First, we stopped at Pioneer Village in Ferndale which was a bit of a let down after just being in Mississippi where American history goes back to the late 18th/early 19th century. "History" up here (not counting the Native Americans) only goes back to the late 19th ce
ntury/early 20th century. However, you have to applaud the Ferndale businessman who moved a large number of early pioneer buildings to create this village in a park like atmosphere. Drake actually talked to a guy who confided that one of the buil
dings was his grandmother's house. I thought the flower balls which line Main Street in Ferndale were much more interesting than Pioneer Village.
ntury/early 20th century. However, you have to applaud the Ferndale businessman who moved a large number of early pioneer buildings to create this village in a park like atmosphere. Drake actually talked to a guy who confided that one of the buil
dings was his grandmother's house. I thought the flower balls which line Main Street in Ferndale were much more interesting than Pioneer Village.Ferndale also had another attraction - Hovender Fragrance Garden. This is a small park outside of town which was at one point a working farm. It's now a labor of love 
by a small group of gardeners who are growing amazing, amazing flowers. They claim that this area is the most conducive to flower gardening in the entire country. Well, I don't know about that, but the flowers were spectacular. Here's one picture, but I'll be sharing an entire album of flower pictures I took at this garden with selected friends who will be interested. I did discover what makes this place 'fragrant' is that there are extensive herbs grown. I'd never seen horseradish growing before - and the large lettuce like leaves smell intensely like the freshest horseradish imaginable. I thought of the cooking afficianados I know when I was wandering this portion of the garden.
by a small group of gardeners who are growing amazing, amazing flowers. They claim that this area is the most conducive to flower gardening in the entire country. Well, I don't know about that, but the flowers were spectacular. Here's one picture, but I'll be sharing an entire album of flower pictures I took at this garden with selected friends who will be interested. I did discover what makes this place 'fragrant' is that there are extensive herbs grown. I'd never seen horseradish growing before - and the large lettuce like leaves smell intensely like the freshest horseradish imaginable. I thought of the cooking afficianados I know when I was wandering this portion of the garden. Moving on - we decided to wander around the back country roads as we wound our way to Birch Bay. Boy, am I glad we did. We stumbled on the Pleasant Valley Dairy which was selling cheese! That was a first for me. I thought you could only get it at the grocery store. We met Jenny who, with her husband and two small daughters, own a family farm of registered dairy cattle. Her grandmother-in-law first started selling cheese she made in the 1970's, and she passed down her recipes. The cheese is outstanding. Jenny makes several different kinds (including feta - one of Sarah's favorites), gouda, farmstead, and mutschli. She flavors the gouda and we bought two flavors - Herbe (onion, parsley, celery and garlic), and wait for it.......jalapeno! The plain gouda is also so good we bought a bit of that too. She confided that she even has some cheese that has aged for 3 years. She called it "stinky cheese" and admits it's a better cooking cheese. I took her word for it. She does 'ship', and if you want to try it email her at cheese98248@yahoo.com. The web site is coming on line soon. The cheese was a welcome addition to our lunch, and we are planning a dinner tonight of cheese/crackers and fresh strawberries we bought at a roadside stand. The berries (Barb's Berries) came right out of the fields.
Our next stop, Birch Bay, was the first time I've ever seen 'mud flats' in person. It is created by low tide in a protected bay like this one. Wh
at really, really excited me was that the beach is PEBBLES. Wow. Is that right up my alley, or what? And, yes, I did get a few rocks. They are so cool. Some are two types of rock fused together. Oh, I'll quit - you all know how I am about rocks. Drake says he's going to start calling me "Lucy" because of my habit of picking up rocks just like Lucy did in the movie The Long, Long Trailer that she made with Desi in the early 1950's. This movie was the impetus for the I Love Lucy series on TV. If you haven't seen it, it's a quaint hoot. I do want to stress that I'm collecting pebbles, not big ROCKS. There's a difference.
at really, really excited me was that the beach is PEBBLES. Wow. Is that right up my alley, or what? And, yes, I did get a few rocks. They are so cool. Some are two types of rock fused together. Oh, I'll quit - you all know how I am about rocks. Drake says he's going to start calling me "Lucy" because of my habit of picking up rocks just like Lucy did in the movie The Long, Long Trailer that she made with Desi in the early 1950's. This movie was the impetus for the I Love Lucy series on TV. If you haven't seen it, it's a quaint hoot. I do want to stress that I'm collecting pebbles, not big ROCKS. There's a difference.No tour day would be complete for me without a museum, and we found a great lunch spot at Semiahmoo Park. This park included the Alaskan Pacific Association Musuem which is really all about early Washington State salmon fishermen and canners. (They moved up to Alaska from Washington after the salmon fishing methods changed. It was reall
y a very interesting place. There was an actual salmon fishing boat - like an extended rowboat, really. The fisherman would lower gill nets, haul in salmon, load the fish into open compartments in his small boat, and when full then off load the fish onto pickup boats, and start all over again. They 
would stay out on the ocean for a week or more at a time during the 'season' in these small boats. I can't imagine the smell. Another interesting feature of this museum was that it sported a Semiahmoo totem pole called Salmon Woman out front. Now, this museum is about serious fishing and they have bronzed a 57 pound salmon (largest caught in this area), and it won a prize at the Pacific Exposition of 1915. I've included a picture just for you fisherfolk.
y a very interesting place. There was an actual salmon fishing boat - like an extended rowboat, really. The fisherman would lower gill nets, haul in salmon, load the fish into open compartments in his small boat, and when full then off load the fish onto pickup boats, and start all over again. They 
would stay out on the ocean for a week or more at a time during the 'season' in these small boats. I can't imagine the smell. Another interesting feature of this museum was that it sported a Semiahmoo totem pole called Salmon Woman out front. Now, this museum is about serious fishing and they have bronzed a 57 pound salmon (largest caught in this area), and it won a prize at the Pacific Exposition of 1915. I've included a picture just for you fisherfolk.The prettiest town we saw today was Lynden. This town was settled by the Dutch and as we enjoyed ice cream, I noticed that all the natives seemed blond 
haired and round faced - facial and hair characteristics of most of the Dutch people I saw in Holland. They also have maintained that sense of precise order and cleanliness that seems a hallmark of the Dutch. I didn't see a single piece of trash much less a dead flower or unpruned tree, or peeling sign or even anything that wasn't at a 90 degree angle. This town also has a wonderful shaded street that goes on forever with overarching 40 foot trees lining both sides of the road. I include the picture of the windmill because another characteristic of the Dutch is that they have a wacko sense of humor which always seems at odds with their devotion to order and beauty.We'll be coming back here in August to enjoy the 100th anniversary of their county fair.
haired and round faced - facial and hair characteristics of most of the Dutch people I saw in Holland. They also have maintained that sense of precise order and cleanliness that seems a hallmark of the Dutch. I didn't see a single piece of trash much less a dead flower or unpruned tree, or peeling sign or even anything that wasn't at a 90 degree angle. This town also has a wonderful shaded street that goes on forever with overarching 40 foot trees lining both sides of the road. I include the picture of the windmill because another characteristic of the Dutch is that they have a wacko sense of humor which always seems at odds with their devotion to order and beauty.We'll be coming back here in August to enjoy the 100th anniversary of their county fair. We meandered back to Bellingham, and if this day is any indication, we are going to have a splendid time up here. There is an amazing amount of stuff to do. I can hardly wait to get out on some of the hiking trails. There will be a blog hiatus as we get moved (tomorrow) to the new apartment, recover a bit, and then we leave for Oregon on Friday the 15th to attend a much anticipated family wedding.
2 comments:
A bit off topic, but whenever we would visit Colorado and drive through Estes Park, we always hit Dick's Rock Museum and bought something for each of the girls. Growing up in Colorado, geology (e.g. "rocks") was something in which many people took an interest and delight. Fred W
My apartment is also becoming quite cluttered with what we like to call "Rock Sculpters". We arrange them all into something we decide is art and keep them on the bookshelves and mantle. Your not alone Lucy!
I loved hearing about the Dairy Farm and all of the fresh cheese. I would love to do something like that. They have severl Farmers Markets here in the summer. I am going to have to go check one out and see what kind of goods they have. I hear a lot about Alaska Grown, and the local farmers get a lot of support from the community. With Kayleigh here, time is short and busy!
Talk to you soon! Stacy
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