1859 Oregon's Magazine + Special Insert: PNW Wine Guide | September/October 2025

Wine Country GETAWAYS

ADVENTURE HAS FOUR SEASONS

 VIEW FROM MOUNT

As autumn paints the landscape in bold reds and golds, Missoula welcomes visitors with crisp air, scenic beauty, and a pace that feels just right. This mountain town is a dynamic mix of culture, cuisine, and outdoor charm, where every street corner has something new to discover. Cozy coffee shops and art galleries fill the historic downtown, while farm-to-table restaurants serve up seasonal flavors that rival any big city. The arts and music scene comes alive as the days grow cooler, and local markets overflow with fall harvests. With golden trails underfoot and wide-open wilderness just beyond the edge of town, Missoula invites you to experience both creativity and connection—to the land, and to something a little deeper.

BOOK YOUR HOTEL NOW. Visit destinationmissoula.org/1859 or call 1.800.526.3465 for more information.

Travel Safely. Explore Responsibly.

DUNROVIN RANCH

SENTINEL

FLORABELLA

ROOFTOP BAR, AC HOTEL

 BIG DIPPER ICE CREAM

DOWNTOWN MISSOULA

An Innovative Abode

by Kaitlin Green and Margo Latka

A stunning revival of the American Quonset hut, once designed for military purposes. (pg. 32)

photography

54

Getaways for Two in Wine Country

These seven destinations o er more than fantastic pinot noir with intriguing lodging for that fall escape. wri en by Jean Chen Smith

The Planted World

Artist Deb Stoner uses technology to enhance how we see nature. The result feels authentic. wri en by Kerry Newberry

Andréa Johnson

DEPARTMENTS

LIVE

16 NOTEBOOK

Pinot & Pups, Portland Book Festival, Precious Byrd reconsidered.

20 FOOD + DRINK

Urban Gleaners, 82 Acres, jazz and beer pairing?

24 FARM TO TABLE

Bridgetown Mushrooms, and recipes for fall.

32 HOME + DESIGN

Rebirth of the Quonset hut.

42 ARTIST IN RESIDENCE

Inger Nova Jorgensen’s sculpture.

THINK

48 MY WORKSPACE

Biodiversity professor Greta Binford.

52 GAME CHANGER

The Ford Family Foundation: giving away books.

EXPLORE

74 TRAVEL SPOTLIGHT

Milkshakes at Fields Station.

78 ADVENTURE

Dory boat fishing, Pacific City.

82 LODGING

Hotel Sylvia, Newport.

84 TRIP PLANNER

Ashland—art thou more than theater?

90 NW DESTINATION

Mount Rainier Scenic Railroad … with whiskey.

COVER photo by Andréa Johnson

Soter Vineyards

(see “Fall for ese Romantic Wine Country Escapes,” pg. 54)

Casa Olea Olea Vineyards

AUBREY JANELLE Photographer

Farm to Table

“Photographing Trevor Huebert of Bridgetown Mushrooms was a delight and an unexpected look into mushroom cultivation. Inside the warehouse, each species thrived. What could have felt industrial instead felt visionary—a space transformed by care, curiosity and creativity, and proof that purpose can grow even in the most unlikely places.” (pg. 24)

Aubrey Janelle is a commercial and editorial photographer based in Portland. She creates imagery for people and brands who want the heart of real stories, with the bones of a sophisticated aesthetic.

CONTRIBUTORS

YU KITO LEE Illustrator Game Changer

“I love how books can take you to faraway places and different moments in history and let you see the world through someone else’s eyes. Through my many visits to the Pacific Northwest over the past decade, I’ve grown deeply fond of this beautiful region. SelectBooks is an incredible program, and I hope my illustration helps more people discover it and find books they truly resonate with.” (pg. 52)

Yu “Yuey” Kito Lee is a Japanese illustrator based in Los Angeles, where she lives with her husband and their three children. She strives to share meaningful stories that bring people closer to their communities and to one another across cultures.

KERRY NEWBERRY Writer

Bugs and Blooms

“When I first saw Deb Stoner’s exquisite photographs of flora and fauna, I was speeding through the airport, and it made me stop in my tracks in awe. Turns out, many travelers respond the same way—Deb gets fan email on a regular basis. It was a thrill to learn more about her intricate process and the narrative behind some of her pieces, especially the one spotlighting Fender’s blue butterfly, a threatened species that’s endemic to the Willamette Valley.” (pg. 62)

Kerry Newberry is a freelance travel and lifestyle writer and co-author of the Oregon Wine + Food Cookbook. She’s based in Portland but frequently found exploring her favorite places in the state, which are often populated by stacks of books and friendly dogs.

MAGGIE WAUKLYN Illustrator

Beerlandia

“It was a beautiful bit of serendipity to receive this issue’s Beerlandia assignment as I’m a big fan of jazz anyway. When I listened through Jeremy Storton’s playlists, I kept thinking about Sadamitsu Neil Fujita’s work—the Mid-century artist who painted many album covers in that era, perhaps most famously Dave Brubeck’s Time Out. I liked the idea of paying homage to him by incorporating design elements that speak to his work. I wanted to capture that feeling you get when you’re zoning out to good music as you unwind at the end of the day.” (pg. 20)

Maggie Wauklyn is a freelance illustrator and full-time jazz enthusiast. She lives and works in Portland.

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 C HEF Thor Erickson

BEERLANDIA COLUMNIST Jeremy Storton

C ONTRIBUTING WRITERS Cathy Carroll, Jean Chen Smith, Melissa Dalton, Joni Kabana, Julie Lee, Kerry Newberry, Daniel O’Neil, Ben Salmon, James Sinks

C ONTRIBUTING PHOTOGRAPHERS Katie Falkenberg, Aubrey Janelle, Andréa Johnson, Tambi Lane, Amanda Loman

CONTRIBUTING ARTISTS Yu Kito Lee, Charla Pettingill, Maggie Wauklyn

Mail

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FROM THE EDITOR

THIS FALL, as you travel to some of your favorites and some new places for recreation, for farmto-table meals and lovely Oregon wines, allow yourself to acknowledge the people and labor it took to make this special for you and your family.

We begin with escaping to Oregon vineyards to swirl, sip and now stay at the increasing number of vineyards that have added intriguing lodging as part of the wine-tasting experience. Turn to page 54, where we take you to seven such destinations where the wine is to die for and the hospitality includes high thread counts.

It’s only a matter of time before the owner of a vineyard borrows the innovative lodging concept and design behind an avant-garde guesthouse we feature in Home + Design on page 32. The former military minimalist Quonset hut is staging a comeback. This time it’s taller and comes with the creature comforts that far upstage cots.

The theater direction, upstage, nicely applies to the location of this issue’s Trip Planner—Ashland. We return to Ashland, though, not only with the Oregon Shakespeare Festival on our minds as we head into fall, but also the bounty of this Southern Oregon town. If there were no world-class live stage in Ashland, we would see it for the amazing foods, wines and restaurants that come from surrounding farms. Turn to page 84 to read more.

Coast-ophiles like me will appreciate the story behind a dory boat captain and first-hand visceral window into his world through the eyes of our writer, Cathy Carroll. Cathy pastes an anti-sea sickness patch behind her ear, jumps on board and plows through the surf at Cape Kiwanda to ride along with one of the famed dory crew launching out of Pacific City. See Adventure on page 78.

As fall creeps in with its colors and cooler temperatures, it’s also a time to put mushrooms back on the menu. On page 24, we tell the story of Bridgetown Mushrooms and its humble beginnings. It’s the recipes that resonate—mushroom risotto and our Homegrown Chef’s chanterelle sauté—and frame autumn with culinary zeal.

There may be no more chill experience than hopping aboard a vintage locomotive on Mount Rainier with your destination a whiskey-tasting venue. The Mount Rainier Scenic Railroad is in focus for Northwest Destination on page 90.

But maybe I spoke too soon about the most chill experience. The truth is that until you have wandered a day in the heat of the Alvord Desert and then popped out to The Fields Station for a milkshake, you are missing one of the great contrasts (and great milkshakes) known to humanity. See Travel Spotlight on page 74. Cheers!

More ways to connect with your

www.1859oregonmagazine.com | #1859oregon | @1859oregon

portland book festival passes

Enter for a chance to win passes to this year’s Portland Book Festival on November 8, courtesy of Literary Arts! One winner will receive two Umbrella Passes to the event, which include a general admission wristband, a GA reserved section seat to Rebecca Yarros’ Onyx Storm and Stacey Abrams’ Coded Justice events, copies of each of their books and a ticket to the Reader’s Night exhibitor fair preview on November 7. A full day of fun for readers of all ages, the festival will feature eighty authors across ten stages, pop-up events, drop-in writing classes, food trucks and more. For additional information on the event, head to www.pdxbookfest.org

Enter at www.1859oregonmagazine.com/ contests/portlandbookfestival Sweepstakes runs October 1-31.

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

Fall’s vibrant colors begin to appear at Proxy Falls.

valley river inn weekend getaway

Enter for a chance to win a weekend getaway to Valley River Inn in Eugene! One winner will receive a two-night stay at Valley River Inn the weekend of Oregon vs. Minnesota, two tickets to the Oregon vs. Minnesota game on November 14 (Friday) and dinner for two at on-site restaurant Sweet Waters on the River (a $100 value).

Enter at www.1859oregonmagazine.com/ contests/valleyriverinn Sweepstakes runs September 1-30.

photo by Sarah Hewitt

NOTEBOOK 16

FOOD + DRINK 20

FARM TO TABLE 24

HOME + DESIGN 32

ARTIST IN RESIDENCE 42

At Bridgetown Mushrooms, fungi are the focus.

Aubrey Janelle

Tidbits + To-dos

written by Cathy Carroll

High Desert Hot Air Ballooning

Get jaw-dropping, 360-degree views of Smith Rock State Park to the peaks of the Central Cascades, from the Three Sisters and Mount Bachelor to Mount Jefferson, ancient lava buttes and the Deschutes and Crooked River canyons. Waft from treetop height over roaming deer, foxes, coyotes and raptors, and then rise to about 2,000 feet. Big Sky Balloon Company of Terrebonne offers flights year-round, weather permitting, with prime season May through October. www.bigskyballoonco.com

Willamette

Valley Vineyards’ Pinot & Pups Gift Package

Celebrate beloved wines and pets with this curation from Willamette Valley Vineyards: the 2023 Founders’ Reserve pinot noir—with aromas of rose, black cherry tart, baking spices and toasted oak—and the 2023 Founders’ Reserve chardonnay, with balanced acidity and flavors of golden apple, white peach and lemon meringue. Sip while poochie nibbles the vineyard’s peanut butter and blueberry treats and sports their bandana. Shipping is complimentary through September 30 or while supplies last.

www.bit.ly/wvvpinotandpups

Portland Book Festival

On November 8, the Portland Book Festival, hosted by Literary Arts, will feature drop-in writing workshops, pop-up readings, an extensive book fair, local food trucks and on-stage discussions in and around the Portland Art Museum.

Enter for a chance to win passes to this year’s Portland Book Festival! pg. 13

More than eighty authors, including former Congresswoman Stacey Abrams—lawyer, voting rights activist and author of Coded Justice—and Oregon authors Jon Raymond, Omar El Akkad and Lidia Yuknavitch, appear in this annual citywide celebration of books and stories.

www.pdxbookfest.org

Stacey Abrams Omar El Akkad

GIVEAWAY

Big Sky Balloon Co.

Tambi

Author photos, from top: Kevin Lowery, Kateshia Pendergrass

The acclaimed Kachka has launched Kachka Fabrika, a 2,500-square-foot “factory” in Northeast Portland, churning out fresh dumplings, distilling vodkas and serving elevated cocktails and zakuski (think Russian tapas) with a local seafood focus. Cucumber-sorreltarragon vodka oyster shooters, coldsmoked salmon belly tartare, salt-cod and potato dumplings and caviar pair with vodkas, from birch and caraway to horseradish and sour cherry. To which we exclaim: Za zdorovye! To your health!

www.kachkafabrika.com

CALENDAR

Fermentopia

Celebrate all things wild, bubbly, cultured and delicious September 20 and 21 in Phoenix. Fermentopia Harvest Edition returns to this town brimming with Southern Oregon charm for a flavorforward adventure into the vibrant world of fermented foods and drinks. More than a festival, this two-day marketplace lets you meet the passionate artisans behind smallbatch cheeses, tangy pickles, gut-loving ferments, natural wines, craft beers, shrubs, sourdough breads, miso, hot sauces, kombucha, kimchi, kraut and more.

www.thefermentopia.com

Ride Horses on the Beach

Slow it down to onehorsepower speed—over the dunes on horseback. A ninety-minute ride with C&M Stables takes you through farm fields, coastal forest and onto the sand between Florence and the Sea Lion Caves. Saddle up for a scenic, sensory-filled morning or dreamy sunset ride— whether you’re a beginner or an advanced rider. The stables, operating since 1981, can match you with just the right one of its fifty horses.

www.oregonhorseback riding.com

Kachka Fabrika

Jacob Pace/Eugene, Cascades & Coast

Wild Thyme Productions

Photo: AJ Meeker

Musician

Best of Both Worlds

Precious Byrd focus on fun for their first

full-length album of original music

written by Ben Salmon

OVER THE past decade, Precious Byrd has played dozens and dozens of gigs across the state of Oregon and beyond, specializing in high-energy performances of songs people know by heart at weddings, corporate events, festivals and so on. ey are a top-shelf cover band, in other words. at’s how most people who’ve seen them think of them.

But there’s more to Precious Byrd than covers. e Bendbased six-piece is made up of talented musicians—drummer Mike Summers, bassist Lonnie Chapin, percussionist Maxwell Clark and saxophonist Andy Warr—and fronted by two brothers, Corey and Casey Parnell, who write original songs, too. And they’ve released those originals before, on six-song EPs in 2016 and 2019.

So they’re kind of an original band, too.

Maybe it’s both. Maybe it’s neither. Or maybe it doesn’t really matter, especially when you dig deep into the band’s origin story.

“When we started Precious Byrd, the conversation was literally, ‘Let’s have fun,’” said Corey Parnell. “It wasn’t ‘let’s be a cover band’ or ‘let’s be an original band,’ you know? It was just, ‘let’s do whatever we want to do, as long as it’s fun.’”

Mission accomplished. e Parnell brothers and their bandmates have had a ton of fun over the years, and so have their fans, who attend show after show—a rarity for a band known for its covers. ey are famously charismatic on stage, and extremely experienced at turning staid events into sweaty dance parties.

Listen on Spotify

Now, though, Precious Byrd is having a different kind of fun. In June, they released their first full-length album of original music, called Floorplay. At eleven tracks long, it’s a propulsive collection of funky dance-rock (think Silk Sonic meets the Talking Heads) that proves the band undoubtedly has the chops to make it on its own material.

“Even when we play covers, we’ve always played them as if they were our own, and I think that just comes from our drive to be artists,” said Casey Parnell. “You may hear us play a song you’ve heard a hundred times, but we bring so much of ourselves and our style to it, it feels like you’re at a Precious Byrd show.”

Earlier this year, the Parnells got together and wrote the songs on Floorplay, then brought the band together at a Los Angeles studio to record them all together in a room, as opposed to tracking individual parts separately. e idea was to capture Precious Byrd’s live energy on the recording, Corey Parnell said. “ ere’s an interactive element to this band at a live show— we give it our all every time,” he said. “And the crowd responds to that. We know that if we’re having fun, they’re going to have fun, and we wanted to bring some of that spirit to the album.”

Precious Byrd are known for their high-energy performances. (photo: Branden Leion Photography)

Bibliophile

Antidote for Buried Histories

Acclaimed new novel is a reckoning, unearthing horrors and shimmering possibilities

interview by Cathy Carroll

KAREN RUSSELL’S LATEST novel, The Antidote, is her first since Swamplandia!, one of The New York Times’ ten best books of the year and a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize. She has received many awards, including a MacArthur Fellowship, a Guggenheim Fellowship and The New Yorker’s “20 under 40” list (she is now 43). Russell, who lives in Portland, also serves on the board of Street Books, a mobile library and community space for people living outside or at the margins in Portland.

What drove you to incorporate magical elements with brutal historical realities?

I’m sure my early reading history has a lot to do with it, as does growing up in Miami, where long before I knew how to read I learned how many streaming realities can coexist on a single city block. As a reader, I’ve always been drawn to genre-bending and genreblending works. When I’m helping students who want to write speculative fiction, I o en share Flannery O’Connor’s elegant dictum: “The truth is not distorted here, rather a distortion is used to get at truth.” It’s been a guiding light for me as well, from my earliest a empts at writing fiction. In The Antidote, I did feel driven to incorporate the fantastical conceit of the prairie witches, the camera that can see across the plains of time, and I was driven by something mysterious! I felt hauled along by this book, sometimes more of its servant and less of its author.

whose voices and visions are woven throughout the novel and who have changed my own life for the be er, people with whom I’m still collaborating in di erent ways. There isn’t any single antidote, but part of what this book helped me to more deeply understand is that many of the solutions we are seeking to our climate emergency are already here, some of the most powerful ones in the ground under our feet; biodiverse soil has a tremendously powerful role to play in a healing, cooling world. We have the tools and the knowledge to help nature to heal, and we also have the ability to envision a future that is premised on di erent values.

The Antidote ultimately finds room for hope. What do you see as the “antidote” in the novel? What kind of hope, if any, does it o er readers facing our own era’s storms?

I thought of the title as both earnest and wry; on the one hand, “The Antidote” is the name of a prairie witch who sells oblivion as a panacea, with disastrous consequences. But there’s also a genuine longing for justice and healing that each and all of these characters experience, and their transformation from strangers into collaborators and friends echoes what has happened to me, outside this book. In the author’s note and acknowledgements, I name some of the many people

Another deep gi of this book was meeting people who are not waiting for the federal government to take the lead on reparations and restorations, like the descendants of se lers in Nebraska who have returned land to the Ponca and the Pawnee Nations. I now feel connected to a network of people working for a more just world, and it does give me hope to imagine with them on a longer timeline than our own lifetimes.

Like Harp Oletsky, I have been trying to shi out of a stance of despair, denial, cynicism, evasion of responsibility and resignation (“What choice do I have?”) and into collective action (“What choices do we have?”). Asking how we might begin to reckon with the past and reshape our shared future.

In early 2025, many people were sharing this wonderful quote from Octavia Butler: “I mean there’s no single answer that will solve all of our future problems. There’s no magic bullet. Instead there are thousands of answers—at least. You can be one of them if you choose to be.”

Karen Russell’s novels, set in fictional places, o er comment on real landscapes, cultures and events. Anne e Hornischer

Beerlandia

When Beer and Jazz Find Their Groove

written by Jeremy Storton | illustration by Maggie Wauklyn

I SINK DEEPER into the patio chair as shadows stretch into oblivion, bathed in the golden light of dusk. The song “So What” wafts from the house like the aromas from our homegrown chef’s kitchen. “Man From Monterey” then picks up the groove, setting the mood as my buddy and I sip our beer. The pairing of good beer and jazz as day fades into night always seems to bring life into perspective. Some of my favorite contemplative moments were steeped in conversation with a great beer in hand while jazz played softly in the background.

I’d bet that in your quiet moments, many of you aren’t all that different. Staring into your glass, your mind goes elsewhere. Your foot taps. Your head sways. You may not know exactly where you are, but you know it’s somewhere good.

The similarities between beer and music are palpable; we may use different senses to enjoy

them, but we experience both equally. Beer is experimental, traditional, visceral and experiential … just like jazz. Both are meant to challenge as much as please, and a good Oregon beer keeps time with that particular groove. Both take you on a journey, if you’re willing to pay attention and let go.

So, is it the beer or the jazz that grabs your soul by the wrist and ankle and takes you for a spin? Or do they work together, unlocking each other’s potential for transcendence? That’s the mystery and the joy of a perfect pairing. The synergy between the two becomes something much greater, creating the moments we’ll remember.

The song “In a Sentimental Mood” comes on next. I look down at my beer and both seem to ask the question, “Can you dig it?” I take a sip. “Yeah, man, I can dig it.”

PAIR THESE PLAYLISTS WITH YOUR NEXT PINT

Throughout my work in beer, I’ve often made the comparison between beer and music, as well as waxed overpoetically about the moments when jazz and a great beer have sunk me into a state of contemplative bliss. If you haven’t experienced this for yourself, I invite you to join me virtually in this experience. I have compiled two playlists on Spotify reserved for your very own sonic experience. Sip well and find your groove.

Scan to Listen

JAZZ ON THE COAST

If you prefer a live experience, check out the Oregon Coast Jazz Party in Newport in October. Learn more at www. coastarts.org/oregoncoast-jazz-party

Cocktail Card

recipe courtesy of Diana Arenas, La Patroncita / PORTLAND

Palo santo has great spiritual significance as a purifying agent in Mexican culture.

Diana Arenas, La Patroncita’s bar manager, was inspired to experiment with the aromatic wood as a cocktail ingredient and, after a year of trials, created the Rubi. Now, this spirit-forward cocktail is served at La Patroncita year-round.

Rubi

• 2 ounces palo santo-infused mezcal

• 1 ounce Ancho Reyes

• ¾ ounce lime juice

• ¼ ounce Lillet Rouge

• Slightly more than ¼ ounce agave

• 3-4 drops of mole bi ers

• Hawaiian black salt, for garnish

• Chile de árbol flakes, for garnish

Chill a coupe glass while you prepare the cocktail.

Combine ingredients into a shaker with ice, and stir.

Garnish rim of the coupe glass with Hawaiian black salt and chile de árbol flakes. Strain the cocktail into the chilled glass.

La Patroncita’s Rubi cocktail is made with palo santoinfused mezcal.

Carter Hiyama

Gastronomy

Urban Gleaners

written by Kerry Newberry

SINCE 2006, the Portland nonprofit Urban Gleaners has been transforming lives by upcycling food. Their core mission focuses on two acute challenges: eliminating food waste and combatting hunger. After two decades of community building, the nonprofit has a steadfast network of restaurants, grocery stores, farms, corporate kitchens and wholesalers who donate surplus food before it goes to waste.

A devoted volunteer base helps collect the excess food—which includes prepared meals, snacks, frozen meats and an array of seasonal produce. (Top food donors range from New Seasons to Imperfect Produce.) Next, volunteers sort and package donations and then redistribute items through more than forty free food markets in Multnomah and Washington counties, serving over 8,000 families a week.

To celebrate the city’s generous culinary community, the nonprofit is hosting their second annual Summer Supper on September 15 at The Redd on Salmon Street. The walk-around style tasting will include some of the state’s most dynamic restaurants (including Akadi, Hayward and Xiao Ye). Each dish will use upcycled ingredients. At last year’s event, 90 percent of the food was gleaned, and even the scraps were put to good use—friendly goats onsite happily polished off leftovers.

PORTLAND www.urbangleaners.org

CRAVINGS: SMALL-BATCH BREAD

FROM MICROBAKERIES

CRUMB SOURDOUGH MICROBAKERY

Baker extraordinaire Jenny Berg (and Zelda, her beloved sourdough starter) turn out hearty loaves from the high desert of Central Oregon. Standout boules range from roasted garlic and rosemary to a peppy jalapeño and cheddar. Pastry fans will swoon for her buttery sourdough scones, especially the bing cherry with sliced almonds. Preorder for pick up or swing by Local Acres Marketplace and Central Oregon Locavore for her Friday delivery.

THREE RIVERS www.crumbsourdoughmicrobakery.com

THE WHALE’S TAIL BAKERY

Heading to the North Coast for a weekend? Plan ahead and order from The Whale’s Tail in Manzanita. Operated by local April Foster, this cottage bakery turns out small-batch bread and pastries—all made with organic Pacific Northwest-grown grains. Options range from chewy bagels and sweet cruffins sprinkled with cardamom sugar to a leaf-like fougasse and rosemary focaccia. Order through Instagram on Saturday for delivery that same day.

MANZANITA www.thewhalestailbakery.com

KINNE FARM

Cruise down ribbons of country lanes to Kinne Farm in Independence. At this hobby farm and microbakery, Jessica Kinne hosts a charming farm stand (check hours online) where she sells sourdough loaves studded with jalapeños and garlic along with blueberry muffins, lemon scones and savory bagels. Preorder for pick up either via Instagram (@KinneFarm) or Hot Plate, a platform for pop-ups.

7225 TALMADGE ROAD INDEPENDENCE www.hotplate.com/kinnefarm

Urban Gleaners’ Summer Supper helps extinguish food waste and hunger and includes some headlining restaurants.

Leesa Morales

BEST PLACES FOR CULINARY INSPO

ROUX PORTLAND

Mingle with the city’s culinary movers and shakers at this citywide festival featuring pop-up dinners, chef collabs, culinary games, panels, brunch and workshops. Held every October, this weeklong event celebrates food and drink culture with the mission to build a platform for women in Portland’s culinary scene and to spotlight women-owned businesses. Get tickets online for events running October 6 through 12. Follow @rouxportland on Instagram for updates.

PORTLAND www.rouxportland.com

TOMATO FEST AT WELLSPENT MARKET

Celebrate our long-awaited tomato season at this annual outdoor bash. Expect live culinary demos with local chefs (including Nancye Benson of Milk Glass Market and Hot Mama Salsa founder Nikki Guerrero) along with tastings from OSU’s tomato and melon breeding programs. Snack on tomato-forward bites from Estes, Scottie’s Pizza and Lauretta Jean’s, and find tomato fest merch including fun totes and hats. Save the date: September 13 from noon to 4 p.m. 3402 SE DIVISION ST.

PORTLAND www.wellspentmarket.com

DRY FARMING FIELD DAY

Take a deep dive into the world of dry farming with Oregon State University researchers September 16. Held at OSU’s Vegetable Research Farm, this special event includes presentations on dry-farming techniques and the results of variety trials on sorghum, cowpeas, melons and tomatoes. Following the presentations, you can taste the results of these trials. The event is free to attend, but an RSVP is requested.

34306 NE ELECTRIC ROAD

CORVALLIS

www.culinarybreedingnetwork.com

Dining

82 Acres

written by Kerry Newberry

FOR

A TRUE farm-to-fairy tale dining experience, head to Portland’s 82 Acres. But here’s the catch—it’s best to begin your dinner the night before on the restaurant’s wine country farm because that’s where all the magic happens. Maybe you’ve already heard of Abbey Road Farm? The idyllic property in Carlton is home to the most cinematic farm crew including goats, pigs, donkeys, mini highland cows and lots of chickens (famously all named Betty). There’s also rambling vineyards and stylish grain silos you can sleep in. (Read more about that on page 56.)

The meticulous culinary gardens on the farm grow more than 200 varieties of fruits, vegetables, herbs and edible flowers—enough to seasonally feed both the bed-and-breakfast and 82 Acres. At the restaurant, chef Will Preisch jazzes up dishes with whatever is popping in the garden. Think earthy carrot falafel with dollops of herbed yogurt and chili crisp and a sensational mussel escabeche toast topped with saffron aioli, pickled fennel and peppy nasturtiums.

His comfort classics include steak frites with chili crunch hollandaise and black garlic aioli and roast chicken with earthy morels. Preisch adds plenty of surprises to the menu as well and gets extra creative with ingredients from the farm’s winemaking program. Most recently, he added a touch of white wine lees to whipped cream-topped desserts. On the yeasted caramel date cake, it’s umami bliss. Just one of many ways Preisch enlivens the city’s farm-to-table party.

2032 SE CLINTON ST. PORTLAND www.82acrespdx.com

CLOCKWISE FROM TOP The many sumptuous dishes of 82 Acres. Chef Will Preisch makes magic from garden-fresh food. Eating al fresco at 82 Acres in Portland.

Carter Hiyama

Carter Hiyama

82 Acres

Farm to Table

The Magic of Mushrooms

Mushrooms are ‘nature’s wonder,’ according to Bridgetown Mushrooms founder Trevor Huebert

written

by Julie Lee | photography by Aubrey Janelle

OFTEN MISIDENTIFIED as a plant, mushrooms are a wondrous organism, taking on a plantlike form but belonging to the kingdom Fungi.

A nutritional superfood and one of the few natural sources of vitamin D, mushrooms are rich in B vitamins, potassium and antioxidants. Because they’re low in calories but high in nutrients, they can be an excellent choice for supporting overall wellness. New research also points to mushrooms in supporting immunity and cognitive health.

As president of the Mushroom Council, Amy Wood leads the e ort to increase awareness and demand for fresh mushrooms across the United States. “It’s been so energizing and inspiring to work alongside growers, distributors, retailers, chefs and researchers who all share a passion for mushrooms,” said Wood. “They are an incredibly delicious, nutritious, sustainable food with growing relevance to consumers. The industry is poised for growth.” What drew Wood to the role is an eagerness to “help tell the story of mushrooms and expand their place on American tables. It’s an exciting mission.”

Bridgetown Mushrooms CEO and founder Trevor Huebert is equally determined to educate our world about these magical fungi and deems the fungal kingdom “truly the elephant in the room when it comes to the sustainability movement.” Huebert had an “aha moment” in 2015 that mushrooms are “prime to enter a cultural phenomenon.”

“There is no second Earth,” he said. “At Bridgetown, we have a very simple model—grow mushrooms and get them out to the masses. Fungal is our answer for the future.”

Bridgetown Mushrooms grows a variety of fungi at its facility, providing consumers with about 4,000 pounds of mushrooms per month.

Trevor Huebert, CEO and founder of Bridgetown Mushrooms.

According to Huebert, mushrooms not only create and help break down soil but can also break down plastics and some forever chemicals, Styrofoam and other materials that could alter our planet’s future if not addressed. Big shoe companies are even signing deals to make shoes out of mushrooms.

Huebert grew up in a farming community in Kansas gardening and growing vegetables. He ventured into software engineering for a bit in California but missed “getting my hands dirty,” which led to a career path studying soil science. Before that, he “hadn’t thought too much about mushrooms,” and upon discovering that the kingdom of Fungi was the least studied known to man, he felt a sense of responsibility to focus in that area.

He started small, growing mushrooms in his closet, before curiosity became wild obsession and he began studying mushrooms “nonstop.” A closet full of mushrooms morphed into a 100-square-foot chamber in his garage, and a natural progression to what is now Bridgetown Mushrooms had launched.

“My goal is to learn as much as I can about the fungal kingdom and teach what I learn to children,” said Huebert. “There needs to be generational awareness—we can change our future with this knowledge.” He aims to educate people about the species and “how important mushrooms are to the earth,” with

a broader goal to increase awareness throughout the U.S. and world about how mushrooms can “close waste loops.”

Bridgetown Mushrooms’ distribution story started when Huebert entered World Foods in Portland with some pink, yellow and blue mushrooms that were so unusual they made an impression. The grassroots distribution work continued, with Huebert calling on smaller, farmer-style markets like Helvetia Farm Market to garner brand recognition, one market at a time. Huebert prides himself on having personal relationships with many chefs in those early days, before involving regional distributors. “As we grew and became a bigger entity, we grew up as a company and started to look at volume,” Huebert said. He is still like a parent to his business, taking the training wheels off but anxiously watching as things pick up speed quickly. “Shelf stability is the key and very difficult,” he said. “What we grow is very fragile, and to expand, it’s tough to work out of a central hub on one end of the coast.”

Unlike other farm-fresh foods, mushrooms have no specific season and are available throughout the year, with a life cycle that only takes twenty days to harvest. “We cultivate mushrooms all year long,” said Huebert. “There is no problem to provide a steady stream of mushrooms.” The list of different types “goes on and on,” according to Huebert, and include

ABOVE, FROM LEFT Lion’s mane is one variety of mushroom grown at Bridgetown Mushrooms. Chestnut mushrooms burst from a grow bag. Bags of inoculated substrate, from which the mushrooms grow, sit on shelves at Bridgetown Mushrooms’ facility.

some that are rather commonly known, such as morels and chanterelles and others that have wild names and benefits, such as lion’s mane mushrooms, known for boosting memory processes and potentially protecting against Alzheimer’s and other types of dementia.

Wood applauds the sustainability of mushrooms alongside Huebert. “From an environmental standpoint, mushrooms are among the most sustainable foods you can eat,” she said. “They require minimal water and land compared to many other crops, and they’re cultivated using agricultural byproducts that would otherwise go to waste. The result is a low-carbon, resource-efficient food with a big positive impact.”

What does the future hold for Bridgetown Mushrooms? The growth trajectory is skyrocketing, and Huebert just bought a farm that will provide “a more robust offering.” With just six people working in production at Bridgetown, their boutique and mighty operation gets a “whole lot done. Everyone working for us is awesome,” said Huebert. “We are blessed.”

Bridgetown has provided 1.5 million servings of mushrooms since 2018, providing consumers with about 4,000 pounds per month. His new warehouse will alter the scale significantly, providing 600,000 servings of mushrooms per month. Huebert occasionally stops in the middle of the day to reflect on the growth and how much awareness he’s bringing to these magical fungi. He’s also excited to “lean back into the chef community of Portland” with his increase in production,

tapping back into his relationships from his beginning days to increase exposure.

Huebert’s favorite is the maitake mushroom, which is “hands down the best gourmet mushroom I’ve ever had. A culinary and medicinal powerhouse. I can take maitake, roast it in the oven with some salt and pepper and eat it straight. You don’t see people eating bowls of mushrooms very often, but you can do that with maitake … delicious!”

Wood’s favorite way to enjoy mushrooms is to simply use them as a meat substitute or complement in dishes. “Mushrooms bring such incredible depth of flavor and texture to a dish,” she said. “They’re a key ingredient in most of my favorite meat-based recipes. I blend finely chopped mushrooms with ground meat at a 50-50 ratio for pasta sauce, taco filling, you name it. Mushrooms are naturally meaty and add a boost of umami to those dishes.”

Greg Higgins, a James Beard Award-winning godfather of Oregon’s farm-to-table cuisine, shares his recipe using oyster mushrooms and spinning them into a delicious marmalade.

Chef David Frias of Bistecca Wood Fire Steakhouse in Portland has another spin on oyster mushrooms, keeping it very simple and easy for the at-home cook, with his Mushrooms Made Easy recipe.

And want a dish that features Huebert’s favorite, maitake? Try this modern take on a traditional risotto with a bright green purée of kale and maitake mushrooms, highlighting their distinct rich, woodsy flavor and succulent texture.

Trevor Huebert holds a bin of yellow oyster mushrooms.

Oregon Recipes

Fungal Fall Recipes

Oyster Mushroom Marmalade

Higgins / PORTLAND

Chef Greg Higgins

SERVES 4-6

• 5 tablespoons sherry vinegar

• 51/3 tablespoons Dijon mustard

• 1/3 cup sugar

• 2 tablespoons chili paste

• 1 pound shallots, julienned

• 2 pounds oyster mushrooms, cleaned and sliced into 3/8-inch pieces

• Salt and pepper, to taste

• Vegetable oil, for frying

In a small saucepan, combine the sherry vinegar, mustard, sugar and

chili paste. Bring to a simmer, and then remove from heat.

Heat the vegetable oil in a frying pot over medium-high heat. When it reaches 375 degrees, fry the shallots until golden-brown. Remove them and place into a mixing bowl. Season with salt and pepper.

Fry the oyster mushrooms in the hot oil until nicely browned, and then combine them with shallots in the bowl. Add the sherry vinegar mixture to the fried shallots and mushrooms. Stir gently, and adjust the seasoning to taste. If necessary, add some warm water to achieve a jam-like consistency.

Serve as a condiment in salads or with meat and seafoods.

Mushrooms Made Easy

Bistecca Wood Fire Steakhouse / PORTLAND

Chef David Frias

SERVES 2

• 1 pound oyster mushrooms

• 1 cup extra-virgin olive oil

• 1 teaspoon salt

• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper

• 1 tablespoon sherry vinegar

• 1 tablespoon fresh chives, for garnish

Preheat oven 425 degrees. Clean mushrooms by giving a gentle rinse, and dry with a paper towel. Trim any hard parts of the stems, and discard them. Smaller mushrooms are perfect left whole, while larger mushrooms can be torn into slices or strips. Try both.

Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Toss mushrooms in extra-virgin olive oil, and season with salt and pepper. (Chef David Frias recommends Frantoia olive oil, but any will suffice.)

Be generous with the amount of oil

used, as this will help prevent the mushrooms from drying out.

Place the mushrooms on the tray—be sure to not overcrowd. Roast for 7-8 minutes on each side until they start to turn goldenbrown. Remove the mushrooms from the tray, and place them in a clean mixing bowl. Add the sherry vinegar, garnish with chopped chives, add salt to taste and serve.

Chef’s tip: Save the water released from the mushrooms when roasting, and use it as a boost of umami for soup stocks or dishes like risotto.

Mushrooms Made Easy.

Maitake Mushroom Risotto

Cookbook author Andrea Slonecker

SERVES 5

• 1 tablespoon plus 2 teaspoons kosher salt, divided

• 1 small bunch Tuscan kale (about 6 ounces), stemmed and coarsely chopped

• 12 ounces maitake mushrooms

• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, divided

• 1 large yellow onion, diced

• 2 cloves garlic, minced

• 11/4 cups of carnaroli or arborio rice

• 1 cup dry white wine

• 21/2 cups mushroom or chicken broth, hot

• 2/3 cup freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, plus more for garnish

Fill a large pot 2/3 full with water, and bring to a boil over high heat. Season with 1 tablespoon of salt, and add kale. Cook until kale is wilted and bright green, about 4 minutes.

Transfer kale to blender, and add a splash of the cooking water. Blend at high speed to a smooth green purée, and set aside.

Chop half the maitake mushrooms into pieces about the size of the diced onions. Tear the other half into smaller clusters to sauté for the top of the risotto.

Heat a large, straight-sided skillet over mediumhigh. Once hot, add 1 tablespoon butter, and swirl to melt. Add torn maitake clusters. Cook until lightly browned, turning occasionally, 3-5 minutes, adjusting heat as needed. Season mushrooms with 1/4 teaspoon salt. Transfer to a plate, and cover; set aside. To the same pan, add the remaining 1 tablespoon butter, onion and garlic; cook until tender, stirring often, for about 5 minutes. Add rice, and use a wooden spoon to stir until rice begins to turn slightly opaque, 2-3 minutes. Add wine; continue stirring until mostly absorbed, 3-4 minutes. Add 1 cup hot broth and 1 teaspoon of salt; keep stirring almost constantly until liquid is mostly absorbed, 5-6 minutes. Add remaining broth along with chopped raw mushrooms and remaining 3/4 teaspoon salt. Continue to cook; stir until liquid is absorbed and rice is tender but not mushy, about 6-8 minutes more. If rice needs to cook longer but liquid has been absorbed, simply add another splash of broth or water, and continue cooking until it is done. Stir in kale purée; cook just until heated through to retain the vibrant green color, 1 to 2 minutes. When finished, mixture should be a little bit loose and saucy. Stir in cheese, and remove pan from the heat. Taste and adjust seasoning. Portion hot risotto into warm bowls, and top with sautéed maitakes. Garnish with more freshly grated cheese before serving.

Andrea Slonecker’s Maitake Mushroom Risotto with kale.

Homegrown Chef

Shroom Meeting

written by or Erickson

photography by Tambi Lane

“I THOUGHT you’d never get here!” a booming voice exclaimed through my driver-side window as I pulled into the parking area. “I’ve been waiting for thirty minutes!” e voice was that of my brother-inlaw, Pete. Pete and my sister Kaari live near Portland, and I live in Bend, so we’d arranged to meet about midway, at my secret/not-so-secret spot for finding chanterelle mushrooms.

Pete, a retired army nurse, is adept at hunting and fishing, and for years I have been threatening to add foraging to his set of skills.

I pulled out my field guide and showed him what we were looking for: Cantharellus formosus, the Pacific golden chanterelle, Oregon’s official state mushroom, and in my opinion the most delicious edible mushroom.

After a mile walk, we came upon the place—a large stand of Douglas fir, spruce and hemlock casting long shadows in the bright, midday September sun.

“Just keep looking at the ground,” I said to Pete as we slowly moved through the lush forest.

It took a while for my eyes to adjust, but soon the yellow-white mushrooms pushing up the soil became easier to spot. I quickly had more of these mycological treasures than I could carry. Before I knew it, an hour had passed. “How are you doing?” I called over to Pete.

“I need another bag!” he replied while chuckling.

As we sat on a log and enjoyed our lunch, we talked about how we would use them.

“Risotto? Pasta? Scrambled eggs? On toast?” he proposed.

“All of the above!” I replied.

Here is a recipe for a chanterelle sauté that can be used for many things—risotto, pasta, scrambled eggs, toast and more. It can even be frozen for future use, thus extending the enjoyability of these delicious mushrooms.

Chanterelle Sauté

• 1 tablespoon olive oil

• 1 large shallot, finely diced

• 2 cloves garlic, minced

• 1 pound chanterelle mushrooms, cleaned, quartered, rough ends removed

• ¼ teaspoon salt

• 1 tablespoon bu er

• Pinch black pepper

• Optional: Herbs of your choice

Heat a large sauté pan over medium-high heat, and add olive oil. When hot, add shallots. Cook for about 2 minutes or until translucent. Turn down the heat if the shallots start to brown.

Add garlic to the shallots, and cook for another minute or until fragrant. Set the mixture aside on a plate. Add a li le more olive oil if the pan is dry.

Add chanterelle mushrooms and salt. Try not to disturb or stir the mushrooms too much.

Cook for 3 to 4 minutes. Add a li le olive oil during that time if they look dry.

Turn down the heat to low, and finish the chanterelles with bu er, cooking them another 2 minutes. Add the cooked shallots and garlic back into the mushrooms and stir. Add salt and pepper to taste. At this time, add any herbs that you wish. I recommend a ½ teaspoon of finely chopped fresh thyme or rosemary.

Chef’s notes: This Chanterelle Sauté can be enjoyed in so many ways. My favorite is to put a generous spoonful on a piece of toasted sourdough and top it with grated pecorino romano cheese.

To freeze, divide sautéed chanterelles in the cups of a muffin tin and freeze. A er frozen, pop them out and keep in a zip-top bag in the freezer. Pull out just what you need, when you need it.

Chanterelle Sauté on toasted sourdough.

Home + Design

Change of Pace

This couple in Sisters are repurposing Quonset huts as affordable, designforward housing, starting with a guesthouse in their own backyard

written by Melissa Dalton

photography by Kaitlin Green and Margo Latka

WHEN MARIE SALDIVAR was 23 years old, she bought a house in industrial Southeast Portland. “It was an 1890s Victorian in total shambles, across from the train tracks and the concrete company,” said Saldivar. “We called it the ‘Boo Radley’ house.” Saldivar had been renting the place with two friends for $700 a month, complete with “missing windows and a possum infestation in the attic,” when the bank called to evict them. Saldivar countered by offering to buy the house instead, and, unexpectedly, the bank accepted. “Then I just MacGyver-ed my way through the rehabilitation process of this house,” said Saldivar. “It was such a rewarding experience.”

The Victorian was just one of Saldivar’s many creative projects. In graduate school, she attended an applied arts program (now defunct) at the Pacific Northwest College of Art and Oregon College of Art and Craft. “I am heavily Portland educated,” said Saldivar. “I went to school downtown, from elementary all the way through grad school.” But it was the California desert where she would push her creative building skills to the next level.

The year was 2016, and she and her future husband, Kurtis, were living in Joshua Tree. They needed cheap studio space, so they decided to build a 1,500-square-foot Quonset hut. “It was something that we felt like we could DIY, which was super ambitious,” said Saldivar. “It was also about the affordability, and the agency, to create that much space on a budget.”

Quonset huts originated in 1941 at the United States Navy, as lightweight, prefabricated structures with a semicircular frame. They were useful because they could be shipped easily, built quickly and deployed as cheap housing for the military. (The name Quonset refers to the first place they were erected at Quonset Point in Rhode Island.) During World War II, more than 150,000 huts were produced, and after the war, the military sold the surplus to the general public. In Joshua Tree, Saldivar saw one being used as an art studio and music venue owned by assemblage artist Bobby Furst.

The couple’s first hut was a bare-bones structure, constructed with help from Kurtis’

Marie Saldivar’s Quonset-style guesthouse in Sisters. The Quonset hut was first designed in 1941 for military use and first built at Quonset Point, Rhode Island.

While the outside is steel and industrial, the interior is warm and stylish.

contractor dad. “We called it the metal caterpillar,” laughed Saldivar. “It was just this long airplane hangar with very few design embellishments.” Still, after finishing it, Saldivar got a call from her former MFA program chair, asking if she could help build another, as an art studio and workshop space. By 2018, ready to be out of the California desert, the couple moved to Tumulo in Central Oregon. Saldivar became a licensed contractor, and they rehabbed an old farmhouse and built another hut. In 2023, they did it again, this time on 10 acres between Sisters and Bend, on property abutting Deschutes National Forest.

Their most-recent hut is a guesthouse for visiting family and friends, and, also, a proof of concept for the couple’s new company, Steel Hut, which officially started in 2020. “These have always functioned as workforce structures,” said Saldivar of Quonset huts. “But the goal of this company is to pivot this building system into the residential space.” Teaming up with Skylab Architecture in Portland and SteelMaster, Steel Hut offers affordable building plans and efficient steel kits so people can build their own for any purpose, whether that’s urban infill, a getaway cabin, a granny flat or an escape pod. They are especially attractive as a more environmentally conscious option, as the huts use 100 percent recycled steel content and limited timber, and use 45 percent less carbon due to their prefabricated construction. Additionally, all that steel makes the structure fire resistant.

Saldivar’s newest version shakes up the traditional form of the hut, and is a far cry from her “metal caterpillar” years ago. The couple added just a little bit of stained cedar on the gable ends for contrast with the steel, as well as lots of windows and tall glass doors to bring in natural light. Once inside, there’s no hint of the industrial exterior, other than the polished concrete floors, which are warmed substantially with walls finished in drywall that follows the gentle curve of the ceiling. Custom woodwork, from the wood-trimmed windows and doors, exposed interior framing and kitchen cabinetry, reads more like a cabin.

Custom woodwork in the kitchen with generous windows and daylight.

A lofted bedroom maximizes the hut’s 1,200 square feet, as well as the 22-foot-tall ceilings. There’s a judicious use of color via the backsplash tile at the Morso wood-burning stove and in the bathroom. “I wanted to incorporate a color and material palette that’s really in conversation with this environment,” said Saldivar. “On the interior, that means warm woods and handmade tiles in evergreens and sky blues.”

Most importantly, construction costs (at the time of printing) are proving accessible. “We’re building these spaces for less than $300 a square foot, which in Central Oregon is a very competitive price point for entry-level custom construction,” said Saldivar, whose creativity is fueled by the challenge of outfitting these structures ever more elegantly. “It’s a never-ending obsession with the Quonset hut. How do we continue to utilize this form to create living spaces that are sustainable, affordable, and add beauty?”

“I wanted to incorporate a color and material palette that’s really in conversation with this environment. On the interior, that means warm woods and handmade tiles in evergreens and sky blues.”

— Marie Saldivar, Steel Hut owner and founder

FROM TOP The lofted bedroom is not cramped by low ceilings but open and bright. The color palette from its high desert environs flows into the bathroom and tile. AT FAR RIGHT The rear patio basks in the Central Oregon sun.

20-degree angle. At the top, where two boards will overlap to form the top of the A, measure 2 inches from the end and mark the center. This is where the carriage bolt will go. Drill a 1/2-inch hole through two boards, careful not to split the wood. Attach them with the bolt, fastening on the inside of the frame with a lock nut and washer. Repeat on the other side. (Note: Double-check that the feet are always angled in the proper direction as you move through this part of the process. The longer edge should be facing out.)

ATTACH SUPPORTS

Each shelf will need to be supported by a rung. Cut the cedar 1x3 into eight equal-sized pieces. Using a brad nailer and a level, attach the lowest rung so it is 12 inches from the ground, and on the outside of the A. Proceed to attach rungs every 12 inches, making sure they are lined up across from one another on each side of the frame. When you’re done with this step, the stand should look like a ladder.

CUT AND ADD SHELVES

Design an A-frame Plant Stand

DIY illustration by Charla Pettingill

PLANT LOVERS, this one is for you—a weekend woodworking project that packs more plants into one space, courtesy of this simple A-frame plant stand. We’re building it out of cedar, so it can go outside on the patio; however, the shelves are removable and it can fold up (courtesy of carriage bolts), so feel free to put this anywhere. Here are our instructions.

MATERIALS

We’re opting to build the A-frame supports on either side from four 8-foot-long, cedar 2x4s. There will be eight supports for the shelves, each support measuring a foot long, so you will need one 8-footlong cedar 1x3. The shelves will re-

quire two 8-foot-long, cedar 1x12s. Prep the wood, if needed, and give it a light sanding.

BUILD THE A-FRAME

Cut the 2x4s to 73 inches. Cut the bottom of each leg, where it will be sitting on the ground, at a

Each shelf will consist of a 1x12 cut to size. Each shelf will be a different length, with the bottom shelf the longest, and the top shelf the shortest. Cut the 1x12s to these lengths in inches: 38, 32, 26 and 20. Place the boards on the supports. (Note: The shelves are not attached, so move plants and heavy objects on them carefully. Attach shelves with a nailer if it’s not important to be able to break the stand down and move it in the future.)

FINISH

Add wood filler to conceal holes from the nails. Coat the boards in a waterproof sealer, and let them dry. Add plants, and enjoy!

Get the Look of the Steel Hut

e Miller Utility Cart from Schoolhouse has it all: three shelves to store and display various extras, wheels so it can be used in any room and, of course, five different shades for a pretty pop of color.

www.schoolhouse.com

For their tables and seating, Ecology, a Pacific Northwestbased maker, relies on local woods, whether it comes from a sustainably managed forest or a salvaged fallen tree. Simple, timeless designs, like the Farm Table, highlight that wood in all its natural beauty.

www.ecology-usa.com

e Egyptian Blue Fireclay Tile in Marie Saldivar’s bathroom is a delightful surprise: modern in a 2x8 rectangle (and available in ten field sizes), yet with a Mid-century wink. “It reminds me of my grandmother,” said Saldivar. “It has this traditional coding in a really modern context.”

www.fireclaytile.com/ natural-press-ceramic-tile

e channel-tufted back and sides recall cool Art Deco style, but the poly-cotton velvet upholstery is straight-up cozy, making the Fitz Channeled Velvet Swivel Chair from CB2 the furniture-equivalent of a hug. Plus, with that swivel base, it looks good no matter which way it’s turned.

www.cb2.com

Photos, clockwise

from top le : Schoolhouse, Kaitlin Green and Margo Latka, CB2, Ecology

Artist in Residence

Quite Naturally

Inger Nova Jorgensen, sculptor, painter and lyricist, carries an essential message for us

written by Daniel O’Neil

IN HER STUDIO, perched above her house in the wooded outskirts of Ashland, Inger Nova Jorgensen has five paintings and three sculptures in the works. Following a twomonth hiatus from the visual arts—during which she and her husband, Je Pevar, toured Italy and the East Coast to perform their second duet album—Jorgensen finally couldn’t stand the distance from her brushes and tools.

“When I’m not creating, I’m not satisfied,” Jorgensen said. “I don’t feel enriched in the way that when I’m creating, I feel this sense of purpose.”

Ashland artist Inger Nova Jorgensen stands with her sculpture Awake Dear Heart, Awake, now in bronze and on display at the Oregon Shakespeare Festival’s Angus Bowmer Theatre lobby.

Bryan Devore

Born into a family of artists, Jorgensen feels right at home in her pursuit of beauty and meaning, and also in the Ashland landscape and community where she has lived for the last twentyfive years. Jorgensen grew up in Michigan, initially in a rural setting where she communed with nature and learned to make art alongside her hippie parents. Her mother painted, her father made leather goods, and both worked with bronze.

Today, Jorgensen has achieved her childhood goal of becoming an artist and musician. Seeking to bring beauty into the world and into people’s eyes and ears, Jorgensen also wishes to enrich her audience with thoughts and emotions of universal value. Amidst the confusion of technology and its resultant distancing, Jorgensen conveys her message in multidimensional, real-life terms.

“We see everybody constantly connected to their screens, and being an artist, it’s very disturbing for me to see this,” Jorgensen said. “So I’m trying to express and remind people how important nature is, and that we need to go back to it. At the roots, it’s everything, it’s who we are. I think that with this industrialized civilization and all the technology, it’s like we’re forgetting more and more every day that we’re part of nature, and that deeply affects me.”

Rather than shock viewers with this reality, Jorgensen approaches them with the resonating beauty of nature-infused sculptures and paintings—women meld into birds, leaves assemble into human form, people dissolve into clouds or water, a man becomes a meadow, a bird’s nest forms a lady’s crown.

Such motifs are not lost on the art community and collectors.

Jorgensen is represented by galleries in Palo Alto, Nashville and rural Colorado. “She’s right in the mix of us as people and nature, spirit—that’s really her sweet spot, the natural world and its magic as we interface with it,” said Garrett Day, who owns Orbit ArtSpace in Fruita, Colorado.

In a way, Jorgensen understands art from the perspective of the artist as well as the viewer or collector. Having owned a successful contemporary art gallery and frame shop in Ashland, she learned to see modern art from the outside. But rather than stop at aesthetic beauty and the interweaving of human and nonhuman forms, Jorgensen dives deeper into humanity to get her point across.

“Inger is an entire art community in one person,” Day said. “She’s cool, and she creates community around herself. She gives very naturally of herself whatever may be needed in her

CLOCKWISE FROM LEFT Inger Nova Jorgensen’s sculpture Darkness To Light, painting The Passage and a piece from her new series incorporating plaster and paint.

Photos: Inger Nova Jorgensen

“We see everybody constantly connected to their screens, and being an artist, it’s very disturbing for me to see this. So I’m trying to express and remind people how important nature is, and that we need to go back to it. At the roots, it’s everything, it’s who we are. I think that with this industrialized civilization and all the technology, it’s like we’re forgetting more and more every day that we’re part of nature, and that deeply affects me.”

— Inger Nova Jorgensen

community. You see her trying to find apartments for people and helping people. There’s nothing forced about it. And I think all that stuff can be seen readily in her artwork. You can tell she’s got a big heart and a wide-open mind.”

Besides reminding of humanity’s direct association with nature, Jorgensen also levels the field within humanity. Diversity plays a significant role in her work. Using a wide range of friends as models, Jorgensen crafts sculptures and paintings from a cast of ethnicities and cultural backgrounds. On display in the lobby of the Oregon Shakespeare Festival’s Angus Bowmer Theatre is Jorgensen’s bronze sculpture of an African-American man, for example, his heart etched into the outside of his chest, his body emerging from rock. Awake Dear Heart, Awake it is titled.

“I am somebody who likes to bridge different people together, bring people together to see things in a different way,” Jorgensen said. “It’s very important to help people remember who they are, ultimately—that we’re all human and we need to come together.”

Dual, complementary messages thus unfold in Jorgensen’s art. Humanity is whole, not a mishmash of separate races from detached parts of the globe, and all of humanity stems from a single source, Mother Nature, which embraces us all—plants, elements and animals included. Unity through our shared humanity, which is rooted in nature. Nature as our common denominator.

With those new paintings and sculptures now in the works, and the melodies and lyrics that inevitably surface, Jorgensen will eventually have another opportunity to play her remindful refrain. “To bring some of the divide together and through nature is where I’m trying to do it, because that’s the place where we all touch the same ground,” she said. “We’re all from the natural world.”

FROM TOP Inger Nova Jorgensen’s sculptures Meadow Overtakes Me, which was hand sculpted in clay and cast in resin, and Oar and The Osprey

Photos: Inger Nova Jorgensen

Professor Greta Binford brings her passion to spider science.

Amanda Loman

Many shudder at the thought of seeing a brown recluse spider, but not Greta Binford, professor of biology at Lewis & Clark College. Binford revels in studying and teaching biodiversity, including research of brown recluse spiders and their relatives. For her, Oregon is a playground of diverse habitats. “I absolutely love spending time lying on the ground in old-growth forests and looking closely at the tiny, super-diverse life living in the deep, peaty forest floor,” she said. “That’s where soil is made, and the ecosystem of tiny life there will blow your mind.”

My Workspace

Itsy Bitsy Worlds

Professor Greta Binford follows her love for biodiverse habitats, and arachnids

written

Joni

by

Kabana | photography by Amanda Loman

Greta Binford works to extract venom from a Loxosceles apachea spider at the venom-collection station in the Binford Spider Lab at Lewis & Clark College in Portland.

Binford a ended Purdue University thinking she wanted to be a veterinarian but quickly realized she did not have the fortitude to work with blood and sick animals. A er trying a couple other majors, she dropped out of college and moved to a suburb of Cincinnati, Ohio, where she taught gymnastics and created cra s. A few years later, she went back to school at Miami University with the goal of teaching high school biology. There, a genetics professor hired her to do research in the rainforest at Tambopata Reserve in southeast Peru. “My job was to collect data on social spiders—they live in large colonies and help each other catch prey and take care of each other’s babies,” she said. “It was there where I became aware of the wealth of extraordinary biodiversity that is unknown to us, and that it was under major threat of extinction.”

Binford realized how much she enjoyed engaging in science by “finding the edges of human knowledge, thinking about what information we need and how to collect data that can help us advance knowledge.” She also realized she was capable of being a scientist, which had never occurred to her. “That experience literally changed my life,” she said.

ABOVE Greta Binford sorts through spider specimens in the Binford Spider Lab at Lewis & Clark College. AT LEFT A Trogloraptor spider is seen in a specimen container next to a macro photo of one at the lab.

“I absolutely love spending time lying on the ground in old-growth forests and looking closely at the tiny, super-diverse life living in the deep, peaty forest floor. That’s where soil is made, and the ecosystem of tiny life there will blow your mind.”

— Greta Binford, professor of biology at Lewis & Clark College

If you’d like to see Binford in action, consider attending SpiderFest, where she welcomes groups into her lab to share some love for biodiversity while demystifying arachnids and scientific careers. “My hope is young people will leave seeing themselves as capable of being scientists, if that’s where their interests lead them,” she said.

Greta Binford in her lab at Lewis & Clark College.

Venom is extracted from a Loxosceles apachea spider.

If you know us, you

know Oregon.

Some of the most delicious stories in the Pacific Northwest are happening right in your backyard.

Few things unite the Pacific Northwest more than food. This region is a gastronomic powerhouse of diverse, essential and surprising foods and at the center are the ingredients themselves. Where do these ingredients come from? What makes them delicious?

OPB’s “Superabundant” takes you behind the scenes to answer these questions. Head into the woods with the team in search of giant wild chanterelle mushrooms. Discover the bounty and history of a Japanese Americanowned fruit orchard. Explore the people and places shaping Oregon’s “chardonnay moment” — and more.

Find the stories behind the foods you love at opb.org/superabundant

WRITING NEW STORIES

To build up families and communities, Roseburg’s Ford Family Foundation gives away books by the thousands

written by James Sinks | illustration by Yu Kito Lee

IN THE Pulitzer Prize-winning book Demon Copperhead, author Barbara Kingsolver tells the story of a child in Appalachia during the opioid crisis who moves into and out of foster care—and is shaped by tragedies but also positive relationships.

While fictional, the book’s life lessons are real and instructive. The themes resonated strongly at The Ford Family Foundation, the legacy nonprofit created by the founders of Roseburg Forest Products, and which focuses on helping lower-income children and families in rural Oregon and Northern California to climb the economic ladder.

Inspired, the Southern Oregon-based foundation added Demon Copperhead to a list of books it mails for free—to anyone who asks—in Oregon and Northern California’s Siskiyou County.

Called SelectBooks, the two-decade-old giveaway program has shared more than 35,000 books and counting, including about 6,000 in 2024. The 50 or so titles currently available include adult fiction, nonfiction and even children’s books, with themes like parenting, rural entrepreneurship, community building, diversity and resilience.

The goal, said Learning Officer Mandy Elder, is to get people thinking and talking about how to improve rural communities and the lives of the people who reside in them, one book at a time.

“One way we learn is through story, and we hope SelectBooks gives a window into the different kinds of experiences in Oregon that different kids have,” Elder said.

SelectBooks is just one of the myriad community-focused projects financed by The Ford Family Foundation. It also funds grants and generous higher education scholarships.

Not only are the books free, there’s also no charge for shipping. People only need to leave a review for a book before they are able to order their next one.

Other notable nonprofits also give away books, including country superstar Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library, which mails ageappropriate books to children before the age of 5, and the Book Trust, which sends to libraries at “Title I” schools, where large percentages of kids live below the poverty line.

SelectBooks doesn’t set any age or income restrictions. You just need to reside in the eligible area.

TOP 5 REQUESTED SELECTBOOKS

TITLES IN 2025

• Demon Copperhead

• Caring for Self While Caring for Others

• Trauma Stewardship

• Between the Listening and the Telling

• Good Inside, a parenting resource

The program began with nonfiction titles and guidebooks, and those still make up a significant portion of the list. They include parenting resources and self-help guides like Trauma Stewardship, with strategies for frontline social workers and educators who regularly assist families in poverty and crisis.

About one in seven Oregon children lives beneath the poverty line, accounting for 12.5 percent of kids in rural places and 13.8 percent in urban locales, according to census data published by the Ford Foundation as part of a county-by-county data report, called By The Numbers. In Douglas County, the child poverty rate is 19.2 percent.

At the South Coast Regional Early Learning Hub in Coos Bay, the staff steer families to SelectBooks for both parenting lessons and children’s books. Early literacy is one of the goals of the nonprofit, which also helps connect families with young children up to age 6 to a South Coast network of parenting resources and organizations.

The nonprofit also recommends SelectBooks-offered professional guides to staff and their partner organizations, said Charlotte Carver, the Early Learning Hub’s interim director.

“Families reading with their young children promotes early literacy and language skills but also promotes healthy relationships and bonds between children and their caregivers,” she said. “More books in our families’ hands means a brighter future for our families and our region as a whole.”

Books are vetted by the foundation’s team before they are added. The public can suggest new titles for inclusion, and the list evolves every year.

Douglas County Library Director Kris Wiley said her staff is delighted to share information about SelectBooks and its array of free options with library patrons. “Anytime we can support reading and lifelong learning, it’s a win.”

The program is still a fairly well-kept secret, but not on purpose, said Casondra Reeves, program associate to the foundation’s executive office. She used to label and mail the books, in the early days when requests totaled about 1,000 a year. Now, that task is handled by a Portland warehouse.

“It’s been surprisingly difficult to get out of secret land,” she said. “The point is to get the books into the hands of people who can learn from them.”

Among titles currently available is The New York Times bestseller Educated, a memoir by Tara Westover, who was raised in a survivalist family in Idaho and didn’t attend school until the age of 17, yet went on to earn a doctorate from Cambridge.

Also on the list: What Unites Us, a reflection on patriotism by former CBS anchor Dan Rather; Strategies for Rural Prosperity, a guide for entrepreneurs; Between the Listening and the Telling, about the connective power of storytelling; and The House in the Cerulean Sea, a young adult fiction story about love and acceptance that was written by Roseburg born-and-raised gay author TJ Klune.

When Klune was young, books involving the LGTBQ+ community were unheard of, he said. Now, he writes them—and he applauds SelectBooks for facilitating reading, understanding and sharing.

“Knowing books like mine are widely available and read is more than I could have ever asked for,” said Klune. “To have my story selected is an honor, and I am so chuffed that people get to read books by queer people for queer people—and anyone else who wants to read them.”

Golden light bathes the Brooks Estate Vineyard.

The winery’s Fall Equinox Supper in September is perfect for date night.

(photo: Andréa Johnson)

Fall for These Romantic Wine Country Escapes

Seven pastoral getaways for those who love wine and adventure

written by Jean Chen Smith

Oregon tips the scale at more than 1,100 wineries in the state, making it the ideal destination for a wine country getaway. Fall is the harvest season for the majority of vineyards, when grapes are ripe for picking, and properties are abuzz with activity. Grapevines are at the apex of their beauty with an abundance of grapes. It is my favorite time to visit wineries. There are many options when it comes to choosing romantic accommodations after a day of wine tasting. Some wineries offer luxurious lodging where you can sip and stay, enjoying an immersive experience. Surrounded by the beauty of the vines, staying on a working vineyard is a unique getaway. Boutique hotels and small inns also make an excellent choice when visiting wine country. Fall head over heels for these idyllic stops.

CARLTON Abbey Road Farm

Abbey Road Farm is a spectacular 82-acre working farm featuring five charming rooms located inside converted grain silos. There is also an elegant tasting room with tasty snacks curated by the kitchen. The outdoor patio offers stunning vistas of Carlton. Before becoming the wine country destination it is today, the 20-acre property was a farm with livestock and a horse arena. In 2017, Daniel and Sandi Wilkens purchased the farm with the vision of expanding it, creating a haven where wine and hospitality converge.

It is the ideal spot for a romantic getaway. Rooms are modern and comfortable, some with whirlpool tubs. The biggest highlight of the stay is a gourmet, multicourse breakfast prepared by chef Will Preisch. His innovative creations had our mouths watering every morning. In October, the farm will hold their Dinner in the Field event in collaboration with Field & Vine. Guests can relax and enjoy a seven-course meal while surrounded by the beauty of the farm. | 10501 NE Abbey Road, Carlton; www.abbeyroadfarm.com

The Inn at Dayton

Tucked among the rolling hills of the Willamette Valley, The Inn at Dayton is a twelve-room boutique hotel located within a historic red brick building, formerly the Weinhard Hotel. The revitalized 1890 structure is LEED Gold Certified, featuring distinguished rooms, some with fireplaces and sitting areas. Bathrooms have spa-centric showers and bath products. Visitors are treated to a complimentary breakfast, featuring local ingredients delivered daily to their room. Couples can join casual wine gatherings the inn hosts in the afternoons. Explore things to do in the area with the concierge, who also serves a delightful welcome drink upon arrival. Conveniently located in downtown Dayton, boutiques and restaurants are just steps from the hotel. | 520 3rd St., Dayton; www.theinnatdayton.com

DAYTON

The Inn at Dayton is inside an 1890-era, LEED Gold Certified structure in the thick of wine country. (photo: The Inn at Dayton)

Abbey Road Farm in Carlton brings luxury to silos and the farm-fresh creations of chef Will Preisch. (photo: Abbey Road Farm)

SALEM

Bryn Mawr Vineyards

Located near Salem, Bryn Mawr Vineyards’ sprawling 40-acre estate vineyard offers two luxurious properties—the Guest House and the Gate House. After a day of exploring the area’s top-notch wineries, settle into the privacy of your rental. Designed and manufactured by Ideabox, a local business, the Guest House has two bedrooms, two spacious bathrooms, a full kitchen and exquisite views. Nestled among the vineyards, the Gate House offers more space, including a sitting room and two large patios. Bryn Mawr is known for its distinct grape varietals, including pinot noir, chardonnay, dolcetto, pinot blanc and riesling, along with its certified sustainable practices. | 5935 Bethel Heights Road NW, Salem; www.brynmawrvineyards.com

SALEM

AtTheJoy at Anahata

Vineyard

This palatial 6,500-square-foot, six-bedroom rental is perched among Anahata Vineyard’s 24-acre property. Anahata translates to “heart chakra” in Sanskrit, hence the home’s name, “AtTheJoy.” It overlooks Oregon’s Eola-Amity Hills, and the estate is rented as one unit, which is a good option if traveling with multiple couples or multigenerational families. It features a main house and three bungalows, offering ample space for family reunions and celebrations. The kitchen houses state-of-the-art equipment for preparing meals, while a separate dining area is perfect for hosting intimate dinners. Guests can hang out on the patio, enjoying vineyard views, or take a dip in the pool to cool off. At sunset, take in the ambiance as you gather around the fire pit and watch the sun go down.

AtTheJoy’s family of brands spans nearly fifty years of experience in the beverage industry, which began when Andy Lytle sought to combine Oregon’s temperate grapes using French wine-making techniques. Aubaine and Lytle-Barnett produce a variety of wines, primarily focusing on pinot noir and chardonnay, with Lytle-Barnett also producing sparkling wines. Their sophisticated tasting room is located in downtown Dundee, a short thirty-minute drive away. | 5900 Zena Road NW, Salem; www.atthejoy.com

AT LEFT Cozy up at AtTheJoy, which features a pool and fire pit. (photo: Kelsey Chance/AtTheJoy)

Quiet luxury in the vines at Bryn Mawr Vineyards’ Guest House near Salem. (photo: Bryn Mawr Vineyards)

CARLTON Inn the Ground

This luxurious bed-and-breakfast is located on a working regenerative farm, which o ers travelers an opportunity to connect with the land. Rooms showcase sweeping views of the property, private patios, spa showers and access to a stateof-the-art fitness center with pickleball and tennis courts. Enjoy an epicurean breakfast along with the stay. They also o er complimentary wine tastings at several local wineries and farm tours on the property. Meander the property, and explore the 8 miles of hiking trails. Inn the Ground often hosts wellness retreats and events, so be sure to check out the website for more details. One of my favorite o erings is their soundbath, which allows participants to activate their parasympathetic nervous system and fall into deep relaxation.

Within The Ground’s hospitality umbrella is the awardwinning restaurant Grounded Table, formerly Humble Spirit, located in downtown McMinnville. The farm-to-table restaurant showcases the freshest bounty of the region, with most of the produce and meat coming from Source Farms and Tabula Rasa Farms. The newly opened Pub features—what else—delicious pub fare alongside cocktails, wine and beer on tap. | 15250 NW Panther Creek Road, Carlton; www.the ground.love/stay/inn-the-ground

What to Pack

Now that you have all the details on the top picks for your wine country adventure, here are some must-haves to bring on your trip.

Long floral dresses like Trovata’s Sonia Dress in Hydra Border, available at Adorn in Portland, are a choice pick for wine tasting. Flowing and comfortable, it is made of cotton poplin and has two side pockets. Bring along the Savannah Cardigan in Blue Stripe, which is a lightweight sweater to layer on chilly nights. www.trovata.com

Sunday Afternoons hat company, located in Ashland, makes hats for both men and women. Since tastings can often take place outside, bringing a hat keeps the sun out of your eyes and keeps you cool. The Havana Hat is unisex and comes in three colors and three sizes. www.sundayafternoons.com

Inn the Ground in Carlton, with gorgeous views and a soundbath for its visitors. (photo: The Ground)

The Compass McMinnville

Exuding sophistication, e Compass McMinnville is a modern take on a traditional bed-and-breakfast. e five-suite luxe hotel is situated right in the downtown, featuring sunlit rooms with premium bathrooms, small workspaces and sumptuous Frette Italian linens. For more space, book the studio suite, which is a standalone unit that is kid-friendly. ere is a kitchenette, dining nook and sitting area for some rest and relaxation. Each suite is stocked with complimentary snacks, along with a small bottle of local wine. ere is a communal café, wine library and honor bar, with plenty of indoor and outdoor spaces for hanging out and enjoying time with your significant other. | 706 SE 1st St., McMinnville; www.compassmcminnville.com

CENTRAL POINT

Hummingbird Estate

Hummingbird Estate, a 47-acre property, is situated in the heart of the Rogue Valley, best known for its wild beauty and outdoor recreation. Listed on the National Register of Historic Places, the estate has five rooms and a private cottage. Rooms feature hardwood floors, elegant decor and spacious private baths. Some offer breathtaking views and sitting areas. e Vineyard Cottage is a two-bedroom and two-bathroom rental with a full kitchen, dining area and living room. e cottage’s front terrace is the perfect romantic perch to watch the sunset with a glass of Hummingbird Estate’s rosé. e tasting room overlooks the scenic Rogue Valley, where twosomes can enjoy wine, beer on tap and tasty picnic-style snacks. | 1677 Old Stage Road, Central Point; www. hummingbirdestate.com

Matching sets like Petal & Pup’s Marnie exude elegance and sophistication. The pant’s elastic waistband allows for a relaxed fit, and the sleeveless top is seasonless and acts as a great layering piece. www.petalandpup.com

Canyon River Wood’s handcrafted wood wine stoppers help keep your bubbles fresh. The company is situated along the Oregon Coast and makes the stoppers from Oregon myrtlewood. Each one is unique and the perfect wine-tasting companion. www.madeinoregon.com

Patagonia’s Men’s Go-To Shirt is lightweight and breathable. Choose from seven colors, and pair it with the brand’s Twill Traveler Chino Pants, which are made of moisture-wicking fabric. www.patagonia.com

The Rogue Valley’s Hummingbird Estate is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. (photo: Hummingbird Estate)

Things to Do on Your Vineyard Escape

Soter Vineyards in Carlton serves great wines alongside a guided lunch and wine experience as well as live outdoor classical music.

(photo: Andréa Johnson)

Coordinate your stay with some fun nearby attractions. Many of these family-owned businesses are open year-round, making them worthwhile visits any season.

SOTER | CARLTON

Soter Vineyards is located on Mineral Springs Ranch, a 240-acre biodynamic farm and vineyard in the center of Oregon’s wine country. The Demeter-certified winery adheres to the high standards of biodynamic agriculture, specializing in estate pinot noirs and chardonnays, as well as crisp sparkling wines. Choose from a diverse selection of experiences in their upscale tasting room. My favorite is their Provisions Tasting, which includes a guided lunch and wine adventure led by chef Clayton Allen and the culinary team. Soter also hosts events throughout the year, including In a Landscape: Classical Music in the Wild, an outdoor concert series surrounded by the beauty of the vineyards. | 10880 NE Mineral Springs Road, Carlton; www.sotervineyards.com

HAYWARD | CARLTON

Make reservations for two at Hayward, the award-winning restaurant from chef Kari Shaughnessy. The restaurant, which was a James Beard Award finalist for Best New Restaurant in 2024, recently relocated from the Mac Market to its new home, which features a bar, formal dining room and spacious outdoor patio. At just 32 years old, Shaughnessy is an established culinary powerhouse who seeks to use local and seasonal ingredients, while partnering with local purveyors. | 209 N. Kutch St., Carlton; www.haywardrestaurant.com

FIALA FARMS | WEST LINN

Just a short twenty-five minutes from Portland, Fiala Farms has been family owned since 1906. The farm grows fruit and vegetables that are handpicked daily and sold at their farm stand. They have everything from apples and peaches to yellow squash and sweet peppers. In the fall, their 5-acre corn maze and pumpkin patch is a major draw for visitors near

and far. One of their biggest events is Dinner in the Field at Fiala Farms, which is typically held in July and August. The farm-to-table dinner is a seven-course sit-down meal with the farm’s in-season produce and meat from local purveyors. The farm is also a favored location for rehearsal dinners and wine country weddings. | 21231 SW Johnson Road, West Linn; www.fialafarms.com

THE KITCHEN AT MIDDLEGROUND FARMS | WILSONVILLE

The Kitchen at Middleground Farms is located on a 17-acre family farm about twenty minutes from Portland. They offer cooking classes, happy hours and wine festivals within a converted cattle barn. Their most popular event is the Winemaker’s Dinner Series, where the kitchen partners with the area’s prominent wineries to curate a multicourse pairing experience.

Recently I had the opportunity to participate in a cooking lesson hosted by chefs Katie Cook and Kate Johnson and Curator of Wine and Experiences Jean Householder. The focus of our class was grilling meats, seafood and vegetables. The evening of demonstrations and hands-on learning culminated with a delicious feast at a communal table. | 4651 SW Homesteader Road, Wilsonville; www.middleground farms.com

DANCIN | MEDFORD

Located in Medford, DANCIN Vineyards is home to Burgundian-style pinot noirs, chardonnays, syrah, zinfandel and port wines. It is the birthplace of the Vinum New World Pinot Noir glass by Riedel, promoting the fruit and acidity. The glass’s distinct tulip shape is meant to distribute the aromas harmoniously, while minimizing the depth of the alcohol. The grounds are surrounded by lush trees and gardens, with an outdoor patio. Enjoy an artisan pizza and a glass of wine as you take in the views; the vineyard has an elevation up to 1,800 feet. There is also live music throughout the year. | 4477 S. Stage Road, Medford; www.dancin.com

BROOKS WINE | AMITY

Located in Amity, Brooks Wine sits across 20 acres. Established in 1998, the biodynamic winery produces award-winning pinot noir and riesling. When visiting, choose from myriad tasting experiences; their Enhanced Experiences are some of my favorites, which feature a delicious wine-paired lunch, tour and curated tasting. In September, they host a Fall Equinox Supper, which is a family-style meal with wine pairings, using the freshest bounty of the fall harvest. The festive event is perfect for date night or an evening out with friends and family. | 21101 SE Cherry Blossom Lane, Amity; www.brookswine.com

Photos, from left: Jean Chen Smith, Andréa Johnson

BUGS & BLOOMS

written by Kerry Newberry | photography by Deb Stoner

FOR THE LAST ten years, Deb Stoner’s lush garden has sparked some of her most extraordinary still life portraits. It all started with a project that involved growing plants to cast in precious metals. That inspired her current obsession of making exquisite still life photographs of local flowers and bugs with captivating detail.

“It makes me pay a ention to flora and fauna in an entirely different way,” she said. “Now, I’m the slowest walker in the world because I have to stop and examine the life cycle of a specific plant or caterpillar.” Her friends and neighbors are actively engaged, too—calling to let her know when they have specific flowers in bloom or if they spy a novelty in their garden.

Using a flatbed scanner as her camera, Stone’s work blends traditional photography with contemporary digital technology. As she works on each still life composition, she thinks of the larger story the flowers and bugs can tell. Whether that’s a narrative about threatened species (see the Fender’s blue bu erfly) or just magnifying the natural world in an eloquent way that provokes curiosity and contemplation.

Stoner found an international audience following a yearlong solo exhibit at the Portland International Airport. Her twelve luminous pieces from that show, A Year in the Willame e Valley, are now part of Port of Portland’s permanent art collection. She frequently gets emails from travelers who find a moment of calm at the airport when they pass her artwork. “Those notes make my heart sing,” she said. “That’s my art doing exactly what I hoped.” For more information, visit www.debstoner.com

AT LEFT For this piece on display at the zero energy Oregon State Treasury Resiliency Building, artist Deb Stoner focused on the Fender’s blue bu erfly, a species that was brought back from the brink of extinction. Endemic to the Willame e Valley, the bu erfly is dependent on Kincaid’s lupine as a food source (also threatened). Since she couldn’t source natural materials in her usual way, Stoner worked with Lynda Boyer of Heritage Seedlings and the Department of Fish & Wildlife for this photograph.

Pure Oregon, this piece was part of Cascadia, a statewide touring fine art photography exhibition of juried work by Oregon photographers sponsored by The Ford Family Foundation.

Elegant and ethereal, this photo is one of twelve from the series A Year in the Willamette Valley and is part of Port of Portland’s public art collection. The next time you fly, look for Stoner’s artwork in Concourse B, D and E at the Portland International Airport.

CLOCKWISE FROM LEFT

Stoner made this piece one sultry day in August when all her flowers and vegetables were peaking. “I love that I can almost feel the summer heat in this piece,” she said.

For a solo exhibit in the Scholar’s Study at the Lan Su Chinese Garden in Portland, Stoner visited the garden’s off-site greenhouse to gather some art-making beauties. This print depicts a lotus blossom, a bud and several spent pods from the gardens.

Stoner’s art career has spanned four decades. “My work in the public realm has proven to be popular, noncontroversial and inspiring to people seeking peace and beauty in a complicated world,” she said.

Stoner always starts with plants, and then discovers cri ers in their habitat. In this photograph, you’ll see caterpillars among Himalayan blackberries, tansy, nightshade and some thistles. While she usually integrates dead bugs, she worked with live caterpillars for this portrait, gently laying them on a leaf or a stem, le ing them se le and then scanning. “When I was finished with my tiny actors, I brought them back to their nutritious weed patch and wished them well,” she said.

BELOW From Stoner’s A Year in the Willame e Valley series, this photo captures the essence of autumn. She describes it as a peek under her yard debris pile in fall.

FAR LEFT

“This is one of the most whimsical pieces I’ve made, and perhaps relatable because everyone from around here knows where they were on that day,” said Stoner. In 2017, during the solar eclipse, she was recovering from an appendectomy and stuck at home. Later that day, she visited a friend’s garden and found inspiration for a study in all purples and greens. She created this image of a bug’s-eye view to show what might have been happening on any ordinary day near the path of totality.

TRAVEL SPOTLIGHT 74

ADVENTURE 78

LODGING 82

TRIP PLANNER 84

NORTHWEST DESTINATION 90

Find fall colors, incredible dining and spooky happenings on an autumn Ashland getaway.

Photos: Travel Baker County

Miracles in Ice (Cream)

In the hot desert sun, The Fields Station’s milkshakes are a revival in Southeast Oregon

written by Joni Kabana | photography by Tambi Lane

IF YOU’VE EVER ventured into the Alvord Desert, you’re probably aware of The Fields Station. After leaving the tiny town of Frenchglen and driving for seemingly a lifetime in a vastly open and barren landscape, nothing feels more welcome than knowing you’ll soon see that turn off to the highly remote little pit stop where you will find a diner, camping supplies, groceries, fuel … and milkshakes. People drive to the edge of the Alvord Desert near the Nevada border to sip one of the best milkshakes you can find, served up in a vintage-style aluminum cup. The Fields Station, run by husband-and-wife team Jaide and Jacob Downs since 2018, is well-known for its icy, creamy concoctions, and it has enough flavors (more than twenty) to please the most discerning palate.

Jacob and Jaide Downs, owners of The Fields Station, stand with their world-famous shake and bacon cheeseburger.

Find fuel, lodging, groceries and a hot meal at The Fields Station in Southeastern Oregon.

The Fields Station serves up more than twenty flavors of milkshakes, including Butterfinger.

Amble in, and get in line—don’t rush the waitstaff with your citified demeanor, and savor the thought that you are standing in what was once a stagecoach stop. Life flows slower in this town, founded in 1881 and with fewer than 100 inhabitants— and that is how they like it.

The outdoor patio is a gathering space to wait for your name to be called and to make new friends. After all, you are in the middle of the wilderness, and it feels like you are all on another planet. If you are hankering for something more substantial, the restaurant serves hot lunches and much-appreciated breakfasts

seven days a week if you are making your way home after a night sleeping under the stars in the Alvord Desert. And if you don’t want to rough it in a tent or bring a vehicle you can sleep in, The Fields Station also offers accommodations at its motel and RV park (be sure to book ahead).

Above all, get ready to meet people on chance encounters while you bask in the remote open landscape surrounding you in Southeastern Oregon.

For more information and hours of operation, see www.the fieldsstation.com.

ABOVE, CLOCKWISE FROM TOP LEFT The road to Fields Station in the Oregon Outback. Chef Tiffany assembles a cheeseburger. A counter at The Fields Station keeps track of burgers sold in 2025 (2,617 as of August). The café offers hearty breakfasts daily.

Launch, Fish, Feast—Ride the Dory Tradition

Punching through Cape Kiwanda surf with a seasoned captain, a hefty catch and century‑old dory culture

written by Cathy Carroll

IN THE FAINT light just after dawn in the Pelican Brewing Company parking lot in Pacific City, Captain Joe Hay stood at the stern of his trailered dory boat, primed to launch straight from the beach through the surf of Cape Kiwanda—a tradition among local fishers since the early 1900s. With the dry humor of someone who’s spent thirty years plying the waters for its bounty, Hay, in pink Chubbies swim trunks but visible only from the waist up, quipped: “I guess you’re wondering why I’m not wearing pants—my wife wears them, and she’s home in bed.”

This was just what a neophyte wearing an anti-seasickness patch behind an ear needed to hear. “She’s a smart woman,” I replied, feeling less nervous. I climbed aboard.

The crew towed the open-hulled, 22-foot-long flat-bottomed dory onto the soft sand and into the waist-deep water. With the bow of the Haystack IV pointed into the waves, Hay hit the motor and pressed play on the music, launching the craft over frothy white breakers as “The Ride of the Valkyries” boomed from the boat’s speakers.

Within minutes, we were parallel to Haystack Rock, the iconic, 327-foot-tall sea stack that dominates the view from Cape Kiwanda. As the monolith revealed a close-up of its north side, the sun peeked over the cape’s sandstone headland, and Hay switched the soundtrack to Bob Marley. He and his longtime friend, a retired charter airline pilot and Hay’s helper today, equipped the three passengers with baited rods and wisdom for enticing aquatic creatures to breakfast.

“Let it hit bottom, then slowly turn the reel three times,” they instructed. Soon, the pull

Captain Joe Hay (left) of Haystack Fishing aboard his dory boat.

Alexandra

Pallas

came on the line. The rod’s tip bent with force, striking an instant connection with the dark, hidden world beneath the surface.

Reeling in a 2-foot-long lingcod revealed the primeval looks of the Ophiodon elongatus, its mottled khaki greenand-brown-patterned skin, like Desert Storm camouflage, surrounded bulging, pupilless eyes and Mick Jagger lips over eighteen jagged teeth. (Ophiodon, meaning “snake- toothed” in Greek, can grow to 5 feet in length.)

“That will be great for fish-and-chips,” said my husband, a chef. He hoisted in rockfish, sometimes three at a time: canary fish, copper rock and black bass, glistening in the morning sun.

Hay glanced at the screen of his fish finder, detecting schools lurking in the depths, and sped to them. Like the gentle surf, my emotions rose and fell—the thrill of getting a bite and the prey getting away. We headed to the crab pots that Hay had set the day prior, each one loaded with dozens of tan and deep purple Dungeness, clawing frenetically and measuring big enough to keep.

Plying water as blue as the cloudless sky, we cruised past three sea lions, lounging on buoys like drunk, sunburned uncles. A black, sickle-shaped orca fin sliced through the surface yards away. Hay powered the dory toward shore.

Anyone who’s visited Cape Kiwanda has likely seen dory boats zooming toward the beach, air horns blaring warnings to surfers, swimmers and beach strollers to stay clear of the dramatic, high-speed landing. The hoopla suggests a rough reentry, but we shot smoothly onto the sand.

On each trip, Hay brings the day’s catch back to his house, about a six-minute drive from the beach, where he meticulously cleans, fillets and vacuum packs the fish for you to bring home in your cooler. But there’s instant gratification, too. Hay steams the crabs in seawater, locking the flavor into the tender meat. Bald eagles circled above his back lawn along the Nestucca River, where we cracked open the crustaceans, savoring the delicate flesh, sweet and rich—perfect without a single adornment.

Soothing ocean breezes and stellar views of Haystack Rock continued at Headlands Coastal Lodge & Spa, a resort just off

the beach, with an aesthetic firmly grounded in the beauty, bounty and adventures of Cape Kiwanda. Seemingly each window frames picturesque beach scenes—the monolith, the hypnotic, rolling sea and soothing, vast sky. At Meridian Restaurant & Bar, table-to-ceiling windows open accordion-style, creating a stylish perch for an elevated panorama of the Pacific.

We savored dishes with locally sourced ingredients such as lingcod puttanesca with fresh pasta, San Marzano tomatoes, olives, anchovies, capers and basil and Pacific salmon with beurre blanc, quinoa vegetable salad and trout roe.

Afterward, fellow guests warmed themselves beside bonfires, indulged in spa treatments and soaked in the outdoor hot tub overlooking the beach to watch the sunset. I headed to my room, wrapping myself in a cozy robe and taking to the balcony to watch the stars. Even this dory boat neophyte will be dreaming of the next launch.

MORE

Ready to plan your adventure? Head to www.haystackfishing.com and www.headlandslodge.com to learn more.

CLOCKWISE FROM LEFT Haystack Fishing’s dory boat cuts through the waves. Writer Cathy Carroll displays her catch. Captain Joe Hay retrieves a crab pot. Finish the day at Meridian Restaurant & Bar at Headlands in Pacific City.

Haystack Fishing

Alexandra Pallas

Headlands Coastal Lodge & Spa

Hotel Sylvia Lodging

written by Kerry Newberry

PERCHED ON a cliffside at the edge of the sea in Newport, Hotel Sylvia’s historic building dates back to 1910. For more than forty years, the storied property has lured book lovers to the coast for contemplative literary retreats. The beloved hotel recently relaunched following a thoughtful glow up—reviving all the spaces while retaining the bookish spirit of this special place.

The name still pays homage to Sylvia Beach, the legendary American expat bookseller who owned the Paris bookstore Shakespeare and Company—a literary hub in the 1920s for renowned writers including Ernest Hemingway, Gertrude Stein and F. Scott Fitzgerald.

You’ll find the revered literary ethos remains throughout the property. All twentytwo guest rooms are named for either authors (Maya Angelou, Jane Austen, Agatha Christie, C.S. Lewis, Alice Walker) or after popular genres (drama, fantasy, mystery). Each room added curated book collections and creative accents to further enhance the literary vibes.

There’s a new vibrancy and lightness to the shared spaces with contemporary design and details that include floor-to-ceiling bookshelves in the lobby library to nooks with eye-catching wallpaper. No matter where you settle to stick your nose in a book, you can relax to the steady hum of ocean waves. For any bibliophile, this is the ideal spot to get lost in a novel, or maybe even write one of your own.

267 NW CLIFF ST.

NEWPORT www.hotelsylvia.com

LITERARY ROOMS

Choose from twenty-two delightfully thematic guest rooms styled with stunning wallpaper. Author rooms include Maya Angelou, Jane Austen, Agatha Christie, Ernest Hemingway, C.S. Lewis, William Shakespeare and Alice Walker. Genre-themed rooms range from drama and fantasy to mystery and romance. The majority of the rooms have full or partial ocean views, and some are pet-friendly.

BOOK NOOKS

Get ready to hit your Goodreads goal in one of many charming reading nooks and spaces. In addition to a stylish fireside lobby library, you can burrow into your book on an oceanfront patio. On the third level, the James Joyce Library offers a quiet space with cozy couches and stacks of vintage books—including all the guest journals dating back to the hotel’s early years.

AMENITIES

Start your morning with espresso from the Lobby Coffee bar. The lobby gift shop sells an inspired selection of snacks, beer, local wine and canned cocktails along with Wild Coast tea, cool tote bags, literary games and other sundries. Check the lobby calendar for information on local writing groups and author events. Borrow beach chairs, puzzles and even book lights.

DINING

In the beautiful Café Sylvia, expect more ocean views and personality-packed bookshelves. Standout breakfast items include the New Yorker (a bagel topped with cream cheese and lox) and Poet’s French Toast (custard-soaked brioche with seasonal berries). The café is open to the public from 8 to 11 a.m., and it’s a wonderful community hub for both local and visiting readers.

CLOCKWISE FROM TOP The lobby library of the writer redoubt, Hotel Sylvia in Newport. Each of its twenty-two rooms is themed by author or genre. The Café Sylvia has ocean views and great breakfasts. A view for writers and dreamers.

Photos: Shelsi Lindquist

Fall for Ashland

written by James Sinks

As the days shorten, the Rogue Valley’s dramatic hamlet is a li le spooky and a lot awesome

WITH ITS renowned theatrical festival, international culinary scene, public university and smorgasbord of outdoor recreation pursuits, it might not feel fair to call Ashland a ghost town. en again, you might not be wrong .

Paranormal reports abound in the hamlet in Southern Oregon’s Rogue Valley, from the ghost of a 1930s actor lurking at the Oregon Shakespeare Festival, to one that stomps the hallways at the Columbia Hotel downtown.

“Based on the stories I’ve heard, the spirits here are more mischievous than murderous,” chuckled 74-year-old Peter Finkle, a local historian who leads art and history walking tours. His most popular, by far, explores Haunted Ashland.

Even if you don’t bump into apparitions, you’ll still be spirited away—and quite busy—in Oregon’s drama capital. Zigzag from dusty mountain trails to U-pick fruit orchards to live performances, and from a magic mushroom café to the magical hidden patio at downtown’s Bloomsbury Books—ideal for espresso-nursing in sweater weather.

Platted at the former site of a Shasta Indian village, the city first thrived as a wagon and railroad stopover, and now relies on tourism and hometown Southern Oregon University.

Maybe there’s something in the lithium-laden (and ghastly to your taste buds) local Lithia water, but the community from its early days developed a gentler brand of politics compared to its Southern Oregon neighbors, including its support for President Lincoln and women’s suffrage. Higher local taxes in the now-nicknamed “People’s Republic of Ashland”— including a 5 percent restaurant sales tax—foster a storybook community with enviable parks.

e people’s republic also loves Halloween, and for years even shut Main Street for a giant costume party. But that revelry went by the wayside in the 1980s after the drunk-and-disorderly element got too disorderly and—from the apt metaphor department—a costumed visitor shot himself in the foot. ese days, the city celebrates with a new-ish mystery writing festival in October and a children’s daytime Halloween parade—usually with more costumed adults than kids, said Katharine Cato, Travel Ashland director.

Also, while the city has long been a tourism magnet because of the 90-year-old Shakespeare Festival, it’s no longer the sole attractor. “It’s not uncommon to hear people say they came for the trails … and then discovered we have Shakespeare.”

AT LEFT Lithia Park lights up with fall colors.

Bigstock

One of Oregon’s jewels, technicolor-in-autumn Lithia Park begins downtown and parallels Ashland Creek to ponds, a japanese garden, sports courts and trails with names from Alice in Wonderland. First opened in 1892, it’s a perfect setting to grin like a Cheshire cat and work up a post-travel appetite.

You’ll have enticing options.

For a community of 21,000, Ashland’s culinary scene is a diverse delight. Indonesian lunch at Blue Toba completely fits that bill. Chef Birong Hutabarat used to travel personally to gather exotic spices, but now the family restaurant is too busy so his brother sends them. Try anything with his zesty sambal sauce, concocted from four Asian chilis.

In the artsy downtown district, explore galleries, boutiques, a weekend artisan market and a combined gas station and floral

shop. Ashland clearly loves its Shakespeare, and you’ll find more than a handful of references, from the Tudor-styled Bard’s Inn to the “As You Like It” sex toy shop.

Towering overhead is the Ashland Springs Hotel, where hopefully you’ll be checking in. Celebrating its centennial this year—and there’s a birthday party in September—the nine-floor luxe building opened to fanfare in the Roaring Twenties and was bankrupt the first time by the Great Depression.

Named to the National Historic Register in 1978, it was bought out of foreclosure in the 1990s and restored by the current owners. Relax in an airy lobby with original Italian tile floor, an English garden, a health spa and Larks Home Kitchen Cuisine, its farm-to-table restaurant and 1920s bar. A ghost might chill on the fifth floor.

LITHIA PARK • LOCAL BITES • SHAKESPEARE

Day Dining in downtown Ashland on the banks of Ashland Creek.

Travel

Southern Oregon

Down the block and up a flight of stairs is the circa-1910 Columbia Hotel, with a whimsical rotating art gallery and maybe a spirit or two. New owner and South Africa transplant Jay Bowen also commissioned murals in each guestroom. A traveler lodge, most rooms share bathrooms, and some have bunks, accommodating weary hikers from the nearby Pacific Crest Trail.

During remodeling, she found and removed not-artsy bloodsplattered carpets from the 1940s. “There was a lot of blood,” she said.

Weather permitting, book a garden table for dinner at swanky Hearsay. The short ribs are an all-season talker.

Finish dessert in time for a free Green Show, if one is happening. The open-to-everyone performances are staged in a plaza by the Oregon Shakespeare Festival, from midsummer through September.

Then, settle in for one of the festival’s spellbinding plays. Tickets start at $31.

One of Oregon’s best-known draws, the venerable festival teetered following the pandemic and leadership turnover—leading to a statewide bailout plea for millions. Now back on stable footing, the festival offers a slate of outdoor shows until midOctober and indoor performances until later in the month. The nine 2025 productions include the musical Into The Woods, and Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar (with an all-woman cast), As You Like It and Merry Wives of Windsor.

Hungry after the final curtain? Find triangles of cheesy happiness and a college crowd at Creekside Pizza Bistro. At Dangerous Lee’s Local Thirty-One Pub, there’s loud music most days, burgers and gluten-free gumbo, and shirts declaring Ashland a “drinking town with a tourist problem.”

Day

The Pacific Crest Trail stretches some 2,650 miles from Mexico to Canada, and it takes five months to walk the entire thing.

For those of us with other things to do, like jobs, snippets of the trail can be enjoyed via several day hikes in the nearby Cascade-Siskiyou National Monument and on Mount Ashland—a city-owned ski area come winter.

First, hike your blood sugar with omelets, crêpes or lemon ricotta-stuffed French toast, which are worth the wait at Morning Glory near campus. Or grab breakfast burritos from Ruby’s, a mainstay in a converted house downtown.

Oregon’s curvy Route 66 has more twists than a Shakespearean comedy. The payoff just thirty minutes from town is the 3-mile Green Springs Mountain Loop, through old growth and savannahs to sweeping valley vistas. National recreation passes are required.

Back downhill, raise a glass to mountain views and hoppy booze at Caldera Brewing, with forty-five beers on tap and a menu that includes seared ahi salad.

FROM TOP The famed Oregon Shakespeare Festival and its outdoor stage await. Don’t miss the lemon ricotta-stuffed French toast at Morning Glory. Get outside on the Green Springs Mountain Loop Trail, just thirty minutes from Ashland.

Joe Sofranko/Oregon Shakespeare Festival

Morning Glory

James Sinks

EAT

Blue Toba www.bluetoba.com

Brickroom www.brickroomashland.com

Caldera Brewing www.calderabrewing.com

Cocorico www.cocorico.kitchen

Greenleaf www.greenleafrestaurant.com

Hearsay www.hearsayashland.com

Larks Home Kitchen Cuisine www.larksashland.com

MÄS www.masashland.com

Mix www.mixashland.com

Morning Glory www.morninggloryashland.com

Osteria La Briccola www.osterialabriccola.com

Ruby’s www.rubysneighborhood restaurant.com

STAY

Ashland Springs Hotel www.ashlandspringshotel.com

Columbia Hotel www.columbiahotelashland.com

Lithia Springs Resort www.lithiaspringsresort.com

Winchester Inn www.winchesterinn.com

PLAY

Ashland Mystery Fest www.travelashland.com/ ashland-mystery-fest

Biking trails www.ashlandtrails.com/biking

Bloomsbury Books www.bloomsburyashland.com

Green Springs Mountain Loop www.oregonhikers.org

Haunted Ashland Walking Tour www.walkashland.com

Irvine & Roberts Vineyards www.irvinerobertsvineyards.com

Lithia Artisans Market www.lithiaartisansmarket.com

Lithia Park www.ashlandoregon.gov

Oregon Cabaret Theatre www.oregoncabaret.com

Oregon Shakespeare Festival www.osfashland.org

Shrooms Cafe www.shroomscafe.com

Valley View Orchard www.valleyvieworchard organics.com

Weisinger Family Winery www.weisingers.com

If wine is more your (grape) jam, the Rogue Valley’s varied elevations and warm temps help winemakers bottle everything from big Bordeauxs to Burgundians. At Irvine & Roberts Vineyards, chardonnay and pinot noir are the stars—and they’re as impressive as the vaulted tasting room. Also try the pinot-glazed burger.

Sip back in time at Weisinger Family Winery, established in 1988 and one of Oregon’s earliest producers. On the deck, try the fruity Gewürztraminer and the Mescolare red blend, marrying tempranillo, malbec and grenache.

Next up: ghosts. Peter Finkle’s Haunted Ashland walkabouts fill quickly, so book as soon as you know when you’re coming to town. Tours take ninety minutes to two hours.

Reservations also are a must for otherworldly Shrooms Cafe, a casual wellness experience that lets adults try mushroom-derived psilocybin for as little as $25—a huge discount compared to the Willamette Valley. Voters legalized the drug in 2020.

e café offers mellow group sessions, guided meditations, yoga and massage, plus smoothies and snacks (but no

mushroom pizza), said lead facilitator Joshua Traphagen. Firsttime visitors must complete a state-mandated intake process at least twenty-four hours beforehand. e trippy adventures have become a psychedelic tourism draw, attracting visitors from as far away as Japan. Based on the dose, you need to stay at least thirty minutes and as long as six hours afterward, and you can’t drive home.

For dinner, if you feel like an elegant culinary journey, James Beard finalist Josh Dorcak presents a fixed “Cascadian” tasting menu at MÄS, his sixteen-seat restaurant, for $250 per person.

Based on your time and budget, you also can’t go wrong at the frequently recommended Cocorico, where the beet salad, burrata and carbonara are lovely.

Upstairs in the historic town square is the Brickroom, with cocktails and camaraderie until late, and a youth-meets-adulthood surprise on the dessert menu: an affogato with espresso and vanilla ice cream—with chocolate Magic Shell coating.

Ashland has many options for sosurface runners. BELOW Osteria La Briccola perfects mussels and pasta among other dishes.

Day

TRAILS • ARTISANS MARKET • PEARS

When you roll out for a morning run or bike spin, be aware: Ashland is only flat on a map. Of course, because it’s Ashland, it’s also OK to be dramatic.

Elevated, you’ll find views and fun trails including a running path along an irrigation canal above campus, and the downhillonly Jabberwocky bike route near Lithia Park.

A flat, paved option heads north along the Bear Creek greenway, which you can take as far as 20 miles to Central Point, north of Medford.

Browse an expansive brunch menu at Greenleaf Restaurant and prowl the weekend Lithia Artisans Market along Ashland Creek, which runs to mid-October.

With so many shows on the Shakespeare festival playbill, there’s probably at least one more you’d like to catch. Matinees are at 1 p.m.

For still-dramatic yet campier fare, the separate Oregon Cabaret Theatre stages musicals and comedies in a converted Ashland church, with optional dining. This fall’s show is Murder for Two, a musical whodunit in which both actors play piano. Their matinees are also at 1 p.m.

Declared Oregon’s official state fruit in 2005, pears date back to the pioneer days of the Rogue Valley, which was once blanketed in orchards. The rise of holiday fruit shipper Harry & David is a product of the popular and prodigious local harvests.

Today, the acreage valleywide is vastly less, but you can still celebrate autumn by the sweet bushel at 50-acre organic Valley View Orchard, where you can pick your own Bartlett, Bosc and Seckel pear varieties. They’ve got buckets, if you don’t. Check their Facebook page to see what’s ripe.

At cozy Osteria La Briccola, marvel at authentic northern Italian fare including seafood and house-made pasta and gnocchi—and also the photo gallery of co-owner Davide Ghizzoni with Hollywood celebrities from his days as a chef in Los Angeles. The Ashland restaurant opened in 2021.

Your final stop is next door at cheery Mix Bakeshop. The owner—one of the daughters of the family that once ran the Oregon-based North’s Chuckwagon buffet chain—serves up almost-too-pretty-to-eat pastries and ice cream.

Also, after several days of adventure, bard and ghost hunting, their Stumptown espresso will help enliven your return trek. And your order? As you like it.

Irvine & Roberts Vineyards’ wines are well paired with serenity in the Ashland autumn.

Osteria La Briccola Travel Southern Oregon

Gregor Halenda

Photo/Irvine & Roberts Vineyards

All Aboard for Whiskey

Rainier excursion train features booze tasting on Saturday treks

written by James Sinks

TO EXTRACT logs and money in the 1890s, the Tacoma Eastern Railway began thundering into and out of the heavily timbered territory on the flank of Mount Rainier.

Today, most of the sawmills long shuttered, the train line is the domain of the museum-operated Mount Rainier Scenic Railroad, where a vintage 2-8-2 Mikado steam locomotive—also known as a “Mike”—hauls camera-toting tourists along a 7-mile route at speeds of up to 15 miles per hour. (High-speed rail, it ain’t.)

Most days, the whooshing steam engine is the star attraction, and it makes five roundtrips a day in high season. Yet on the final runs on Saturday evenings come summer and fall, the top billing goes to booze.

On those “Whiskey Train” treks, passengers disembark near the onetime logging town of Mineral, where they can clink souvenir shot glasses, try the wares of three nearby distilleries and wander remnants of a hardscrabble timber camp.

Among the boozy options: rye, bacon, fruit-infused and even butterscotch. ere’s also a band and charcuterie.

It’s not a full bar setup, but you can grab ginger ale if you need a chaser, said Eric Mencis, hospitality manager for the train. e popularity—there’s a capacity of 200 people per trip—wasn’t a surprise to the crew, he said. “ e staff likes whiskey, too,” he laughed.

“We also tried a wine train, but the vibe wasn’t quite right,” Mencis said. “ e whiskey people were the chillest and were more into hanging out on a railroad. We don’t have a tasting room with mood lighting.”

In addition to the locomotive, the historic train has two 1920sera passenger cars, an open-air observation car, a boxcar-turnedgift shop and an over-21 lounge car with limited beverage service, but no hard liquor. at would require a different state permit, and it’s something being considered by the nonprofit that runs the line, the Western Forest Industries Museum.

Mount Rainier Scenic Railroad is pulled by a vintage Mikado steam locomotive on a 7-mile scenic roll.

e museum, which took over ownership of the route in 2022, also claims the world’s largest collection of logging locomotives.

e excursion railroad is planning to extend its line, but this spring was dealt a jarring and expensive setback when a humancaused fire destroyed a 120-foot-high wooden trestle bridge on the planned route. While a gut-punch, the estimated $10 million in damage did not impair existing scenic train operations, Mencis said.

Whiskey passengers receive five tickets for tastes, as part of the $99 excursion experience. ey can purchase more tickets if desired. Also, he cautioned it’s not a dinner train, and folks shouldn’t expect to fill up—just finger foods and snacks.

In addition to the Saturday whiskey rides, the railroad also offers brunch excursions, themed Easter, Halloween and Polar Express runs, and rental rail cycles for folks who want to check out the scenery via pedal power.

e train line doesn’t sell any whiskey by the bottle—also a permit-related issue—but gives directions how to find and purchase from the distilleries themselves.

e participating regional craft booze makers are both boutique and big-time. Old Soldier Distillery in Tacoma and Sandstone Distillery in Tenino, near Olympia, are small operations, while frequent-award-winning Heritage Distilling Co. started in Gig Harbor and now operates five tasting rooms in the Pacific Northwest, and trades on the Nasdaq stock exchange.

“Being featured on the Whiskey Train is both an honor and a meaningful way for us to celebrate the heritage of the Pacific Northwest,” said Jessica Rubio-Reyes, Heritage Distilling’s tasting room manager in Tumwater. “We’re proud to share our story and craft with passengers who are looking for more than just a drink—they’re looking for connection, authenticity and a great time.”

Nate Shedd/Mount Rainier Scenic Railroad

EAT

Elbe Bar & Grill (360) 569-2545

Elbe Pizza Station (253) 406-5717

Mount Rainier Railroad Dining Co. www.rrdiner.com

National Park Inn www.mtrainierguestservices.com

Paradise Inn www.mtrainierguestservices.com

Scaleburgers (360) 569-0667

STAY

The Hobo Inn www.rrdiner.com/the-hobo-inn

Mineral Lake Lodge www.minerallakelodge.com

National Park Inn www.mtrainierguestservices.com

Paradise Inn www.mtrainierguestservices.com

Paradise Village Lodge www.paradisevillagelodge.com

PLAY

EZ Times Guided Trail Rides www.eztimeshorserides.com

Heritage Distilling Co. www.heritagedistilling.com

Lakeside Kayak Rentals www.lakesidekayakrentals.com

Mount Rainier Scenic Railroad www.mtrainierrailroad.com

Mount Rainier trails www.nps.gov

Old Soldier Distillery www.oldsoldierdistillery.com

Sandstone Distillery www.sandstonedistillery.com

Old Soldier samples four of its fourteen varieties on the train excursions, including its top seller: a fruit-infused version similar to a sangria, which was inspired by a whiskey in Greece, said Joe Bennett, distillery operations manager.

The train tasting exposure also is proving to be a solid business builder, he said. “We just had two groups walk in—five minutes apart—who heard about us because of the whiskey train.”

The Mount Rainier train trips begin and end in the town of Elbe, located about 40 miles south of Tacoma on the shore of Alder Lake.

Named after a town in Germany, it’s home to about fifty people, no stoplights and a (maybe) healthy obsession with railroad lore.

There’s a pizza parlor in an old train car. A restaurant in a train car. And you can sleep in cabooses at The Hobo Inn. Also, rent kayaks, mosey on horseback trail rides and lunch at a 1950s-style burger shack in a former weigh station scalehouse.

If you want a mythical photobomber in your selfies, at the Elbe Market there’s a giant, wood-carved Sasquatch, with a hat.

It’s a short drive to big views at Mount Rainier National Park, which covers 369

square miles surrounding the 14,410-foothigh volcano. The southwest entry is nearest to Elbe. Daily or annual recreation passes are required.

The road winds first to the onetime homestead of Longmire, with a museum and the open-all-year National Park Inn. A short hike on the Trail of the Shadows takes you to the mineral springs that made the destination famous in the late 1800s. Missing whiskey?

At the lodge’s restaurant, the menu includes bourbon-glazed buffalo meatloaf.

From Longmire, it’s 12 miles uphill to one of the snowiest places on the planet, Paradise, where some 630 inches pile up every year. The alpine landscape is clear in late summer and early fall, but parking can be frustratingly tight. The Paradise Inn offers rooms, meals and gifts from May through September.

Back in Elbe, an apt finale for a flavorful train-flavored trip awaits in a dining car that once traveled the country as part of the rolling “Freedom Train” museum, and is now the Mount Rainier Railroad Dining Co.

Whet your whistle-stop appetite with blackberry salmon, drink specials “until they run out” and a “train wreck” burger. Of course, there’s also whiskey.

Mount Rainier Scenic Railroad’s Whiskey Train combines craft spirits and the spirit of the Industrial Revolution.

Fall is arguably the best season to visit Mount Rainier National Park. (photo: Jason Hummel/State of Washington Tourism)

Mount Rainier Scenic Railroad

1859 MAPPED

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

Think Live Explore

Sunriver Sisters

Klamath

Until Next Time

Tabbitha Bruce casts a line for steelhead during an autumn day on the Rogue River outside of White City.

photo by Katie Falkenberg

Remember the last time your family visited the forest? It’s a place of wonder and imagination for the whole family—where stories come to life. And it’s closer than you think. Sounds like it’s time to plan your next visit. Make the forest part of your story today at a local park near you or find one at DiscoverTheForest.org.

‘Touch Grass’ This Season at PNW Resorts

LEAVE THE MACHINERY OF EFFICIENCY BEHIND & UNPLUG FOR A FULL REFRESH

The more that technology thinks for us, the less it truly does for us. Convenience is growth. E ciency becomes the goal. With AI and its myriad applications relegating human thinking to writing prompts, a counterbalance has been emerging behind the slogan “touch grass.”

Why not? If technology has made life more convenient and e cient, why not get outside more to touch grass, or gravel or water?

Thankfully, resorts in the Pacific Northwest have raised touching the grass to an art form over the years. Whether via hikes that wind through the Cascades, waterfalls that cascade down hundreds of feet, beaches that stretch for miles or mountain vistas that seemingly appear out of nowhere, PNW resorts o er many di erent ways to unplug and reconnect.

Cover: Black Butte Ranch

(photo: Boone Rodriguez/Black Butte Ranch)

Sand and surf (and grass) await you during your next stay at Salishan Coastal Lodge south of Lincoln City. (photo: SCP Hotels)

Oregon

BLACK BUTTE RANCH

In the fall warmth of Central Oregon’s high desert, for example, Black Butte Ranch has many ways to lose yourself in the outdoors. Hiking trails around the ranch are attainable for most visitors. e signature hike up the namesake butte, Black Butte, is a 4-mile out-and-back that gains 1,600 feet and can take two to four hours, depending on if you’re stopping to smell the manzanita. If you prefer a lot of grass and well-manicured grass, jump on one of the resort’s two eighteen-hole golf courses. Big Meadow is a challenging course designed by Robert Muir Graves. e other course, Glaze Meadow, was redesigned by John Fought and is known for its large greens. Don’t forget to book time for the alternative nineteenth hole—the Spa at Black Butte Ranch, located inside the Glaze Meadow Recreation Center.

SUNRIVER RESORT

Sunriver Resort is Shangri-la for fall recreation in Central Oregon. e resort caters to all ages and all seasons, with 40 miles of paved paths for biking and walking. ere are adjacent trails that dip into the Deschutes National Forest, crossing tentacles of the Deschutes River. Sunriver is also synonymous with its world-class golf courses, too. Four courses adorn the 3,300-acre resort, with the most famed Crosswater Club, designed by Bob Cupp with the Deschutes and Little Deschutes criss-crossing it often. e Spa at Sunriver Resort is an escape all to itself. Book the treatments you deserve in this serene retreat. Don’t just touch grass at Sunriver—look for it on

At Lake Creek Lodge, return home to a luxury cabin with a fireplace to cozy up to in the cool fall mountain nights.

LAKE CREEK LODGE

the surface of other galactic bodies at the Oregon Observatory at Sunriver. Try one of its many high-powered telescopes during a dark, clear high desert night.

Another Central Oregon zen space is Lake Creek Lodge in the Camp Sherman area. ink comfortable and cozy cabins on one of Oregon’s most pristine bodies of water, the Metolius River. is is a spot for anglers

to revel in the waters of the Metolius and let their flies drift slowly downriver in the middle of the Deschutes National Forest. Hiking and mountain biking trails are abundant in the surrounding forests, including the Mount Jefferson Wilderness. Take the kids out to the Wizard Falls fish hatchery just 6 miles from Lake Creek Lodge for a nearby outing. Return home to a luxury cabin with a fireplace to cozy up to in the cool fall mountain nights.

CLOCKWISE FROM TOP With its miles of trails and spa, Sunriver Resort is a great pick for any season. Cozy up at Lake Creek Lodge in the Camp Sherman area. Black Butte Ranch features two scenic golf courses. (photos, clockwise from top: Sunriver Resort, Lake Creek Lodge, Boone Rodriguez/Black Butte Ranch)

EscapeThe Ranch

ELEVATED LEGACY

Snoqualmie Casino & Hotel

Opens Its Doors Above the Valley

High above the misty treetops of the Snoqualmie Valley, a new chapter in Washington hospitality is unfolding— one rooted in place, culture and panoramic beauty. Snoqualmie Casino & Hotel, now officially open, is more than a hotel—it’s a testament to the vision of the Snoqualmie Tribe, whose ancestral lands cradle this luxurious new destination.

Just 30 minutes from Seattle and perched along a forested ridge, the hotel is redefining what it means to escape into the mountains—without ever losing touch with the comforts of modern refinement.

Design Grounded in Heritage

At the heart of the expansion is a 210 room hotel, blending contemporary Northwest design with Snoqualmie cultural symbolism. Guests are welcomed by art and architecture that honor both the landscape and the Tribe’s traditions.

Interiors feature rich wood tones, stone, and subtle tribal motifs. Many rooms offer floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking the valley or the surrounding evergreen hills. With valley views and curated artwork, the rooms feel both serene and intentional.

A Spa Inspired by the Earth

A highlight of the new property is, MoonRise Spa, a full-service spa, where healing traditions meet holistic wellness. Drawing from the Tribe’s deep connection to nature, the spa offers treatments rooted in regional botanicals. From hydrotherapy to herbal steam rooms, every element invites guests to slow down and reconnect.

Culinary Northwest, Reimagined

The property’s culinary offerings are a celebration of the region’s bounty and boldness, each concept rooted in craft, comfort and local flavor. At Vista Prime Steaks & Seafood, sweeping valley views complement a menu of expertly prepared cuts and coastal fare, while 12 Moons brings a modern Asian dining experience rich in flavor and artistry. Falls Buffet—the only casino buffet in Washington state—offers an abundant spread for every palate, from classic comfort dishes to global specialties. For casual all-hours eats, a second Drip café now serves artisan coffee and light bites 24/7, perfect for early risers or late-night players.

Hawks Peak

Perched above the excitement of the casino floor, Hawks Peak is Snoqualmie Casino & Hotel’s new high-energy sports bar that redefines game day. Featuring 66 big screens, there’s not a bad seat in the house—whether you’re cheering for the Seahawks, Mariners or your fantasy team. The menu elevates classic pub fare with Northwest flair, while the sky-high display cases are filled with nostalgic sports memorabilia that transport guests through decades of iconic moments. It’s the perfect blend of comfort, camaraderie and adrenalinefueled action.

An Elevated Casino Experience

Though the casino remains a cornerstone, now enhanced with a spacious non-smoking gaming area and state-of-the-art slots and table games, it’s the expanded experience that makes this destination so distinct. A new 2,000-seat entertainment and convention center promises to bring headline acts, large gatherings and conferences to the Cascade foothills— cementing Snoqualmie Casino & Hotel’s role as a hub for both leisure and celebration.

A Story of Resilience and Vision

This expansion is more than an architectural feat—it’s the realization of a dream nearly two decades in the making. Since opening the casino in 2008, the Snoqualmie Tribe has carefully reinvested in its future, guided by cultural values.

Whether arriving for a weekend retreat or a celebratory event, visitors will discover that Snoqualmie Casino & Hotel is more than a destination—it’s a story told through stone, wood and water, written high above the Snoqualmie Valley.

WALLOWA LAKE LODGE

Wallowa Lake Lodge is nature’s connection. Come for pristine wilderness, and stay for the vintage rooms with views overlooking Wallowa Lake. Rent kayaks, canoes and stand-up paddleboards from Wallowa Lake Marina, and embark on a serene paddling journey on the massive 3.5-mile-long body. Take water and snacks,

and head to the nearby Eagle Cap Wilderness. Hurricane Creek Trail is a good point of entry for hikers. Follow the trail along the creek for an easy out-and-back. At the southern end of Wallowa Lake, do an easy 2-mile out-and-back to BC Creek Falls, which leads to a tiered cascading waterfall. Wallowa Lake Lodge does not have a spa, but your mind and body will feel rejuvenated

after immersing yourself in the surrounding beauty.

SALISHAN COASTAL LODGE

Touch the grass and touch the trees at Salishan Coastal Lodge on the central Oregon Coast. South of Lincoln City, Salishan is home to golf and an aerial park, with a thrilling system of zip lines through tree canvases ending in eighteen elevated

decks along the way. Go with trained aerial guides, and leave civilization far below. Biking, hiking and surfing are also on the menu when you’re on the Oregon Coast. e lodge offers 9 miles of nature trails, or head to Gleneden Beach for surf lessons. Any hale day in the outdoors should end at e Spa at Salishan, with massages, facials and an outdoor hot tub overlooking Siletz Bay.

The historic Wallowa Lake Lodge is nestled at the south end of the 3.5-mile-long Wallowa Lake in Eastern Oregon. (photo: Wallowa Lake Lodge)

FROM LEFT In the summer, enjoy dinner and live music on the deck at Wallowa Lake Lodge. Salishan Coastal Lodge features 9 miles of nature trails. Navigate the treetops at Salishan’s thrilling aerial park. (photos, from left: Wallowa Lake Lodge, SCP Hotels, SCP Hotels)

Washington

RAINIER GUEST SERVICES

Rainier Guest Services is the entity that includes the majesty of Mount Rainier, its recreation and lodging. ink 236,000 acres of national forest inlaid with trails that go on for hundreds of miles. Fall is Mount Rainier’s finest season for hiking. Try the Nisqually Vista Trail from Paradise Lodge, a 1.2-mile loop with stunning views. Don’t miss Skyline Trail for a more challenging 5.5-mile loop. Or Naches Peak Loop, a 3.5-mile stunner that may offer late summer glimpses of wildflowers. History and lodging come together at Rainier. Paradise Inn was built in 1917 and sits grandly at 5,420 feet. It closes in October when snow makes it difficult to approach. National Park Inn, open year round, was built in 1926 and, with twenty-five guest rooms, is

more intimate than the 121room Paradise. Both offer hiking with stunning beauty.

SNOQUALMIE CASINO

Find your luck then find the falls at Snoqualmie Casino & Hotel. Enjoy world-class gaming as well as live music and comedy for entertainment at Snoqualmie. Pop out to five-star pampering at MoonRise Spa, in the forest bath of the Cascade foothills. Take in a sauna or the relaxation lounge while you soak in all of the green. You can’t miss the nearby Snoqualmie Falls, which majestically plunge 268 feet to the river below. A short interpretive trail connects the upper and lower falls viewpoints. Return to the modern comfort of the hotel rooms, many of them reconnecting you to nature with views of Mount Si and the Snoqualmie Valley.

ABOVE, FROM TOP Enjoy mountain views from your room at Snoqualmie Casino & Hotel. Mount Rainier National Park’s Paradise Inn was built in 1917. (photos, from top: Snoqualmie Casino & Hotel, Deby Dixon/Visit Rainier)

Fall can be a spectacular time to hit the trails at Mount Rainier National Park. (photo: Mark Downey/ State of Washington Tourism)

Join us at Mount Rainier National Park to celebrate Autumn and the Holidays. It’s the perfect way to enjoy the vibrant colors and the crisp air of Autumn. Observe the fascinating world of mushrooms while you are hiking, sample a delightful selection of craft beer and ciders from local breweries, and capture the beauty of the season with stunning photo opportunities all around the park. Whether you’re a nature enthusiast or just looking for a fun weekend getaway, there’s something for everyone. Engage in interactive activities and learn about the diverse ecosystem of Mount Rainier. Meet fellow nature lovers and share your love for the outdoors. Don’t miss this unique opportunity, celebrate with us at Mount Rainier National Park and make unforgettable memories!

Sunriver Resort is the Pacific Northwest’s destination for adventures this fall, just moments from Bend, Oregon. Bike 40+ miles of golden trails, tee off on championship golf courses, savor local flavors at one of our 11+ restaurants, rejuvenate at The Spa, or cozy up for an evening by the fire. Fall is for doing more of what you love at Sunriver Resort.