Of Kiwi Vineyards

The other day I was thinking about kiwi--

specifically our kiwi--

and wondering if they were ripe enough to harvest yet.

 

And then a combined business/pleasure trip took us into the so called "Wine Country" region.

And on one of the many roads we found ourselves on,

I saw a sign,

and knew we would have to make a detour.

So after time on a ranch near Trask Mountain,

time on part of the Nestucca River Back Country Byway

(both definitely God's country),

a visit to a wonderful bakery

(yum!),

and time elsewhere in this pretty area,

we found ourselves at the awesome kiwi farm we first found about 4 years ago...

 

 

The weather was not as a sunny as when I took these photos in 2011,

but the baby kiwi looked just as yummy!

 

 

 

And, this time I didn't stroll through the kiwi vineyard--

but my friend did and picked me some baby kiwi

BIG time yummy in a little, completely edible package).

 

 

The owner, as always, was informative and gave me the information I needed about harvest time--

yippee I can wait awhile longer!

 

 

He asked me, did I prune my kiwi vines this year?

No--but I promised to do so this winter:)

 

 

 I asked him about his magnificent and most delectable kiwi honey--

Yep, this coming week! 

 

 

And, then, we drove out --

making our way through wine grape vineyards and forests...

but we knew we'd be back soon to get more baby kiwi and kiwi honey.

 

 

Mmm, kiwi--it's one of the best things about autumn!

 

Blessings,

Aimee

 

Note:

A BIG thanks for HB + K Farms for their continued hospitality

and for allowing me to post the photos taken on their farm in 2009 and 2012.

They are open daily, 9 AM-5PM through the harvest season

(which is now through sometime in November if it's like last year).

Their address is 10794 Worden Hill Rd, Dundee, OR

 

Coming at some point (LOL):

Scandinavian rosemaling

Mt. Angel and other misc. late summer trips--a few pictures

(saving this for those REALLY rainy days I know that will keep me home)

Autumn Colors in the SUN

(I should save this for those rainy days too--to lift my spirits)

First Autumn Journey of 2013

(part sun, part storm--always filled with blessings)

 

Have a great weekend!

If you're in the western PNW stay warm and dry the next few days:)

 

Last Journey of Summertime

It was a very busy end to summer

and autumn is off to a busy start too--

thanks to a dream of mine that came true not too long ago:)

(thank you God)

 

But that dream-come-true is not the subject of today's post.

Instead the last crazy, busy days of summer--

or at least ONE of those last crazy, busy days of summer is!

 

It all started with a busy evening and early morning on the Internet-

which was followed by a wonderful, but sometimes chilly day in one of my favorite coastal areas

where we enjoyed the best fish and chips EVER at Bowpicker

(nom, nom--yum, yum)

and found this little guy:)

 

 

We ate it (no, not the little guy) on a bench overlooking the Columbia River

from where we could see the huge Astoria-Megler Bridge

(I have a love-hate relationship with this bridge.

Love to take photos of it; HATE to cross it--so I don't anymore)

 

 

the state of Washington

(right across the river from us),

the river traffic

(always fun to watch)

and more!

I ADORE Astoria!!!

 

 And, of course, since we were so close--

we had to make one of my favorite side trips a bit to the east to the island....

 

There is just something about this place that draws me in and captivates me--

and being the very determined genealogist I am,

 led me to hours and hours of research on the Internet till I solved the mystery of how it came to be.

 

Of course, since we were already in the area another stop was called for...

unfortunately no eagles were in sight though!

However, further west we found lots of singing sea lions

(I have the video to prove it).

And, we did have to stop at my favorite Scandinavian bakery to get some

fattigmann and Finnish pinwheels (tarts)--Mmm!

They were yummy--down to the very last one:)

 

Out to Fort Stevens where my granddaughter and a my best friend's grandson took some time to run

and play in and around the wreck of the Peter Iredale.

(grounded in 1906 with NO lost of lives thankfully--although I found out from the Park Ranger two lives were lost later on from people who were trying to do salvage work there).

 

The beach was actually warmer then the place we had lunch at,

and I had a great time talking to the Park Ranger and seeing some AWESOME photos of the ship after a storm that unearthed a huge amount of the ship. I had no idea how much of the ship is buried under the sand--amazing!

I have such good memories from time spent on this very same beach and it is so much fun to see my grandkids playing in the same area my family once played at:)

 

Life is such a precious gift don't you think?

 

 

What a beautiful world we live in!

 

 

And we're just at the beginning of autumn--

one of my favorite times to explore that beautiful world!

 

What's happening at your place?

 

Blessings,

Aimee

 

Photos:

September 2013.

Taken at various locations in and around Astoria, Oregon and the northern coast range.

 

Notes:

Just getting back into a semi-normal routine (LOL) so am still playing catch up.

Wish me luck:)