wagon wheel ruts left by pioneers on the

Oregon Trail, as well as sensitive wildlife habitat, quiet rural areas and big sky views. All would be impacted for the next 100 years, or longer, if Idaho Power prevails. The company said that it’s been collaborating with landowners, federal agencies, interest groups and other organizations to reduce B2H’s cultural and environmental impacts, according to Sven Berg, spokesman for Idaho Power. “Through years of this collaboration, we’ve tweaked the project route so that it balances the needs of communities closest to B2H with the safe, reliable, affordable, clean energy customers across the West need. Oregon’s Energy Facility Siting Council examined the route and its impacts in detail before approving a site certificate for the project.” The biggest impacts are in Eastern Oregon, so it’s not surprising the people most affected have spent years wading through a morass of federal and state regulations that allow public input but deeply favor utilities before any new energy resource can be built. “It’s been a heavy, heavy lift,” said Fuji Kreider of Stop B2H, who along with twenty or so volunteers, has spearheaded much of the opposition. The most recent skirmish involved the contested case the coalition entered in 2020 after ODOE gave preliminary approval of Idaho Power’s proposed siting. She said it took two years for the agency to complete the contested case review because fifty-two opponents raised seventy-one issues, even after narrowing by ODOE. “It was hellish,” she said. “It was during Covid, and everything was in writing. Each time we filed, Idaho Power and its bevy of lawyers would come back with objections, often with hundreds of pages. People got stressed out. Over time, they couldn’t keep up. “We weren’t surprised (ODOE and the council) ruled with the company,” she said. “They’ve ruled with the company ninety percent of the time.”

NEXT BATTLES: the Oregon Supreme Court and property condemnation Stop B2H and other opponents have known for years that the final arbiter would likely be the Oregon Supreme Court. “We’re in the process of analyzing which issues to take to court,” Jim Kreider, Stop B2H co-chair, said. Years ago, the Oregon Legislature, acting at the behest of power companies, fast-tracked the energy siting process, bypassing lower courts and funneling challenges directly to the Supreme Court. This highly unusual process means that Oregon’s highest court has no previous lower court reviews to inform it. “It’s a lot for them to absorb and a lot for us to go forward,” he said. Stop B2H’s other co-chair, Irene Gilbert, said the group will consider various procedural errors, interpretation of the law and the utility’s noncompliance with rules and standards. Stop B2H and other challengers have sixty days from being served with the siting council’s final order on Oct. 7, 2022, to notify the Supreme Court of their intent to appeal, and fourteen days thereafter to file written arguments. “The timelines for filing a petition and briefing the case out are insanely short,” said Karl G. Anuta, a Portland-based trial lawyer who focuses on environmental and conservation issues, who will take Stop B2H’s arguments to the Supreme Court. He said there are a host of different procedural issues, as well as substantive concerns about whether the project can meet applicable standards—such as noise and scenic view standards. There’s also the question of why Stop B2H, which represents a broad coalition of individuals and NOVEMBER | DECEMBER 2022

1859 OREGON’S MAGAZINE

organizations, was relegated to limited party status rather than the full party status granted ODOE and Idaho Power. Once the court has both sides’ briefs, state law requires a court decision within six months. “We’re hopeful the court will see some of the fundamental errors and say, look, you’ve got to give people a fair hearing, and you have to follow the law,” Anuta said. For example, he cites the siting council’s approval of a noise variance along the entire line but contends that the legislature gave

the authority to grant a variance to the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality, not the siting council. With site approval in hand (pending the Supreme Court’s ruling), Idaho Power can begin the process of acquiring the 190 miles of private land to build the transmission line using eminent domain. That is the power normally reserved for government to seize property and convert it to public use. The utility has filed a 1,200-page application to begin taking property, either by agreement with property owners on price or through condemnation, a process overseen by the Oregon Public Utility Commission. “We’re trying to organize landowners to represent themselves in the contested case before the OPUC,” Jim Kreider said. No one expects Stop B2H to stop fighting. “This $1.2 billion dinosaur will not only cause the degradation of viewsheds, protected areas and sensitive habitats in northeast Oregon, it will deface the National Historic Oregon Trail, and potentially hasten species extinction,” he said. “On top of that, it will increase electric rates in both Idaho and Oregon. This is not a good deal for people in Oregon or Idaho. Only the Idaho Power Corporation, through its government guaranteed profits for building the line, benefits from this.” Idaho Power maintains that population growth and a corresponding leap in energy use have highlighted why B2H is so important for utilities across the Pacific Northwest and Mountain West. “The nation, including Idaho Power, needs more high-voltage transmission lines like B2H to move that clean energy from the places it’s generated to the people and businesses who need it,” said Berg. For now, all parties are headed to the Oregon Supreme Court. Stop B2H is asking for donations to help fund its case. Those interested can go to the website, www.stopb2h.org.

PERSPECTIVE FROM EASTERN OREGON The threat from a transmission-line-sparked wildfire is real, but Oregon officials are not listening FOR A CENTURY, Sam Myers’ family has been a good steward of land that lies halfway between Hepner and Hermiston in Morrow County where it grows dryland wheat. But Idaho Power has served Myers notice that it plans to build a right-of-way across his 5,000 acres for a high-voltage transmission line known as B2H. “They’ve mapped the area and know where they want to put the line,” he said. “I don’t know whether I can farm underneath it, and I don’t know how many acres will be impacted. It’s so bizarre. They want to compensate people, but we don’t know yet what we can do.” The power company would give him a one-time payment to use his property in exchange for a line that has a 100-year lifespan.

1859 OREGON’S MAGAZINE

“I did research and decided I don’t want to have this on my property and am now finding more danger and risk,” he said. Chief among his worries is the threat of wildland fire. With help from the Stop B2H Coalition, he testified at hearings held by the Oregon Energy Facility Siting Council about wildland fire’s devastating impact on dryland cropping. “Idaho Power argues that some soils like fire, but everyone locally knows that fire on dryland is a no-no,” he said, pointing to evidence that fires can sterilize and alter the texture of soil and decrease water storage capacity. “The only place this information doesn’t seem to resonate is in Salem.” He also disputes Idaho Power’s intent to build the transmission line to withstand a maximum

NOVEMBER | DECEMBER 2022

90-mile-per-hour wind load. “Wind events will eclipse 90 in zones where the National Weather Service issues frequent red-flag warnings, such as in Eastern Oregon. No one [at the State level] cares. “I feel like I’m a whistleblower because nobody will put this together until high winds cause a catastrophic wildfire.” He has weathered the arduous process of keeping up with formal hearings and timelines and is now the only one in Morrow County who has survived to present his issues with the Oregon Supreme Court. “I’m forever lost in the battle,” he said. “I don’t know my next deadline. The process is not for the faint of heart.” For his own sake and landowners along the entire 300-mile proposed route, he plans to take his fight as far as he can.

GIFT

OREGON Discover the best of Oregon with a subscription to 1859 Oregon’s Magazine. Local getaways, foodie finds, home and design, and more!

Purchase a gift subscription and SAVE 50% off cover price Subscribe today at www.1859oregonmagazine.com/gift

78 1859 OREGON’S MAGAZINE

NOVEMBER | DECEMBER 2022

AT LEFT Haystack Rock is one of seven distinct Marine Gardens along the Oregon Coast. Managed by the D epartment of Fish and Wildlife, these unique coastal areas are protected for their delicate intertidal zones and all the flora and fauna they support. ABOVE One of HRAP’s most popular initiatives is the seasonal Beach Interpreter Program. From March through October, multiple educators staff Haystack Rock’s Marine Garden at every low tide, ready to share insights and help visitors identify marine flora and wildlife.

A N I C ON U P C L O S E written by Kerry Newberry | photography courtesy of Haystack Rock Awareness Program

HAYSTACK ROCK is one of Oregon’s most iconic landmarks, a natural wonder that enchants even when shrouded in a veil of misty fog. Easily visible from various points around Cannon Beach, the basalt sea stack rises 235-feet from the edge of the shoreline. While the dramatic silhouette captivates from afar, the most magical part of this coastal marvel is the life around it. In the colorful tide pools, you’ll spy sea stars in vibrant shades of orange and purple along with green anemones and prehistoric chitons clinging to rocks. Speckled hermit crabs, Dungeness and shore crabs scurry and burrow along with hidden creatures like Nudibranchs—but you’d never know it without a guide. That’s why the best introduction to all the wild and wonderful creatures that call this place home is a tour with the Haystack Rock Awareness Program, an organization of volunteers and naturalists that launched in 1985. Seasonal offerings range from field trips and tours to myriad educational opportunities. All with the intent to spark learning and environmental stewardship. Last year, HRAP had an estimated 65,274 contacts made—that’s the number of visitors from around the world their staff and volunteers interacted with at Haystack Rock. “Volunteers are the backbone of our program,” said HRAP director Kelli Ennis. “Our volunteers range in ages from 5 to over 80, with career backgrounds and personal interests that are just as wide-ranging. And all of them are giving up the most precious commodity they have–their time. That alone speaks to the priceless value and importance of wildlife we strive to protect.” NOVEMBER | DECEMBER 2022

1859 OREGON’S MAGAZINE 79

CLOCKWISE FROM TOP LEFT In addition to school field trips that inspire young minds, HRAP offers private and public tours, summer camps and other outreach programs. All of these services are in partnership with the City of Cannon Beach. (HRAP is a cityoperated program.) There’s something magical about sea stars, especially when you discover there are more than 2,000 species worldwide. This cluster includes the ochre sea star, the most prominent in Oregon’s intertidal areas. Sea stars prey on coral and shellfish, like the mussels pictured here. Often found on rocky shores and known as “sea slugs,” these brilliantly colored invertebrates are related to snails, chitons and oysters. Haystack Rock is a 235-foot sea stack and is reputed to be the thirdtallest such “intertidal” structure in the world. From this protected refuge for intertidal creatures, visitors can also spot Gray Whales, Humpback Whales, Orcas and Sperm Whales from December to March.

80 1859 OREGON’S MAGAZINE

NOVEMBER | DECEMBER 2022

1859 OREGON’S MAGAZINE 81

TRAVEL SPOTLIGHT 84 ADVENTURE 86 LODGING 90 TRIP PLANNER 92

pg. 92 A trip to McMinnville and Dayton takes you into the heart of wine country, but with a twist.

Maggie Kirkland

NORTHWEST DESTINATION 100

Travel Spotlight

Destination Isolation Eastern Oregon’s Leslie Gulch is an unexpected journey in time and beauty

Volcanic rock and wildlife are the towering themes in Eastern Oregon’s Leslie Gulch.

written by Joni Kabana

Dawn Talbott/TravelOregon.com

ONE OF THE most remote areas of Oregon has miles of sculpted rock formations that were formed millions of years ago. Getting there takes a bit of stamina and a tough vehicle, but once you arrive, there is no doubt you will feel like it was worth the planning and effort. Towering volcanic rock, in various sizes and shapes, line the road in Leslie Gulch, located east of the Owyhee Reservoir in Oregon’s Malheur County. The soil is unique in this location and is conducive to growing rare plant species. If you love watching wildlife, mule deer, California Bighorn sheep, Rocky Mountain elk and assorted coyotes and bobcats frequently roam the isolated landscape. Rock hounds will feel like they are in heaven, but collection of rocks and vegetation is strictly prohibited, as well as gathering firewood. Camping and fires are limited to the Slocum Creek campground only and overnight backpacking and horses are not permitted in the Area of Critical Environmental Concern. Call ahead to check on weather conditions as flash floods and some ice conditions can make the road impassable. From Highway 95 in Idaho, you can reach Leslie Gulch by traveling west eight miles on McBride Creek Road to Rockville, then one mile north to Leslie Gulch Road and 15 miles west. You can also take Succor Creek Road from either Oregon Highway 201 or US Highway 95 to the Leslie Gulch Road Junction. While high-clearance vehicles are recommended, in prime conditions a car is suitable if tires are in good condition and the engine is operating well. The road is so isolated that becoming stranded would be a dangerous proposition. As with all remote travel, bringing large quantities of water and food is a must. Large recreational vehicles will not be able to make some of the hairpin turns, so seek a smaller vehicle before traveling here. Accommodations are limited within the area, but there are several motels and AirBnBs that enable day visits to this area. Don’t forget to include a visit to hot springs in the area—some of Oregon’s best are found near Leslie Gulch. For more information, see www.onda.org/hike/leslie-gulch.

1859 OREGON’S MAGAZINE

NOVEMBER | DECEMBER 2022

LOOKING FOR YOUR NEXT ADVENTURE? THERE’S SOMETHING FOR EVERYONE IN NEWPORT!

Your adventure starts here:

D I S C O V E R N E W P O R T. C O M 1-800-COAST-44

FOODIE

ADVENTURER

FAMILY

FISHING

BEACHES AND LANDMARKS

HIKING

Timberline

adventure

SECLUDED

WINTER ESCAPES Get away to these four winter cabins, plus two seasonal drink recipes to add to your repertoire written by Jen Sotolongo

ONE OF THE best ways to beat the Oregon winter blues is to get out of town and escape the gray and rain to stay in a secluded cabin where you can cozy up by the fire with a warm drink cupped between your hands and spend the day getting out in the snow or on trails. In just about every corner of the state and everywhere in between, those looking to disconnect and experience a deep connection with nature have a variety of options ranging from rustic log cabins to snowcat-in luxury lodges.

Silcox Hut above Timberline Lodge is a highly sought venue for small parties.

1859 OREGON’S MAGAZINE

NOVEMBER | DECEMBER 2022

adventure

BEND

Photos: Elk Lake Resort

Elk Lake Resort

CLOCKWISE FROM TOP Elk Lake Resort is a top destination for snowmobilers. Solitude at night on Elk Lake. The small tavern at Elk Lake is festive, and comes with very good food.

SILVER FALLS

Smith Creek Village Tucked away inside Silver Falls State Park, this cozy property is perfect for a quick getaway from the Portland-metro area. Under new management as of 2021, Smith Creek Village offers an outdoor immersive experience with a boutique hotel stay. Guests have the option to stay in a variety of accommodations, including tiny cabins, cottages, family lodges, and two “ranches” that can accommodate groups up to 75 people. In addition to the numerous trails accessible right from your doorstep, visitors can mountain bike from the

property to the trails in Silver Falls and join a morning yoga class. Meals are also available from its restaurant. The menu includes a selection of pastries, trail snacks, breakfast items and bistro-style lunch as well as dinner fare, such as burgers and salads, with plenty of gluten-free and vegan options. Hours of operation vary throughout the year. Because the property sits on state park property and is under contract with the Oregon State Parks, the prices remain affordable, with tiny cabins starting at $89. As a bonus for pet owners, most of the lodging at Smith Creek welcomes pets for no additional pet fee.

For a unique winter excursion, book a stay at Elk Lake Lodge just outside of Bend. Once the Cascade Lakes Highway closes for winter and becomes inaccessible to cars, you can arrange a snowcat pick up from Dutchman Flat Sno Park parking lot. Elk Lake has thirteen cabin rentals built in the 1940s, ten of which include full kitchens and bathrooms. The three “camping cabins” have no power or water, but do have propane heat. The onsite restaurant serves rustic meals with daily specials, has a full bar and will serve holiday meals with arrangements. The lodge grooms Elk Lake Loop Road for cross country skiing and rents snowmobiles and snowshoes during the winter months. Hundreds of miles of trails beg to be explored from the front door of the cabin. Rentals are available ThursdaySunday in the winter, except during the weeks surrounding Christmas and New Year.

Pairs well with:

Campfire Cocoa

The Green Salmon / YACHATS • 2 cups soy milk (we prefer Eden soy) • 2 tablespoons cocoa powder • 3 tablespoons cane sugar (or to taste) • 1 tablespoon loose leaf Lapsang Souchong tea

NOVEMBER | DECEMBER 2022

Whisk together the soy milk, cocoa and sugar and heat until just under boiling. Remove from heat and add the Lapsang Souchong. Steep for 2-3 minutes and then pour cocoa through a small strainer into mugs. Add whipped cream or marshmallows for an extra treat.

1859 OREGON’S MAGAZINE 87

MT. HOOD

ABOVE, FROM TOP A snowcat serves Silcox Hut and its guests. With six bunk rooms and a medieval common space, Silcox Hut on Mt. Hood is an experience unlike any other.

ELKHORNS

Anthony Lake Guard Station Those looking for something simple and affordable with fantastic access to outdoor activities all year long should check out the Anthony Lakes Guard Station, located in the Anthony Lake Campground at 7,000 feet of elevation. Built by the Civilian Conservation Corps in the 1930s, the rustic Anthony Lake Guard Station is just one of a few Forest Service cabins built from logs. The two-story cabin includes a fully equipped kitchen, propane heater, bathroom, 88 1859 OREGON’S MAGAZINE

For an intimate family reunion, celebration, or gathering of friends, stay at Silcox Hut for the ultimate bed and breakfast experience. Situated at 7,000 feet on Mt. Hood, Silcox Hut is available year round for private overnight rentals. Each stay includes an on-site host, a choice of dinner, breakfast, down bedding, and transportation between Timberline Lodge and Silcox Hut. Depending on the time of year, transportation to the hut is via

and three bedrooms. Bedding and towels are not provided. Just minutes from Anthony Lakes Mountain Resort, you can get in all the winter fun you desire. The resort offers some of the best powder in the Northwest for skiing, an extensive Nordic trail system, and trails for snowshoeing. Downhill and Nordic ski and snowshoe rentals are available from the resort and Nordic ski center. The cabin is popular and only available from February 1-28 during the winter, therefore requires advanced planning. Reservations can be made six months in advance at www.recreation.gov.

NOVEMBER | DECEMBER 2022

Paul Clark

Photos: Timberline

Silcox Hut

SUV or snowcat. Food is prepared by your personal host and served buffet-style at the long single table in the dining room. Constructed with local stone and timber in 1939, Silcox Hut retains its rustic charm while still offering modern conveniences, like running water, heat, light, and indoor plumbing. Sleeping arrangements include six bunk rooms, with stacked bunk beds, including one room with a queen-size bunk. Winter weekends often book up to a year in advance, so plan ahead!

Anthony Lake Guard Station is a rustic Eastern Oregon getaway with easy access to outdoor recreation.

adventure

Pair well with:

Je Ne Sais Quoi

Quaintrelle / PORTLAND Camille Cavan, Quaintrelle Bar Manager This is one of Quaintrelle bar manager Camille Cavan’s favorite winter cocktail recipes. The combination of the rich rum, bitterness and earthiness of the amaro, and delicious qualities of French press coffee makes this a balanced piece of sipping heaven. • 1 ounce Cruzan Black Strap Rum • ½ ounce mint demerara (see recipe below) • ¾ ounce coffee liqueur (Cavan likes St. George NOLA Coffee Liqueur, as well as New Deal Distillery’s offering) • ½ ounce Bigallet China China Amer • ¼ ounce Genepy • Crude “Big Bear” Coffee and Cocoa Bitters • 4 ounces dark roast French press coffee • Coconut vanilla cream to top (see recipe below) FOR MINT DEMERARA • 1 cup water • 1 cup demerara • 4 mint tea bags • 8-10 mint leaves FOR COCONUT VANILLA CREAM • ½ cup full-fat coconut cream • ½ cup heavy cream • Half a vanilla bean, scraped • ½ cup sugar FOR MINT DEMERARA Bring the water and demerara to a simmer with the mint tea bags and mint leaves. Simmer for 10 minutes, cool, transfer to a container and let sit overnight. Strain mint tea bags and mint leaves. Ready to use. FOR COCONUT VANILLA CREAM Whip all ingredients together until cream wrinkles and is thick yet moves easily. Aaron Lee Photography

FOR COCKTAIL Shake all ingredients together, with the exception of the hot coffee. Add the coffee to the mix and stir with a bar spoon to blend. Add a dollop of coconut vanilla ice cream to the glass and serve.

NOVEMBER | DECEMBER 2022

1859 OREGON’S MAGAZINE

Sionnie LaFollette

McMinnville’s Atticus Hotel is a fun hybrid of bunks and luxury in the heart of wine country.

MCMINNVILLE

Atticus Hotel

Lodging

Luxury Bunking for the Holidays and Beyond written by Kerry Newberry

SOMETIMES THE WINTER doldrums require a weekend reprieve, an escape from the ordinary to the extraordinary for a night or two. A place packed with amenities like plush bathrobes, lobby baristas and lively restaurants just an elevator ride away. Even better when there’s room for friends. Three wine country destinations are here to serve. Each hotel offers one stylish suite decked out with luxury bunks perfect for that small group getaway. 90 1859 OREGON’S MAGAZINE

NOVEMBER | DECEMBER 2022

The Bunks: Two luxurious built-in bunks, each with individual reading lights, plus a gracious king-size bed. The serenely decorated space (#designinspo) sleeps up to six. Perks: Soaring 13-foot ceilings make the stylish room feel even more spacious. Local art, a curated book selection along with a fireplace and overstuffed couches give the space polished big city vibes. The luxury bathroom has double sinks and large cubbies for six. Dining: Just off the lobby, Red Hills Kitchen is always bustling and delicious. Menu highlights include wood-fired shellfish and paella. In the morning, wake up to house made mini cinnamon doughnuts and perfect espresso drinks made by the lobby barista.

375 NE Ford St.

MCMINNVILLE www.atticushotel.com

Photos: The Dundee

lodging

DUNDEE

The Dundee The Bunks: This spacious “squad suite” has six custom bunk beds with the hotel’s signature, luxury mattresses in extra long twin size. Perks: A wet bar, two-temperature controlled wine refrigerators, an entertainment area for movie night, a huge bathroom with two vanities, a luxury shower

and two private stalls. Book from a selection of exclusive wine tasting experiences for guests. Dining: Head downstairs to Field + Stream, a light and airy restaurant with dishes that highlight the region’s wild game, fish and nearby farms. Open for breakfast, lunch and dinner. 1410 OR-99W DUNDEE www.thedundee.com

ABOVE, AT LEFT These bunks are not the usual, but of the luxury sort. ABOVE The Dundee in wine country is a fun paradigm for wine tasting in the area.

INDEPENDENCE

The Independence The Bunks: The bright and cheery living space has six luxury bunks, a large sectional couch, two full bathrooms, ample vanity space with lit makeup mirrors, and a private dressing area. Perks: A temperature controlled wine cooler to chill that bottle of Oregon bubbles, ample board games for friends and family fun. Don’t miss the birds-eye view from the rooftop patio. Photos: The Independence

Dining: Book a table at Territory, the onsite farmto-table restaurant that sits on the banks of the Willamette River.

CLOCKWISE FROM LEFT The well-appointed bunks at The Independence’s “squad suite.” The common area is comfortable and stylish. The spacious suite makes for a great getaway with friends.

NOVEMBER | DECEMBER 2022

201 OSPREY LANE INDEPENDENCE www.theindependence.com

1859 OREGON’S MAGAZINE 91

trip planner

McMinnville Once the middle of nowhere, this locale is now the heart of Oregon wine country written by James Sinks FIFTY YEARS AGO, the editors of Sunset Books published an eighty-page Travel Guide to Oregon, chockablock with maps, photos, and lists of the Beaver State’s can’t-miss destinations, from the coast to Timberline to Hells Canyon. In it, there’s no mention of anything in McMinnville. Not even a suggestion to tap the brakes. What a difference a half century, and a few hundred wineries, can make. Today, McMinnville is the epicenter of Oregon’s wine world, and the home to 34,466 people now is a leading fixture on recommended tourist itineraries, including international bucket list destinations for aficionados. Head into the rolling countryside in any direction and you’ll find vineyards next to vineyards, and vintners ready with stories, appetizers and cuvées. The city hosts the ritzy International Pinot Noir Celebration every summer. And

downtown, you can’t even throw a tantrum without hitting a tasting room. With that in mind, it’s perfectly acceptable to book a getaway here solely to be a wannabe sommelier—especially in late autumn when the annual crush has finished, and even the smallest of wineries throw open their doors. That said, McMinnville also invites you to set down that snifter. Inbetween sips and swirls, the quiet and quirky hamlet can keep you plenty busy or not busy at all, whether you enjoy leisurely walks, whimsy or whiskey. From the you-won’t-see-this-anywhere-else department, visit the legendary Spruce Goose seaplane and—if you’re a basketball fan, TikTok videographer, or serial car test-driver—there’s Damian Lilliard Toyota, the only dealership coowned by the Portland Trailblazers all star. He’s not typically there, however, as he has a second job this time of year. Once part of the ancestral range of the Yamel Indian Tribe, the city was platted in 1855 by William T. Newby, of McMinnville, Tenn., who’d claimed the land after trekking west across the Oregon Trail. It’s not known how long it took him to come up with the creative name for his new Oregon town. Newby built the city’s first commercial structure, a mill, on what would become Third Street. The mill is long gone, but on that historic-registered avenue today you can mill amongst boutiques, art galleries, restaurants and pubs, a subterranean tea shop, upscale hotels and an old time ice cream parlor with a player piano—all of them under a canopy of twinkling fairy lights in the trees overhead. It’s alluring enough that the folks at Sunset— who’ve located McMinnville since that vintage travel guide—in 2017 named it the best Main Street in the Western United States.

TravelOregon.com

Domaine Serene is one of the area wineries with a Tuscan experience and gorgeous rows of pinot noir grapes.

1859 OREGON’S MAGAZINE

NOVEMBER | DECEMBER 2022

While peddling through the charming communities of Oregon wine country, stop to enjoy our world-class wines, award-winning culinary scene, and chic boutiques. Start your journey with the official Willamette Valley travel guide.

willamettevalley.org Funded in part by

Daniel Hurst

Jim Fischer/Visit McMinnville

trip planner

ABOVE, FROM LEFT Don’t laugh—McMinnville’s popular UFO Festival is attended by scientists, U.S. Air Force and wannabe aliens. The Monastery of the Brigittine Monks is well known for its artistic handcrafted truffles.

Day People love talking about dirt in wine country. A lot. After all, the ground is a big part of what makes vintages outstanding, versus merely pedestrian. And they’ve got great dirt in and around McMinnville, including a bunch of reddish Jory, which is like a dirt celebrity and was decreed the state soil by the Legislature in 2011. It’s like a gift from the geological gods to your glass. With geology in mind, a good vantage to begin your adventure awaits at Erratic Rock State Natural Area, just west of town. Here, a half-mile walk uphill takes you to a ninetyton flat-topped rock that hitchhiked from the Rocky Mountains on an iceberg more than 10,000 years ago. From the top, there’s a great view of the patchwork quilt of the valley floor below, and it’s a good backdrop for photos of anyone in your traveling party who might have a bit of their own erratic going on. (It’s also a good idea to climb on things before you start drinking, which is next.) Every Oregon winery founder has a story. They usually don’t involve escaping the Iranian Revolution, but that’s how Moe Momtazi and his wife started the journey that eventually brought them to a former wheat farm near McMinnville in the 1990s. Today, the family’s Maysara winery—where grapes are cultivated using a “biodynamic” method that employs organic natural teas instead of chemicals—is truly a family affair: One of his three daughters is now the winemaker, and the others sell it. As with many wineries in the area, reservations are required. 94 1859 OREGON’S MAGAZINE

You know how some people can get stonefaced, especially after drinking? Just down the road, you can see what it’s like when rocks are people-faced. Grimacing stonework is just one part of the eclectic outdoor collection at the Mason-Rivera Sculpture Garden and Art Gallery, where there’s also a gift shop for holiday browsing and hand warming. Round out the afternoon at the Monastery of the Brigittine Monks, which offers a sneak preview of what it’s like in heaven. Yes, there’s stained glass and church services, but there’s also a confectionery where the monks melt chocolate and sugar into decadent fudge and truffles to sell around the world. At least, they can ship what doesn’t end up in your mouth. Downtown, the rooms at the venerable McMenamins Hotel Oregon are named after noteworthy real-life local places and people, including Abigail Scott Duniway, the woman’s suffrage advocate who lived in nearby Lafayette. And then there’s the UFO Room. The city gets some of its contemporary cachet from a reported flying saucer sighting in 1950. Fictional or no, the extraterrestrial encounter has been celebrated since 1999 with a circus-like festival every May. All year, there’s an alien painted on the sidewalk out front. For dinner and drinks and maybe more dirt talk, burrow into a coat and stroll down Third Street past the alien and under the twinkling lights to farm-to-table hotspot Humble Spirit. The wine list is international and the American-style menu is rewritten daily, based partly on what’s growing nearby. Another thing that’s growing, you might remark, is your affinity for McMinnville.

NOVEMBER | DECEMBER 2022

Visit McMinnville

ERRATIC ROCK • FUDGE • UFOS

DavidAnn

Maggie Kirkland

trip planner

AT LEFT Third Street in McMinnville is the charming Main Street of the town. ABOVE, FROM TOP An artful dish from Humble Spirit. Maysara Winery is another gem tucked in the rolling hills around McMinnville.

NOVEMBER | DECEMBER 2022

1859 OREGON’S MAGAZINE 95

Zachary Goff

Kelsey Curtis/One Haus Creative

Mitch Graham

trip planner

CLOCKWISE FROM TOP LEFT Tastings at Branch Point Distillery. Remy Wines is another up-and-comer in the vaunted wine region. La Rambla in McMinnville serves a worldly paella that is great for sharing.

Day WINE TASTING • WHISKEY • OLIVE OIL Long before the wine tour vans arrived, McMinnville was known as Oregon’s Walnut City. Celebrating that bygone era, the upscale Atticus Hotel—which ranks among the nation’s top places to stay in wine country, according to USA Today—has a replica in its lobby of a walnut-filled archway that was once a centerpiece of a Seattle marketing effort. These days in local orchards, you’re far more likely to find hazelnuts. And at the Atticus, you’re certain to find a terrific breakfast. The Red Hills Kitchen is a spinoff from the popular Red Hills Market, in nearby Dundee. Instead of grab-and-go fare, however, the hotel location invites you to sit and savor. Think whiskeyimbued bacon, pastrami jalapeno hash, and housemade cinnamon donuts with warm chocolate sauce. A nap would be justified, but it can wait. Grab java at local roasters Flag & Wire in the up-and-coming Granary District. If you have a padlock handy, and who doesn’t, you can add it to the “locks of love” artwork in the parking lot. It’s easy to find because it says “Love” on it. Just minutes away, the hills in Dayton are home to some of Oregon’s most familiar pinot noir labels, including Domaine Serene, Stoller and Sokol Blosser, each of them with striking tasting rooms and very good dirt. But they’re not the only shows in town. Tucked amid the same slopes you’ll find lesser-known vintners making a breadth of varietals, such as unpretentious Remy Wines, opened in a farmhouse by a lesbian winemaker who is a onetime McMinnville City Councilor. 96 1859 OREGON’S MAGAZINE

NOVEMBER | DECEMBER 2022

If you’re ready for a wine break, sample artisan whiskey at Branch Point Distillery, where the tastings can come with mini mixed drinks. And if you want to give your liver a rest—and that’s not unusual come midday—Dayton also is home to the Northwest’s only olive oil-pressing facility, known as an Olioteca. In 2004, the Durant family—also one of the first wine-growing families in the region—decided to plant olive trees on part of their property as an experiment, said wholesale associate and tour guide Jeff Rainoldi. To the initial surprise of just about everybody, including arborists, some were hardy enough to make it in Oregon. Now there are 17 acres of trees. Durant offers a sit-down tasting of oils or you can try the lineup—including Spanish, Italian, lemon, and jalapeño, augmented by flavored vinegars—at the gift shop. To get the best flavor? “Slurp with conviction,” Raindoldi advised. “But not the vinegar. Don’t slurp the vinegar.” Like wine, the harvest season for olives is late fall. In midNovember, Durant hosts an Olio Nuovo Festival—with Italian music, pitchers of freshly squeezed oil, and yes, wine. Finish at La Rambla Restaurant, where your Spanish wine will want to be accompanied by the patatas bravas with Calabrian chili butter and flavorful paella. It won’t be easy, but save room for the churros. After dinner, duck into the 100-year-old Blue Moon Lounge, with a neon marquee out front, tall leather booths and pinball in the back. It’s cash only. Or, if video games and quarters are more your style, at Joysticks Arcade there’s beer, Pac-Man, carpal tunnel exercises, and laughing.

Experience a unique destination that celebrates the bounty of Yamhill County and a passion for food, wine, hospitality and agriculture

www.abbeyroadfarm.com 503-687-3100

SIP wines from our Abbey Road Farm and

WARREN BLACK & ADAM ECCLESTON

STAY in our comfy Silo Suites

YOUR MUSIC. YOUR HOSTS. YOUR RADIO STATION.

Wilkens Family Labels

complete with a gourmet breakfast

89.9 FM | allclassical.org

C HE HALE M TA STIN G R O OM & WINE BAR

ST OLLER WINE BA R | BE ND

LI B R A RY WI N E S

P N W W IN E COLLEC TI ON

LI V E M U S I C

S M AL L BI TES

A F T E R H O U RS

B Y TH E GL A SS

1 0 6 S C E N T E R S T, N E W B E R G , O R 97 1 3 2 5 0 3 . 5 3 8 . 470 0 | @ C H E H A L E M W I N E S

5 5 5 N W A R I ZO N A AV E S T E 3 0 , B E N D, O R 97 7 0 3 503.864.3404 | @STOLLERWINEBAR_BEND

F O R M O R E I N F O R M AT I O N & H O U R S , V I S I T S TO L L E R W I N E G R O U P.C O M

Community Plate www.communityplate.com Flag & Wire Coffee www.flagandwire.com Humble Spirit www.humblespirit.love La Rambla www.laramblaonthird.com Red Hills Kitchen www.atticushotel.com/ restaurant/red-hills-kitchen

STAY Atticus Hotel www.atticushotel.com McMenamin’s Hotel Oregon www.mcmenamins.com Vintages Trailer Resort www.the-vintages.com

PLAY Branch Point Distillery www.branchpointdistillery.com Brigittine Monks Monastery www.brigittine.org Durant Olive Mill www.durantoregon.com Erratic Rock State Natural Site www.stateparks.oregon.gov Evergreen Aviation & Space Museum www.evergreenmuseum.org The Eyrie Vineyards www.eyrievineyards.com Mason Rivera Sculpture Garden www.masonriverasculpture.com Maysara Winery www.maysara.com Thanksgiving in Wine Country www.willamettewines.com/thegiving-season/wine-countrythanksgiving-events

98 1859 OREGON’S MAGAZINE

Evergreen Aviation & Space Museum is home to the famed Spruce Goose, Howard Hughes’ flying folly.

Day MORNING STROLL • LOCAL EATS • SPRUCE GOOSE Joe Dancer was the first city manager for McMinnville—and he was liked so much they named a park along the South Yamhill River after him. After walking or jogging the wellmaintained 1.5-mile footpath, you’ll have your own positive vibes about him, too. Also, there’s a skate park, if your bones haven’t been broken for a while and you miss that feeling. Since 2011, Community Plate has been serving up local meats, duck and chicken eggs, and house-made rolls and bread to happy and hungry lines of breakfast clientele in a bright and airy downtown spot. You’ll be even happier when the Bloody Marys and pork belly breakfast burritos have arrived. The restaurant is a good staging ground for exploring the retail bonanza on Third Street, between the tasting rooms. Thirsty? Head underground to Velvet Monkey Tea Bar, where they have more than 100 varieties of loose leaf teas, plus chocolates, bubble tea and lemonade. It’s a perfect place to make blends in low places. In 1947 in southern California’s Long Beach Harbor, the then-largest wingspan airplane in the world—a mammoth wooden seaplane dubbed the “Spruce Goose”—made its one and only flight, for about 30 seconds. Built by eccentric millionaire Howard Hughes, the flying boat was envisioned as a World War II heavy cargo carrier—but ended up being mostly a tourist attraction. In the early 1990s, it was dismantled and moved to McMinnville, where it was reassembled as the centerpiece of the Evergreen Aviation & Space Museum. The museum, which has survived recent financial turbulence, is also home to a collection of fighter planes, a NASA Titan rocket, and a SR-31 Blackbird, a Cold War-era reconnaissance jet that could fly an astonishing 2,100 NOVEMBER | DECEMBER 2022

miles per hour. A planetarium is on the drawing board. And if you feel energetic and too dry, hit the waterslides next door at the Wings & Waves Waterpark. Before departing Oregon’s wine country, make a final stop where it began and pay homage, glass in hand, to the pioneering family credited with starting it all. The late David Lett— known as “Papa Pinot”—first started planting vines in the 1960s and in 1970 opened a winery in a converted turkey processing facility in McMinnville. The tasting room is still there. In 1979, a Pinot Noir from Lett’s The Eyrie Vineyards put Oregon on the international map at the world Olympics of wine in Paris, besting established French Burgundy labels. The family’s organic wines have been winning medals regularly ever since, as have many of the other local wineries that followed in the Letts’ dirty footsteps. Today—and everyday, really—that’s worth a toast.

Community Plate

EAT

Evergreen Aviation & Space Museum

MCMINNVILLE, OREGON

trip planner

Community Plate on Third Street is abuzz with people who know that breakfast means no compromise.

YOUR NEXT ADVENTURE START PLANNING YOUR DREAM GLAMPING GETAWAY IN THE HEART OF WINE COUNTRY 36 UNIQUE TRAILERS FIRESIDE CRUISER BIKES GRILLS COFFEE MEET US AT THE-VINTAGES.COM OR CALL US AT 971.267.2130

Embrace

Visitlbp.com/stormseason

northwest destination

Leavenworth

Compete your holiday shopping—and find beer and deer—in the PNW’s premier Christmastown written by James Sinks

PRETTY MUCH anywhere, you can open your wallet and browse for holiday gifts. Yet few places—at least, on this continent—can approach the kitschy yuletide charm of Leavenworth, the Pacific Northwest Christmastown filled with Bavarian-styled buildings, beers, bratwurst, and boutiques in Washington’s north Cascades. Festive holiday shopping is only the beginning. Surrounded by snowy and showy 8,000-foot peaks, Leavenworth offers a wonderland of winter outdoor pursuits you won’t find at any strip malls or retail websites. Fly down powdery slopes at Mission Ridge Ski Area; try nordic trails, tubing runs and ski jumping at Leavenworth Winter Sports Club; navigate sledding hills pretty much everywhere; and—once things really cool down—strap on crampons for ice climbing. 100 1859 OREGON’S MAGAZINE

NOVEMBER | DECEMBER 2022

Leavenworth Chamber of Commerce

The holidays in Bavarian-themed Leavenworth are like walking into a snow globe with good beer.

If that’s not enough to convince you to start making travel plans, there also are horsedrawn sleigh rides with cocoa and a farm where you can feed reindeer. Two-and-a-half hours from Seattle by car or three-plus hours by Amtrak, the city of almost 2,500—named after a Portland businessman who helped finance its founding—has been luring droves to its German-themed downtown since it was reimagined a half century ago. The place consistently ranks among Washington’s top tourist draws, and was recently named in the top five Christmas towns nationally by the experts at MyDatingAdviser.com. Leavenworth’s alpine village motif, inspired in part by Danish-flavored Solvang, California, was envisioned by two local entrepreneurs as a way to help revive the economy in the 1960s, after the Great Northern Railroad relocated its switchyard and the sawmill closed. Any time of year here, German music fills the air while burly Bavarian fare like pretzels, spaetzle and schnitzel fill bellies. Come the

LEAVENWORTH, WASHINGTON

Jevon Fark

Leavenworth Reindeer Farm

Leavenworth Chamber of Commerce/Icicle TV

northwest destination

EAT Andreas Keller www.andreaskeller restaurant.com Gingerbread factory www.gingerbreadfactory.com Icicle Brewing Company www.iciclebrewing.com Renaissance Cafe www.renaissance cafe-leavenworth.com Stein Leavenworth www.steinlevenworth.com Watershed Cafe www.watershedpnw.com

STAY Enzian Inn www.enzianinn.com Icicle Village Resort and Alpine Spa www.iciclevillage.com Sleeping Lady Mountain Resort www.sleepinglady.com Warm Springs Inn & Winery www.warmspringsinn.com

CLOCKWISE FROM TOP Nordic skiing in Leavenworth is divine. The Kris Kringle boutique in Leavenworth has gifts for holiday revelers. Not to be missed (by kids) during the holidays is the Leavenworth reindeer farm.

holidays, Leavenworth unfurls an impressive Vilkommen mat. On Thanksgiving weekend, the trees begin their seasonal lightshow and locals stage a European-style open-air holiday bazaar, known as Christlkindmarkt. While the festivities and market have been scaled back again due to the pandemic—the popular lantern parade is still on ice, for instance—there will still be prodigious cheer, carolers, and regular sleigh rides to visit Santa. Come prepared for cool weather and crowds. At the venerable Andreas Keller Restaurant, there’s German music most days and German food all days, and also a gluten-free menu. Or visit more-recent arrival Watershed Cafe, where the chefs concoct Northwest-focused fare. To warm your liver, head to Stein Leavenworth, with fifty-five beer taps, or try the award-winning reds at Silvara Winery. Downtown, tame your shopping list in 100-or-so shops and eateries, which peddle everything from gingerbread to sweaters to cheese. At the Kris Kringl boutique, where the

motto is “it’s Christmas all year long,” you’ll find more ornaments than your tree branches can hold. Nearby, the Nutcracker Museum boasts the world’s largest collection, with more than 9,000 and counting. Then there are the deer. A mile from town, the Leavenworth Reindeer Farm is home to twenty-eight caribou, six of them born this year, according to manager Erika Bowie. The place hosts 75,000 people annually for tours, at $40 a person in peak season, also art collectors who buy local artisans’ wares from the gift shop in the circa-1906 barn. During the holidays, not surprisingly, Santa hangs out with the reindeer, too. Book ahead. The place is licensed federally and educates visitors about all things reindeer, a protected species, including the fact that antlers can grow an inch a day. The deer, on the other hand, like to educate themselves about whatever food visitors are holding. And can holiday shoppers take a reindeer home? Bowie laughed. Not a real one. “We have lots of stuffed animals in the gift shop.” NOVEMBER | DECEMBER 2022

PLAY Icicle Outfitters/ sleigh rides www.icicleoutfitters.com Kris Kringl www.kriskringl.com Leavenworth Reindeer Farm www.leavenworth reindeer.com Leavenworth Winter Sports Club www.skileavenworth.com Mission Ridge Ski Area www.missionridge.com Nutcracker museum www.nutcracker museum.com

Farm-to-table cuisine at Watershed Cafe in Leavenworth. (photo: Watershed Cafe)

1859 OREGON’S MAGAZINE 101

1859 MAPPED

The points of interest below are culled from stories and events in this edition of 1859.

Astoria Seaside

Milton-Freewater Hood River Portland Tillamook Gresham

Pendleton

The Dalles La Grande

Maupin Government Camp

Pacific City Lincoln City

Baker City

Salem Newport

Madras

Albany Corvallis

Prineville

John Day

Redmond

Sisters Florence

Joseph

Ontario

Bend

Eugene Springfield

Sunriver Burns

Oakridge Coos Bay Bandon

Roseburg

Grants Pass Brookings

Jacksonville

Paisley

Medford Ashland

Klamath Falls

Lakeview

Live

Think

Explore

30 Timberline Lodge

56 Turner Automotive

Leslie Gulch

32 Arrowhead Chocolates

58 Saltwood

Elk Lake Resort

33 Kann

58 Slabtown Square

The Independence

34 AtTheJoy

60 Churchill School

Maysara Winery

52 Art & Soul Ashland

62 Proud Ground

100 Leavenworth, Washington

102 1859 OREGON’S MAGAZINE

NOVEMBER | DECEMBER 2022

Visit Prineville & Crook County for your next outdoor adventure. You'll be glad you did. prinevillechamber.com

Pursuing excellence through fitness 61615 Athletic Club Drive

(541) 385-3062

Until Next Time Powder skiing in Central Oregon’s backcountry. photo by Brandon Nixon

Continue for Special Insert

OUTPLAY EVERYONE

AT THE BEST PLAYGROUND IN THE WEST

White Pass features both alpine skiing and 18 kilometers of cross-country trails. (photo: Jason Hummel Photography/ State of Washington Tourism)

HOLDING AN EDGE PNW SKI AREAS ARE PRIMED FOR THIS YEAR’S NOSTALGIC RETURN TO LIFE AS IT WAS

IT SEEMED ODD that food venues were closed at first. Then, later, they were open but people had to stand wings-span apart. Gondolas were reduced to carrying one person or a single family in the same covid bubble. Skiing and snowboarding came with the additional risk of contagion. As we enter ski season 2022, this may be the first winter in the past three when families can finally ski together in an environment not encumbered by covid restrictions, where restaurants and bars are close and collegial, where quads serve four riders at once, where the experience returns to its rightful place as one that is shared. This is the winter of the release of pent-up powder and the family revenge. At the nexus of a rebooted ski season and a surge in family travel, we will all be on the lookout for the intersection of adventure and value. In the following pages, we delve into the details so that you can make informed decisions about how you’re spending your stoke dollars.

Cover: Fernie Alpine Resort (photo: Henry Georgi/Fernie Alpine Resort)

2022 SKI NORTHWEST 3

OREGON

MT. BACHELOR Tucked into the Deschutes National Forest, Mt. Bachelor is, by many metrics, Oregon’s biggest ski area. Even before the new quad Cloudchaser opened in 2016, adding 635 new skiable acres to the mountain, Bachelor was already the undisputed heavyweight among its Oregon peers. On a volcano in the sunny Central Oregon high desert just outside of Bend, Bachelor’s powder is light and deep, with an average of 462 inches of snowfall per year. The resort is family friendly, with lessons, learning areas and experienced ski instructors, yet has plenty of expert runs and off-piste challenges as well. While Bachelor can be seen for miles around, it’s 22 miles back

SKI NORTHWEST 2022

into Bend where you’ll find the first lodging accommodations. The first hotel coming back to Bend from Bachelor is LOGE, a cool remake of a lifeless motel that now has ski lockers, a bar and a barbecue area with Traeger grills. Families may want to consider Tetherow, where there’s a bar and restaurants, as well as a heated pool, or The Oxford for the convenience of being in downtown Bend. For winding down in Bend, there are easy and scenic hikes close by. The River Trail can be accessed in The Old Mill District and comprises a three-mile loop if you’re inclined, or just stroll any section of it. Drake Park alongside Mirror Pond is also a nice stroll if you’re staying downtown.

FROM TOP Mt. Bachelor receives an average of 462 inches of snowfall per year. LOGE in Bend offers an outdoor firepit and the closest access to Mt. Bachelor. Running around Bend’s Old Mill District is an easy and flat warm-down. (photos, from top: Anelise Bergin/Mt. Bachelor, LOGE, Visit Central Oregon)

OREGON

HOODOO SKI AREA Known by the motto “Steep, Deep and Cheap,” Hoodoo is a budget alternative to the popular Mt. Bachelor. It has thirty-six runs, 800 skiable acres and five lifts. On the Santiam Pass, Hoodoo’s base elevation is 4,700 feet. Though Hoodoo gets an average annual snowfall of 450 inches, the resort struggles with weather patterns atop the Santiam Pass. When the snow is plentiful, Hoodoo is a classic small-resort experience. Just 21 miles northwest of Sisters, Hoodoo gives its skiers and riders a thrilling day at the slopes and the benefits of being close to the cozy Western town of Sisters. Peak holiday adult lift tickets are $70, kids (8-12) $40. Kids 7 and younger are free. Keep in mind that Thrifty Thursdays passes from January to March are just $29. The lodging options for Hoodoo include FivePine Lodge in Sisters, a boutique property with beautiful and modern facilities tucked into a quiet wooded area. Up the road and closer to Hoodoo is Black Butte Ranch, a luxury destination resort with vacation rentals, restaurants and more. There is a Best Western on the edge of town, too. Both Black Butte Ranch and FivePine Lodge have trails immediately outside your door for a stroll into the forest. They also both have amazing spas to leave the real world far behind.

When the snow is plentiful, Hoodoo is a classic small-resort experience. Just 21 miles northwest of Sisters, Hoodoo gives its skiers and riders a thrilling day at the slopes and the benefits of being close to the cozy Western town of Sisters.

Mt. Hood Meadows is a sprawling terrain for all levels and types of skiers. (photo: Richard Hallman/Mt. Hood Meadows)

MT. HOOD MEADOWS Hood River could arguably be considered the winter bedroom community for Mt. Hood Meadows ski area, 35 scenic miles south. Meadows, as it’s known, has 2,150 acres of terrain, 2,777 vertical, 11 lifts and 87 trails. Its reputation soars with advanced skiers as its terrain offers a lot in the expert range. Ticket prices vary as Meadows now uses dynamic pricing based on demand. If your family is just starting to ski or snowboard, you might check out Cooper Spur Mountain Resort on the north side of Mt. Hood. It has 10 runs, 350 feet of vertical and alpine lessons. Passes are $49 for adults and $39 for kids ages 7-14. Lodging in Hood River begins with the handsome and historic Hood River Hotel downtown. Not

only is this a stylish and comfortable redoubt, if you’re already a season pass holder at Meadows, you’ll get 15 percent off your room rate. The adjacent Nordic restaurant, Broder Øst, is more reason to make this your lodging destination. The Best Western Plus makes our list because of its gentle vistas of the Columbia River and its proximity to pFriem Brewery, one of the best in Oregon’s competitive field. Water has a calming effect after a long day on the mountain. Hood River Waterfront Park runs alongside the rolling Columbia. If the wind isn’t too strong and the temperature too low, this walk will help you relax and unwind. For body wellness, look to Spa Remedease at the beautiful setting of the Columbia Gorge Hotel. Hood River Hotel is a historic inn with a stylish flare and surrounded by great dining options. (photo: Hood River Hotel)

FROM TOP FivePine Lodge is a quiet wooded retreat in Sisters. Hoodoo has drops and family-friendly prices. (photos, from top: Visit Central Oregon, Hoodoo Ski Area)

6 SKI NORTHWEST 2022

Find your fun. From the world-class skiing at Mt. Hood Meadows to a world of hospitality and culture waiting below, Hood River is your destination for discovery.

OREGON

Cozy up at the rustic Lake of the Woods Resort. (photo: Lake of the Woods Resort)

KLAMATH FALLS Just up the road from Klamath Falls lie mountains of winter fun. From Crater Lake National Park to Willamette Pass Ski Area, this area gives you options and beauty like few others. Crater Lake is known for its perennial deep, deep snow and the glorious challenge of skiing or snowshoeing its rim during winter. Though it does take planning, chutzpah and endurance, it is a bucket list experience. Snowshoe outings are led

ANTHONY LAKES MOUNTAIN RESORT The base of Anthony Lakes just north of Baker City in Eastern Oregon begins at 7,100 feet, which ain’t nothing. The oldschool ski area feels a little like the one you grew up with, but with a twist. The terrain can get a little steep. The snow can get very deep, and the backcountry or cat skiing can be top-shelf pow pow. One triple chair serves twenty-one runs and 1,100 acres. Anthony Lakes’ Starbottle Saloon in the lodge is itself worth the journey.

SKI NORTHWEST 2022

Snowshoeing at Crater Lake can be done in small outings or as a multi-day circumnavigation of the lake. (photo: Discover Klamath)

by a Ranger, starting at 1 p.m. on Saturdays and Sundays. Crater Lake Lodge is open year-round, but you will need to book far in advance. The park’s café is open 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., the visitor center from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. For old-school fun alpine skiing, head to Willamette Pass Ski Area.

Baker City is your home base 35 miles southeast of the resort, where the historic Geiser Grand Hotel will nicely feed this nostalgic ski vacation. First opened in 1889, Geiser Grand today retains the splendor of centuries gone by. Also, if you’ve already made the trek and never been to the Oregon Trail Interpretive Center, you should not miss this detour, about 9 miles outside of Baker City. A trail outside of the center leads to actual wagon tracks from the Oregon Trail. That should be a grounding experience for all and a historic ending to a nostalgic ski trip through time.

It has four lifts and a magic carpet accessing 555 skiable acres. About two-thirds of all trails are intermediate or beginner level, with the backside trails more tailored for expert skiers and snowboarders. Adult day passes (ages 11-64) are $66. Kids 6-10 are $44. If rustic is your fancy, Lake of the Woods Resort will appeal

Anthony Lakes is old-school skiing at its finest. The Nordic trails are fantastic, too! (photo: Alyssa Henry)

to your senses. Tucked into the mountains west of Klamath Falls and sitting on the edge of Lake of the Woods, each of the thirty-three cabins on the property has its own character. Some of the cabins have gas stoves to cozy up to for a drink, or stay warm under down comforters and Pendleton blankets.

EASTERN OREGON P OWDER AWAITS...

AnthonyLakes.com

FULL SERVICE DAY LODGE ALPINE & NORDIC YURT RENTALS CAT TRIPS

TravelBakerCounty.com T

Photo by: Chelsea Judy

WASHINGTON MT. ADAMS Big huckers take to Mt. Adams for backcountry joie de vivre. (photo: Jason Hummel Photography/State of Washington Tourism)

A lesser-known winter recreation area is on and around the Mt. Adams glacier in south central Washington. Just 23 miles north of the Columbia River town of White Salmon, the Mt. Adams Ranger District offers a winter playground for those who want to ditch the crowds and chairlift service. The southern shoulder of the mountain has a half dozen sno-parks, where you can cross-country ski or snowshoe. For backcountry skiers, Mt. Adams, the second tallest mountain in the state, offers mostly expert-level exertion and thrills. No lift lines here and no exorbitant day-pass either. For families who have put time into backcountry safety and avalanche training, they will celebrate this peak as a holiday destination and gift. To be fair, there are a couple of low-angle runs, but they require the same backcountry training and gear as the expert runs. Be sure to get your sno-park permit for parking. Retire to the cool kickback town of White Salmon for a much-deserved craft beer and burger. Everybody’s Brewing (and its new brewery) is the place to relax with really good beer in a modern rustic setting.

10 SKI NORTHWEST 2022

YOUR ADVENTURE BEGINS IN THE

METHOW VALLEY

o t e m ho

NORTH AMERICA'S LARGEST CROSS-COUNTRY SKI AREA

120+ miles of groomed trails kids ski free winter fun for everyone

www.methowtrails.org

DREAMING OF A WHITE SALMON 40 MILES SOUTH = 5 SKI RESORTS

30 MILES NORTH = 154 MILES OF GROOMED SNOWMOBILES TRAILS, 10 MILES OF GROOMED SKI TRAILS, AND ENDLESS MILES OF SNOW FOR SNOWSHOEING ADVENTURES.

XS Mountain Town

WhiteSalmon_Dreaming_Ad.indd 1

XL Culinary Scene

8/19/22 3:14 PM

WASHINGTON

WHITE PASS SKI AREA Less than an hour west of Yakima, White Pass Ski Area sets up nicely for families, with half of its runs intermediate, a third beginner and a smattering of advanced runs. In all, there are 1,400 skiable acres, with 2,000 feet of vertical covering six chairlifts and 45 runs. White Pass’s Nordic skiing comprises 18 kilometers of groomed skinny skiing. For those who want to get in the maximum number of turns, book a rental condo at White Pass Village Inn directly across the road from the ski resort. Otherwise, head into Yakima, where there are many compelling options. The Hotel Y, Ledgestone Hotel and Hotel Maison are just a few. Serenity Day Spa is a good place to unwind from the day’s bump and grind. Or set your mind at ease at the Yakima Area Arboretum, along the banks of the Yakima River, open all days and from dawn to dusk. AT RIGHT White Pass Ski Area’s other act is Nordic skiing in an amazing setting. (photo: Jason Hummel Photography/State of Washington Tourism)

METHOW VALLEY When the skis get skinnier and the trails get longer, you’re in the heart of Nordic country. One of the world’s best expressions of Nordic ski terrain is Methow Valley, where groomed trails wind more than 100 miles along the Methow River around the floor of the valley and into the surrounding forests. The string of towns along this part of the valley are Mazama, Winthrop and Twisp. Here, you are in a Nordic mecca in the Pacific Northwest. You can also find many kilometers of trails outside of Sun Mountain Lodge northwest of Winthrop. Book this lodge and you’ll find that many rooms

SKI NORTHWEST 2022

have gas fireplaces and hot tubs and the lodge has two outdoor heated pools. Back in Winthrop, the rustic River’s Edge Resort or Methow River Lodge puts you on the banks of the Chewuch and Methow rivers respectively and with hot tubs overlooking the calming rivers. Walk down to the community ice rink on the Susie Stephens Trail and, if you’re comfortable with ice skates, glide around the outdoor rink, taking in the fantastic Methow Valley all around you. When you’re ready for relaxation, indulge in Sun Mountain Lodge’s full spa for some body work.

CR +

ABOVE Nordic skiing in the Methow Valley is unmatched in the state of Washington. AT LEFT Sun Mountain Lodge is one of the best ways to experience the area. (photo, above: Jason Hummel Photography/State of Washington Tourism; photo, at left: OCTC)

Project is funded totally or in part, as applicable, by the Okanogan County Hotel/Motel Lodging Tax Fund

LARGEST

CROSS-COUNTRY TRAIL SYSTEM IN NORTH AMERICA + 2 FAMILY-FRIENDLY SKI HILLS

FREE MAPS AND GUIDES!

Call 888.431.3080, Scan the QR Code, or visit OkanoganCountry.com to start planning your adventure today!

Warm up in Yakima after your day at White Pass. Lodging, dining, wineries, breweries and more await you down the mountain.

fea

tra

PLAN YOUR TRIP AT VISITYAKIMA.COM

Wilderness

luxury at the edge of the wilderness

DISCOVER THE EDGE OF THE

Consider Sun Mountain Lodge your home base for exploring the Methow Valley. The area features over 200 kilometers of groomed cross-country skiing, snowshoeing, and fat tire biking trails; your outdoor winter adventure is only limited by your imagination. Scan the QR code or visit sunmountainlodge.com to plan the ultimate winter getaway today. 800.572.0493 | sunmountainlodge.com

IDAHO

MCCALL Many people take McCall as a summer fling—paddleboards, water skiing and beach volleyball. They are half right. For winter explorers, McCall is a playground and a cozy respite from everyday stress. Once a brothel-and-booze warren of the early 1900s, McCall underwent a transformation that brought four-season recreation to the fore. The small town on the edge of Payette National Forest curves around the southern bank of Payette Lake, 100 hundred miles north of the bustle of Boise. To the northwest of McCall is Brundage Mountain Resort, known for its high base, deep snow, a nearly 2,000-foot vertical drop, horse-drawn sleigh rides and elegant four-course dinners at the secluded Bear’s Den cabin. For those who prefer skinnier skis, McCall has fantastic groomed Nordic trails nearby.

SKI NORTHWEST 2022

Little Bear Basin, Ponderosa State Park and Jug Mountain Ranch are just a few areas where novice to novel skiers can kick and glide through amazing outdoor scenes. Due to its extensive trail network, McCall is also a mecca for fat biking and snowshoeing. Meadow Marsh in Ponderosa State Park is scenic and close. The park has 3.4 miles of snowshoe trails and another 12 miles groomed for Nordic skiing. McCall’s winter appeal also comes from its warm, cozy retreats at the end of the day. Burgdorf Hot Springs is a bucket list destination. In winter, the resort is accessible only by snowmobile and has fifteen rustic cabins with wood stoves, firewood and spare furnishings. Both Cheap Thrills and CM Backcountry Rentals offer daily snowmobile rentals, but be prepared to spend $200 for the machine.

FROM TOP Brundage Mountain Resort is known for its high base and deep snow. Take a dip in Burgdorf Hot Springs, accessible only by snowmobile in winter. McCall is also a great destination for showshoeing with the family. (photos: Visit Idaho)

Make tracks, make memories.

Book your McCall, Id winter vacation at

visitmccall.org

Stay Ski Stay & & Ski Packages Packages FROM $174* *Per Person, based on double occupancy

Sign the McCall Promise and help us preserve this special place. The MCCall Promise

#travelresponsibly

CANADA

AT LEFT Fernie offers 2,500 acres of lift-service terrain. ABOVE FROM TOP Fernie is a stunner in the Canadian Rockies and more affordable with the exchange rate. Spirits at the other-worldly Ice Bar at Fernie. (photos, clockwise from left: Fernie Alpine Resort, Henry Georgi/Fernie Alpine Resort, Matt Kuhn)

FERNIE ALPINE RESORT Located 242 miles northeast of Spokane in the Lizard Range of the Canadian Rockies, Fernie Alpine Resort is renowned for its huge annual snowfall that averages 30 feet. Of course, you’ll only need the top 3 or 4 feet of wispy powder to make it the best ski experience ever. Fernie is a complete village resort with ski services, lodging, dining, bars and a grocery store, and its skiing covers all types of

terrain. The lift-service alpine area has 2,500 skiable acres, with 3,550 vertical, 142 runs and a few restaurants on the mountain. Finish with fire and ice. At Cirque Restaurant & Bar, warm up with flaming cocktails and spectacular mountain views. Then slip on a parka and walk straight into the Ice Bar, built from blocks of ice. Note: Fernie’s remoteness in southeastern British Columbia is another reason to love it.

Fernie is renowned for its huge annual snowfall that averages 30 feet. Of course, you’ll only need the top 3 or 4 feet of wispy powder to make it the best ski experience ever. 18

SKI NORTHWEST 2022

Experience the Canadian Rockies, Fernie Style.

Photo: Matt Kuhn

Over 30 Ft of Snow Annually | 3,550 Vertical Ft | Top Elevation 7,000 Ft 2,500 Acres of Lift Access Terrain & Thousands of Acres for Catskiing

Located in the Rockies of southeast British Columbia, Fernie is known for its deep powder snow and cool local vibe. Just over a 100 miles north of Whitefish & Kalispell, Montana, Fernie is easy to get to. With savings of 20-25% thanks to the great exchange rate, a trip north this winter is well worth it!

Fernie Alpine Resort – 4 Nights Ski-in Ski-Out Suite & 4 Days of Skiing from US$146/night/person.* FWA Catskiing – Single Day Snowcat Skiing from US$424/person, early or late season. Island Lake Catskiing – 2 Nights & 2 Days All-Inclusive from US$1,742/person.* *based on double occupancy

Book today and enjoy a spectacular winter! | VisitFernieBC.com | #ferniestoke

You Love?

KIDS 7 & UNDER

SKI FREE!

FOR DAILY CONDITIONS

1859 Oregon's Magazine + Special Insert: Ski Northwest | November/December 2022

Articles inside

Winter Wanderlust: 8 Resort Getaways Around Oregon

The Grand Bargain: Oregon Heritage for Idaho Power