Remembering this from our last cruise along the Inland Passage to Alaska, it was no surprise that we were sailing in this huge ship within almost a stone’s throw of islands. The ship’s draft is only 26 feet. Amazing that this floating hotel actually floats. They’re so ungainly. But anyway, back to the scenery. These islands are pristine, uninhabited land masses, except for wildlife, I’m sure. But we sailed close enough that even I, as out of shape as I am, could probably swim to shore. The pine trees grow right down to the water’s edge, and all of these islands are just dense with pine trees. Occasionally I spotted a stream or very small waterfall. But mostly just pine trees and more pine trees. Some of the islands are about a 1000 feet high (a guess) and a few had dots of snow at the top.  Some are steep, some more gently sloping. But all are covered in trees. It is so awe-inspiring to see the beauty of nature. This gorgeous land that God made.

This one above was taken from our verandah with a bit of the ship’s superstructure visible. It’s cold out there today, although earlier it was warm enough to sit there for half an hour or so. There are two pools on this ship (one inside and one outside). They’re quite protected from the wind, so people were swimming and sunbathing earlier in both pool areas. Uh, not me. Glancing out the window, I could see snow right down to the water’s edge the further north we got. In a shadowed north facing crevice.

Yesterday we had a sit-down breakfast (we eat less that way than if we visit the buffet lines), and a sit-down lunch too in the dining room. I ordered a chicken Caesar salad. It was not memorable, sad  to say. We were hoping to find wild salmon on the menu, but so far they’ve only had farm-raised. Why would they DO that? Here we are in salmon country and they serve transported farm-raised Atlantic salmon on the menu. I took the opportunity to tell the other guests at our table 2 nights ago about why I wasn’t ordering the farmed salmon. Nobody really seemed to care.

Later . . . They did offer Coho salmon on one of the outdoor decks yesterday, grilled. But they were rather puny pieces, with lots of bones, so we opted not to have any. One of the waiters told us that we will have an opportunity to eat wild salmon on the cruise. I hope that wasn’t the only chance. Last night we had dinner in the Pinnacle Grill (an extra $20 apiece, and it wasn’t full of people). Best meal we’ve had on the ship. I had filet mignon and Dave had salmon (troll-caught). I would have ordered the salmon, but the waiter there also assured me I will be offered troll-caught salmon later in the week, so I got the prime beef instead. Lovely meal.

I managed to get on the internet well enough yesterday. Took just 6 minutes to upload my post, click a few buttons, add tags and check categories before clicking the button to post. Then I checked email and logged off.  This sunset picture was on Saturday night as we were headed directly west.

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Perhaps this photo is a bit blurred? It’s not my picture, so can’t take credit or derision for it.

Late yesterday we boarded the Zuiderdam in Vancouver, BC, and are doing a 7-day Alaska cruise. It’s always fun watching the events as a big cruise ship leaves the dock. There were 3 ships leaving, all within a few minutes of one another. All carefully choreographed so we arrive in the next port at the exact time for tours and shopping. I snapped a bunch of pictures as we departed.

The Vancouver Skyline at the big cruise ship docks as the Zuiderdam backed out of its slip. It was another gorgeous day. We’ve been blessed with clear, sunny skies on this whole trip. Knock on wood!

That’s the Vancouver skyline in the center distance.

There’s our stateroom before we got it all messed up with “stuff.” I’m sitting at that desk over in the far left corner. See me? (Just kidding.) We have a big verandah (the cruise lines are really offering huge deals this summer). Out on our verandah we have 2 reclining chairs with ottomans plus a table and 2 chairs. And room to walk around.  I do have internet access (for a fee – $55 for 100 minutes) but their connection is extremely slow (like dial-up, not high speed in the least). So, depending on how I do for this first upload, we’ll see whether I do much blogging during this next week. I compose the posts on my laptop in Live Writer (beta), even all the photo resizing, etc. So when I upload, all I have to do is tell it when to publish and add tags and categories. But accomplishing all that may take a lot more time than I’m used to. But, from the stateroom I have to go to one of the wi-fi hotspots on the ship to log on.

Today we’re cruising all day, mostly in Tracy Arm, with sightseeing from the decks and our verandah. Probably no animal sightings today. It’s overcast today. So far. When we did this trip 10-15 years ago it rained a couple of the days. We heard it poured rain for 2 straight days last week when this ship made the same journey.

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If you’ve never driven between central Washington over the Cascades, you’re missing some drop-dead gorgeous scenery. We took the scenic route (mostly 2-lane road) rather than the freeway, just because it was more beautiful. The town of Leavenworth is nestled in between two sets of mountain passes, and it’s done-up Bavarian style. The whole town looks like you’re in southern Germany. Even the Starbucks had a Bavarian style font for its sign. The picture above was just west of the town. We followed the Wenatchee River for quite a ways as it meandered through the twisted valleys. We were in both Wenatchee National Forest and Snoqualamie National Forest. Snow still dotted the high peaks. Highway 2 was a beautiful drive (you know, the kind that has a dotted line next to the red highway on the maps).

Here was a pretty pot of flowers, one of dozens dotting the streets of Leavenworth. Their summer is probably shorter than many places since it’s at a bit of altitude. They had hanging pots all over the town. Really very pretty. On our way down the west side of the Cascade Mountains, we stopped in Gold Bar and enjoyed a halibut sandwich at a funky roadside stand. Then continued on west. And that only after getting caught in horrendous bumper-to-bumper Friday-afternoon-traffic heading out of town (Seattle), which continued for at least 30 miles. Not fun, trust me.

Here was one of the street scenes in Leavenworth. Very cute town, and certainly off the beaten path.

We stayed the night in La Conner, a tiny town, but one I remembered from years ago when I used to live near here (for about 3 years back in the mid 1960’s). Even then La Conner was a kind of art colony. Now it’s a charming little resort kind of village. We had dinner at Seeds Bistro, (another recommendation on Trip Advisor), where we met a charming member of the wait staff, Rachel. She went to school at Pt. Loma Nazarene in San Diego (when I graduated it was the original college on the site, California Western University). Anyway, Seeds offered some great food. Very cute place with outdoor seating.

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We’re actually a hundred miles or so from here now. In the Yakima Valley. We wine tasted some. We drove in the blistering heat (thank goodness for A/C in the car). We bought wine at Canoe Ridge in Walla Walla before we left there yesterday morning, that will be shipped home. Dave tasted wine at Millbrandt and had some shipped from Thurston Wolf And I think we’re topped up. Or tapped out. On wine. Not that we won’t have some with our dinner, but I think we’re done with wine tasting. Unless we make the side trip to Woodinville (near Seattle) to taste DeLille. That’ll be later today. We’ll see how interested we are in wine by that time. After we’ve gone over the mountain passes, breathed in the pristine clean air at higher altitudes. Hopefully COOOL air. Lordy, it’s hot in this part of the country.

One of my readers, Cindee J, suggested we stop in Zillah to see a national historical landmark, a funky previous gas station, in the shape of a teapot, called Teapot Dome. Looked cute as a bug from pictures  she sent me. The signs indicated which exit, but the directions stopped just as we got off the freeway. We drove around some, and couldn’t find it. Drove the full length of the town of Zillah and waited for 10 minutes at a dead stop for road construction to clear so we could continue. Guess I should have stopped to ask directions from somebody. So, sorry Cindee. We tried.

We stayed in a nondescript motel/hotel in Selah. We had a marginal steak dinner at a local eatery. And did I mention it was HOT? Get me back toward ocean.

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Our first night in Walla Walla, we ate at Saffron, a Mediterranean restaurant a couple of blocks from 2nd Street, the main drag of Walla Walla. It was off-the-charts delicious. The menu was unusual – it contained numerous items that you won’t see on most restaurant menus.

I started off with a glass of house made sangria. This was no plop-a-piece-of-fruit-on-top kind of sangria. But one that contained a variety of local, seasonal fruit, obviously marinated for some time before serving. It was a tall glass, an ample serving. And really good. Dave and I shared an arugula salad with fresh spring peas (pictured above), some shaved cheese and some thinly sliced prosciutto on top. It was very tasty. A bit too much dressing for me, but it was good nevertheless.

Dave ordered a steak with kale and beans on the side. The kale was tender and barely cooked, so it still had form and texture. I ordered a guinea hen which was tender and juicy, and served on a bed of farro (perfectly toothsome), some smoked bacon and a few shreds of hearty greens (maybe more kale) as well. I wanted to eat every bite, but couldn’t finish it. It was too dark in the restaurant to take a picture, and I don’t do flash. Too rude, I think.

Dessert was a delish panna cotta made into a pie with an amaretti cookie crust. It was perfectly sweetened, a small serving which was fine with me, and a nice ending to a very special meal. With the wine and tax, our dinner was $106. I’d go back there for another dinner if I visit Walla Walla again.

 Saffron, 125 West Alder Street, Walla Walla Washington 99362, Phone: 509.525.2112

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Our second night in Walla Walla we went to Brasserie 4, a very cute French bistro restaurant in downtown Walla Walla. A very different menu again, not the usual French fare. Certainly bistro food, though. Only 3 dinner selections (bouillabaisse, mussels frites and steak frites), but they had several appetizers, some cold plates, some nice sounding salads, croque monseurs and two quiche of the day offerings.

We ended up ordering a charcuterie plate (which would have been enough to serve about 6 people, I think). I wish they had offered a smaller portion but also some cheese. But that’s not the French way (cheese is only served after dinner, I believe). Then I ordered their freshly made cold baby turnip soup (picked that morning from the chef’s mother’s personal garden). Dave had French onion soup, which he proclaimed delicious. My soup was sensational. We’ve been eating so well these last few days, we called it quits after that. We were both contentedly full. The restaurant doesn’t have a website, but here’s Trip Advisor’s comments.

Brasserie 4, 4 E. Main St., Walla Walla, WA 99362, Phone:  509.529.2011

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What a cute place this is. Charming atmosphere, spacious rooms, delightful patio if the weather cooperates, and some very fine dining. And very pleasant hosts as well. Alexa and Charles are a perfect pair – she runs the front of the house and he’s the professional chef who will prepare dinner for guests (by prior arrangement) and does lots of catering on the side too. And likely the recipes for breakfast are his, although they have an assistant who does the actual cooking each morning.

The inn has several guest rooms, a spacious dining room, a beautiful kitchen, and tucked in the back is a professional catering kitchen where Charles does most of the catering/cooking for events and dinners. One of the nights we stayed they were entertaining two different groups for dinner. So there was no room for us to have dinner with them. But if breakfast is any indication, the dinners are likely to be special. Just reserve it in advance.

The B&B breakfast was very nice – a quiche, some fresh biscuits and scones, fresh fruit, and an apple bread pudding (which they make from the leftover scones and was the standout of the breakfast offering, in my book). Copious amounts of coffee, of course, and friendly conversation with the other B&B guests.

Dave is thinking we need to make this an annual event – visiting the wineries in Oregon and Washington. Each time we come there are more new wineries to try. This area is just getting into high gear with high-tech tasting rooms, although some are still a kind of barn-like affair too. Something like Napa Valley used to be about 30 years ago.

During the daytime we visited just two wineries, both in downtown. Dave had a copious list, and specific wines he wanted to try. No way could we go tasting in 6 wineries and sample everything they had to offer. He sampled one or two in each place, with little more than an ounce. We can’t buy much wine because we would not want to leave it in the hot car anywhere. So we’re buying just enough to enjoy next week.

The Fat Duck Inn, 527 Catherine St., Walla Walla, WA, Phone: 888.526.8718

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Sakura Ridge - the B&B on the left - the owner's home on the right

In the last couple of years I’ve become a regular reader of Trip Advisor – the website that contains nothing but user reviews of hotels, restaurants, and things to do in places around the world. Whenever we’re traveling and I want guidance, I go there to read what others have had to say about a particular B&B, or to get ideas about restaurants. Having never stayed in Hood River before, I searched for the low-down on B&B’s, our preferred kind of accommodations. There were other places I considered, but in the end I kept reading rave reviews about Sakura Ridge.

The couple who own it have lived in the area for a long time. Deanna and John Joyer have a working organic cherry orchard. It’s a large spread, including lots of bee hives for pollination too. In yesterday’s post I had one picture of Sakura Ridge and one picture of Mt. Hood. The B&B is located on a mountain top and has just a spectacular view of the mountain. It’s so close you feel like you could reach out and touch it.

The original part of the home was a “kit home,” the kind of log cabin style that comes in a huge shipment, everything you need, to build a home. Then you put it together. You might need help from an electrician and a plumber, and maybe laying a foundation, but it’s  a nice home for a relatively moderate price, so I hear. Anyway, the Joyers bought the property with the log home, added onto it at some point and now they have their own side of the house (also log) and the 6-bedroom kit cabin is the B&B. They’re seamlessly joined together and you’d hardly know it was once a separate part Makes a perfect adjunct to their living quarters. The whole house has a clean, finished look and ambiance, though. There really isn’t anything about it that feels like a cabin. It’s home; a large home at that.

Anyway, the rooms are lovely. The environs spectacular, that’s all I can say. If you’re ever in the neighborhood, you should make a point to stay. Deanna served a extremely tasty breakfast (3 couples were overnighting there) which included some fresh greens, strawberries, herbs, etc. from her own large garden. We enjoyed a piece of a potato and kale quiche, some small sturgeon and salmon cakes, the greens, ample fresh fruit, including the just picked strawberries, rustic toast and a bowl of Deanna’s home made granola and yogurt. And, of course, some hot coffee or tea. She also included a small banana and berry smoothie for each guest too.

The B&B is located several miles outside of Hood River off relatively straight roads. No particular mountain curves, but you come over the crest of the hill and there in all its glory is Mt. Hood. And the B&B nestled in the cherry orchard.

Sakura Ridge Farm & Lodge
5602 York Hill Dr.
Hood River, OR 97031
Phone: 541 386-2636

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Driving through the Hood River (and Gorge), we stopped beside the river briefly and here’s what met my eyes. Temp: 65. Sunny, Warm. Comfortable. Not a person in sight. Below is Mt. Hood.

After reaching the Columbia River (inland from Portland) we stopped in the town of Hood River. Had a delicious lunch at the Hood River Hotel cafe. Sat outside and enjoyed glasses of lovely local wine. Visited one winery (not memorable) and then off we went to our pre-reserved B&B. Once we topped the ridge, that is the scene. Is that not spectacular? As I’m writing this, it’s 5 pm, we’ve already had enough wine today. Dave is out on the porch (where I took the picture of Mt. Hood) reading and I’m about to join him.

The B&B, called Sakura Ridge Lodge, is located high on a mountain knoll, faces Mt. Hood. Upstairs there is the community living and dining area. Our room is downstairs, in the kind of dark area just in the center of the picture. The Mt. Hood room. What a gorgeous place.

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Roadside waterfall on Rogue River

If you drive north out of Medford, Oregon, you’ll go through some really beautiful forests. Part of the road parallels, or snakes next to, the Rogue River. It’s a 2-lane road, hard to view the scenery and still pay attention to the driving. But this scene popped up just beside the road and I quick-like pulled over and hiked back to this view.

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