Trip Update

Early Thursday we left Ashland for Klammoth Falls and the one store Dick wanted to visit - a wood store. They had an amazing selection of exotic hardwoods. He bought a custom cut chunk of claro walnut (the owner asked him how much he wanted, grabbed a saw, and hacked it off for him) and ever since, he has been planning in his head the bowl he plans to make. Then it was on to Crater Lake. It is incredibly beautiful; my photos don't even begin to do it justice. Only the south entrance was open due to snow covering most of the rim road; a lot of it will be under snow until the end of July. Thursday night we stayed in Eugene at C'est La Vie, a 'not so Victorian' bed and breakfast about 7 blocks from where Black Sheep Gathering was being held at the fairgrounds. The house, which opened in September 2007 after a from-the-ground-up make-over, is gorgeous and the grounds are even more spectacular, with a waterfall in front and a miniature train running in the back yard. The husband is the gardener and he spent almost every daylight hour lovingly planting and tending the yard. I almost hate to say how wonderful this place is; there are only 4 rooms and if everyone finds out about it, how can we stay there again next year?!?

I spent most of Friday at the wool show, listening as the judge graded the natural colored fleece. I learned a lot (who knew what a 'purled' fleece was or how to prevent a fleece from 'cotting'??) I did a bit of damage with the vendors too, coming home with some gorgeous yarn. No fleece though - I decided I'd rather have a new lazy-kate, so I'll start looking for that once we're home.

Thunder woke us this morning and the skies have been gray all day; no rain but lots of wind. We spent the morning at a Saturday craft fair in Eugene (the oldest in the country, according to their ads.) (Hey Marie! We got you a present . . .), then headed north. For all of about five miles, before we found an 'antique district' in Coburn (population about 30.) They had some great stores - Dick found several woodworking tools and I got a deviled egg plate and a few glass knick-knacks. At the last shop, the woman noticed by Black Sheep shirt, asked if I was interested in more wool, and then brought out her personal stash of hand-dyed mohair from angora goats she'd raised. Score!

We also took the covered bridge scenic drive through Crawfordsville, Sweet Home and Santiam before ending up in Corvallis, which may just be my favorite Oregon city. Lots of public art (the ducks on the right spin around in the wind; it's mesmerizing to watch), a waterfront with great restaurants (including Aqua Seafood, where we had an amazing dinner), and another great antique store.

The only problem with central Oregon? The pollen count. Dick is suffering more than me, but we're both having problems with the bloomin' cottonwoods and the grass pollen. Can. Not. Wait. to get to the coast tomorrow where - hopefully - the air will be cleaner and we can finally stop sneezing.