Hamley's

At the end of our tasting tour we decided to find a place for a nice steak dinner. I had picked up a brochure for Hamleys Epic Steakhouse of the West. It looked like great fun, but then I realized it was in Pendleton Oregon.

We actually decided it would be a great drive so plugged the address in the GPS and were on our way to an Oregon adventure. It was a beautiful drive and we really enjoyed this unexpected jaunt.


And Hamleys didn't dissapoint us either - it was a most fun place to explore and have dinner. Hamley and Co. is actually two businesses - a store and a steakhouse.

The Hamley history is impressive. It goes back many generations to Cornwall England where the trade of saddle and leather craftsmanship was passed down through many generations of Hamleys.

The American history of the Hamleys began in 1850 when William Hamley moved his family from England to Ripon, Wisconsin, where he opened a small leather goods store. William’s two sons, John James (J.J.) and Henry Hamley set out from Wisconsin in 1883 with two railroad tickets and $10.00 in cash, bound for Ashton, South Dakota where they established Hamley and Co.

In 1905 John James relocated to Pendleton, Oregon and set up shop on the Oregon Trail in the same building that exists to this day.

Hamley was known as a harness and saddle maker, but the business soon developed around its saddles and became known throughout the west as the maker of “the finest saddles man could ride”.

The saddle shop still produces handmade custom saddles and we really enjoyed viewing the shop with several saddles in various stages of production.

The rest of the store is filled with western gear, clothing and antiques, and is complete with spittoons and pulley-operated ceiling fans.

The steakhouse is next door and was an adventure itself. It is stunning after being extensively refurbished in 2006. It is designed to resemble an old western saloon complete with swinging doors, impressive woodwork everywhere, tin ceilings, copper hoods and a very magnificent old bars unit they found in Grangeville Idaho.

There is also a stunning Western bank front that separates the bar area from the restaurant. It was found in South Dakota and has an interesting history all it's own as the last bank robbed by Butch Cassidy.

Towards the back of the building is a stone-lined winding stairway down to an incredible private dining wine room that can be reserved for private events. Very nice!

What really appealed to Gary is that they serve hand-cut dry aged steaks.

Our steak was delicious, but our server was none too brilliant which was a bummer. It was only her second nite so I'll cut her some slack on that, but it was disappointing to have less than great service.

We really enjoyed our unplanned adventure in Oregon and would recommend you visit Hamley's when you're in Pendelton. It's not just a steakhouse, it's an event.

The Estate Winery

Entrance to Basel Cellars Estate Winery
Eagle and Horses!

Estate Entry

Front Door

Subterranean Production Area

Tasting Room

Estate Views

Walkway to Offices

Glancing thru a magazine I spotted an ad for Basel Cellars and suggested we go there next. I didn't realize it was actually an estate. We gasped when we drove up to the gate. Even their driveway was beyond impressive.

Basel Cellars Estate Winery planted their first vineyards in 1997 and began production in 2002. All of the production is done on site in their amazing 9,600 sq. ft. subterranean structure. We actually got to go down there and taste a wine right out of the barrel. So cool!

But it is the house that is beyond belief - a 13,800 sq. ft. rustic castle is what I call it. The entry itself takes your breath away with massive logs on either side of the exquisite, intricately hand-carved door.

We could not tour the main estate but read it has eight guest rooms, meeting rooms, a gourmet kitchen, multiple fireplaces, an indoor hot tub, sauna, a theme bar, private outdoor pool and separate poolside Cabana.

The attached tasting room was lovely and they very pleasantly visited with us answering any questions we had. This had to be one of our most amazing stops of the day.

Spring Release

L'Escole No 41
Tasting Room

Three Rivers Winery

What we didn't know is that this is a "spring release" event weekend when new wines are released for the first time to the public by various wineries. There were buses and limos touring with us.

There are now over 1,400 acres of vineyards in the Walla Walla valley and over a 100 wineries in the Walla Walla Valley and they come in every shape and size - from very basic, nondescript buildings to very elaborate estates.

Many have tasting rooms open to try sips of their "spring releases" and other signature wines. It was kinda cool. I had never done this before.

Our first stop in the pouring rain was L'Ecole No 41. They have been producing premium wines in the Walla Walla Valley since 1983 in the historic Frenchtown School in Lowden. What a fun and unique building this was.

They were very friendly, greeting us at the door and instructing us how one "does" a tasting. I was feeling awkward and was thankful for their direction. There is usually a suggested order to how you would taste their wines starting with the whites and moving to the reds.

They also served wonderful cheeses and breads. We both fell in love with Cougar Gold - a cheese made by WSU.

Our next stop was Three Rivers Winery. Gary was here last year and enjoys their Riesling. I went bananas over their lodge style building and could so picture it someday on Eagle Ridge West.

This tasting was a completely different experience. Each event is different and that's what really makes it fun to visit several.

Three Rivers sits atop a small knoll overlooking their surrounding vineyards and features a 14,000 sq. ft. cellar and barrel room used for the production and storage and a 4,000 sq. ft. lodge-style tasting room and store.

Drip Drip Drip

That was the unexpected sound we heard when we woke up this morning. Can't believe it is raining here on the east side. No running today, but the coffee sure was welcome.

Our plan is to explore the wine country around Walla Walla today. Gary was here last year with John Eide when he bot my horse trailer and was fascinated by all the wineries in the area.

When they were here last spring the vines were lush and beautiful. We are here weeks earlier and they are barely sprouting. There truly is a stunning amount of acreage devoted to grapes around here. Who would have thot?

Hood Park

Our only destination idea was to stay somewhere near the Tri-Cities tonite. We ended up finding a wonderful resort right on the river called Hood Park. To say it is beautiful is an understatement!

We got a very nice site right on the lake and really enjoyed the peacefulness of this place. Gary got some great sunset pictures.

The View Out My Door

Desert Canyon

One of the reasons for this trip was to check out Desert Canyon. It's a very impressive place. There are some rather large beautiful homes there wrapped around a golf course. We parked by the Great Links units and Gary walked around and took pictures.

After that we headed along the Columbia towards thru Quincy, Moses Lake, Othello and into Pasco.

Good Morning Wenatchee!

Woke up to amazing sunshine this morning but very cold. I stayed under the covers listening to news while Gary ran. I didn't remember how to start the bbow furnace so just decided to stay warm.

Made breakfast and then went on down the road to Desert Canyon.

BBOW Drives Again!

Snow on Hwy 2 to Stevens Pass

Going 35 thru Leavenworth

We are on a short spring fling to Eastern Washington - a long weekend. Just Gar & I for this trip - the 13 year old had to stay and do school. This is the first time we have traveled in the bbow without her...sad.

We left Thursday late afternoon and were shocked at how light traffic was thru Stevens Pass. It was also shocking to see how much snow is still on the pass.

Driving at dusk thru Leavenworth we noticed the apple orchards in full bloom What an amazing sight!

Got into Wenatchee around 9 PM and camped at Confluence State Park with no hook-ups. It was so cold in the bbow we had to get under blankets just to exist while we downloaded and watched Survivor.

Drat! They sent Sierra home! So done with Coach. What a jerk!

Something is really messing with my allergies. Apple Blossoms?? Hmmmm.

A Cruel Jolt of Reality

It was actually snowing when we landed in Seattle.

So Hard To Leave Paradise

Speaking of Cool Cats...

This was actually a random place for us to frequent but as Gary was researching Maui burgers he found a place that uses only hand pressed 100% certified angus beef on fresh baked hamburger buns.

He was sold so he and I went to Cool Cats for burgers one nite. It was really good and we went back there with Taryn twice.

It's located in Lahaina on the upper floor of The Warf right across from the famous Lahaina banyan tree.

Cool Cats has a Fifties flare - random for Maui - and all their burgers have names. Our favorite was the Don Ho - a burger with bacon, Jack cheese, pineapple and a wonderful sweet Hawaiian sauce. Sooo good. And you just have to get it with frings - a basket combo of fries and onion rings.

A bit of trivia about the amazing banyan tree: it was first planted in April, 1873, marking the 50th Anniversary of Christian missionary work in Lahaina. It was imported from India when it was only 8 feet tall and now stands over 60 feet high, with 12 major trunks in addition to a huge core. It stretches over a 200-foot area and shades 2/3 of an acre.

One nite we walked underneath it on our way to Cool Cats and the tree was alive with thousands of bird all talking at the same time. It was unbelievably noisy under there and I was terrified of "falling objects" if you know what I mean.

Fish Tacos

I have this thing about fish tacos - I crave them when I'm in Maui! So I made it my mission to find the best fish taco on Maui.

Every place we ate I ordered fish tacos. At first Taryn thot I was crazy, but even she had to admit how good they are.

(mom has a crazy obsession with fish tacos!!! ~tk)

So here's my list:

First Place Favorite Fish Taco - Moose McGillycuddy's (it's kind of a grubby place to eat but the fish taco was amazing)

Second Place - Lu Lu's Surf Club & Grill (quite spicy and the Ahi was a bit rare for me but really good)

Third Place & Fourth Place - Maui Taco (this was Gary's favorite and I believe this was the first time he has ever actually ordered one for himself...he usually tries mine) and Cilantro's. I really thot these two were very similar restaurants and tacos. I can't personally say one was better than the other.

Last Place - Cool Cats (bad, bad fish tacos) They apparently didn't clean the grill and my fish tasted like burger. Nasty!

I really wanted to go back to Fred's Mexican Cafe in Kihei for fish taco's. Those were my favorite last year, but we never really spent much time in that part of Maui.

Where do you go for good fish taco's mainland??

The Girl at Longboards

Maui in Bloom

Drums of the Pacific

Taryn really wanted to go to a Luau and since so many of the things we wanted to do with her we were unable to because of weather we decided to do the Luau.

There are many Luau's to choose from. The one we chose was at the Hyatt and called Drums of the Pacific and we really enjoyed it. The evening turned out to be so beautiful we spent some time walking along the ocean path before the Luau.

Taryn loved learning a bit about the history and culture of Hawaii. The dancers were incredible, and the food much better than I remembered it being from my first luau many years ago.

It's one of those things you just have to experience when you're in Hawaii and I'm so glad we did with her.

Cindy and Salt Water

I love the ocean.

I'll do anything to get near the ocean anytime I possibly can.

I love walking barefoot on the beach. I love to watch waves. I love the sounds of the ocean. I love finding shells. I love an ocean sunset.

I really love the ocean.

But I really don't like to be "in" the ocean so much.

Salt water in my mouth is just disgusting. It makes me gag. Salt water kinda feels dirty too. And it always feels so cold. I don't like being cold.

I don't like what I step on when I'm in the ocean. I don't like unknown things touching my feet. And I don't like weeds and stuff. I don't like what's lurking in the water that I can't see. Too much unknown.

Sand kinda bugs me too. It gets everywhere...in your clothes, in your swimsuit, in your towel, in your book and your diet coke... and that feels so dirty.

It's so hard to clean out of everything. Everything you bring to the beach needs to be de-sanded, and all the clothes and towels need to be washed.

I'm just not really an "in the ocean" girl.

I'm more like a chlorine pool girl. It's warm. It's clean. I can see everything, and everything stays clean.

And if the pool is near the ocean...that's really, really sweet.

Cause I love the ocean!

A Little Hula

Once a week a group of dancers puts on an hour of Hawaian music and traditional dance. We were very excited for Taryn enjoy it with us.

This week a group of beautiful little girls came with their instructor to share their song, dance and stories from their culture.

This little girl was so sweet and so loved to dance. I couldn't take my eyes off her.

The Hawaian people are very beautiful and hula is so graceful and fluid. I was amazed how well these little girls knew what they were doing. We really enjoyed it.

Hidden Treat

There is a special hidden treat in Maui just up the road from us where you can get a most amazing breakfast. It's called the Gazebo.

Many people hear about it but few actually find it. And once you find it you will stand in line till this very small restaurant can seat you. Plan at least 45 minutes. But it is so way worth it!

The waiting is really not an issue because the view is so spectacular it captivates you until it's your time to be seated.

This ocean front wonder is only open 7:30 till 2 pm each day so you have to be on your game to get there.

I'll just say that the view and the food are worth every effort to find it and every moment of the wait! You'll be sorry if you miss this one.

Whale Excursion

The weather has kept us from doing a few activities we had planned to do with Taryn so we are having to ad lib. We hoped to do a whale watch tour so Gary was watching the weather and knew this was the day to go for it so he made reservations for the first tour of the morning

We knew we wanted to be on a pontoon type boat and Gary found Captain Steve's tour. We were there bright and early, the weather was perfect and the water much calmer than it has been all week.

There isn't a bad seat on the boat. We had no problem finding whales and it was a spectacular experience to watch them up close. You can hear them blow thru their spouts and slap the water with their fins and tails. It really is something you have to experience because a picture just cannot capture it.

After about an hour and a half we went taken back to shore and the next tour loaded. We were starving so went in to Lahaina for breakfast in town - a real treat.

Paddle Board

Wednesday we woke up to some amazing sun and knew this was the day to hit the beach. We decided to drive a bit South and find one where Taryn could use her board safely.

Gary had the name of a beach and we went to find it. When we got there we discovered the right side of the beach was very rocky, but the left side was nice and sandy. The biggest draw for me was actual working restrooms.

There were people in the water everywhere, but most of them were on the paddle boards where you are standing upright and paddling with an oar.

After floating around for a while it was apparent these waters were best on one of those, so Gary got some info from others and then located a place in Lahaina to rent one for the afternoon. The only problem was we had the very best parking spot in the lot...and all the rest were full.

I won't give details but will just say that an hour later he came back with a 12' paddle board strapped on the top of our rental car and parked in that same spot. :-)

As Taryn paddled out for the first time all the other boarders headed in, packed up and left. It turns out that the tide had changed and the best was over so they were calling it a day.

For Taryn it was a great moment to begin. She was amazing and caught on so quickly. Gary even took a turn and he had no problem either. Then, while he was making phone calls, I was very brave and went out on the board with Taryn and it was a blast.

We had to drag the girl out of the water at 5 PM to get the board back in time. She was exhausted and opted to eat leftover at the condo. Gary and I dressed up and went out to eat which was so fun. Our time in Maui is quickly coming to an end.

Steaks on the Grill

One of the things we enjoy about our resort is that there are amazing barbecue's available to us. Just outside our building are four stations with two barbecue's each. It is so nice to cook for ourselves. And guess what...they clean the grill!

The day Taryn came and we were back in town we bot a tray of steaks for a special meal. Since Tuesday was a resort day we decide this would be a perfect nite to cook steaks.

We decided to invite a couple we have connected with on this trip - Jim and Kathy from Michigan.

Gary found some amazing corn on the cob at the Farmers Market so the guys grilled those along with the steaks. How fun is it to have great corn on the cob in March!

Our guests surprised us with wine and an amazing Maui coconut cake for dessert. It was a wonderful meal

It's so interesting to visit with couples our age, with families, in similar business situations. We have so much in common, and yet in so many ways our lives are completely different. I really enjoyed the evening we spent with them.

They left by 9:00 since they are taking a 6 AM flight to Oahu for a tour of Pearl Harbor.

After they left we all crawled on the King bed and watched multiple episodes of America's Funniest Home Videos. Oh, we all laughed so hard I'm sure we were heard all over the resort. So much fun! It felt so good to really laugh.

An Evening Ambush!

Taryn suggested we take an evening walk on the beach. It was a beautiful evening - completely warm. The moon was out, and the stars were breathtaking, waves crashing on the shore. I love it all!

Gary had cut his foot on a reef so he stayed on the path in his running shoes, but we went right down to the water and felt the waves. Incredible!

We then decided to walk down the path together towards the next resort...and then we went a bit farther. Gary decided this was now a dessert hunt and we would go all the way to Castaways Cafe.

We got there just after 9:00 PM and they were closing. No dessert.

We walked farther. Why not? It's a beautiful nite for a walk! Before long we had walked all the way in to Whaler Village - over a mile from our resort.

Gary had tucked a bit of money in his pocket so we counted it and figured we could split dessert.

Hula Grill is one of our favorites and it was so fun to take Taryn there. The outdoor seating is all in sand which is so cool. We could manage two desserts which we carefully ordered and then thoroughly enjoyed.

It was nearly 10 PM when we began our walk back to the resort - in the dark. Part of the path is lit - part of the path winds thru a golf course which is quite a kick in the dark, and the rest weaves thru various other resorts.

Taryn and I opted for the beach for the first part of our walk back. The moonlight on the waves was so incredible - something we never get to see or experience. At the Sheraton we joined Gary back on the path.

By this time I had a rub mark from my flip flops on my foot so I took them off and went the rest of the way barefoot. Taryn did this whole jaunt barefoot.

As we got closer to our resort Taryn noticed something near the path. It moved. It was a frog...and not a little one either! She ran towards it, I screamed and nearly knocked Gary over trying to get away from it. What was a frog doing on OUR path??

These were not little Northwest frogs. Oh no, they were giant tropical frogs. They weren't croaking so I had no reason to even think they were there.

They snuck up on us...ambushing us in the dark on our path.

And guess what? There was more than one. There were many of them - on the path...on the neatly cut lawn...all the way to our resort...and I was barefoot!

I was so thankful to see our resort entrance. I will not be walking on that dark path again without a flashlight, thank you very much!

Aloha

So I'm wondering what exactly does Aloha mean? When I walk in a store I hear "Aloha". When I walk out of a store I hear "Aloha". Was that also meant for me...or did another person enter the store as I was leaving?

Does Aloha mean hello...good-bye.....or both??

Maui Weather

The last several days have been a bit iffy weather-wise - very windy with rain every so often. We mutually decided to opt for the resort going between our lounge chairs and the beach.

There have been double red flags posted which has kept everyone out of the ocean for the most part. Our beach has quite a steep slope to it which makes for a tremendous crashing wave sound, which I love.

It is a very short walk to a more incline sandy beach with a reef just off shore that has some great snorkeling, but even that was too rough to be in. The waves carry a big undertow with them which keeps everyone out of the water.

We opted mostly for our pool side lounge chairs. every once in a while we would get pelted by some tropical rain drops and would pull our towels over us but this close to the ocean it's over quickly and never sent us inside yet.

This has actually been a gentle way for Taryns sunless body to be introduced to the sun again. We are being fanatical about the sunscreen and lip balm. So far so good.

We have made some very good friends and have also connected with two couples who were here last year with us - one from Chicago and one from Virginia.

We did loose our front row status. There was a revolt in the second row and they decided it was their turn and moved our towels. Funny. No worries. It's all good. At least all of us got demoted at the same time and we are just enjoying the camaraderie.

None of them have their kids with them so they are all getting quite a kick out of our girl. She keeps hauling us here and there. Everyone is watching out for her and it's really nice.

We took her in to Lahaina and did a bit of shopping. She got a nice sarong to match her suit.

Hopefully we can get her out on her board soon. It would be so fun to watch her enjoy that. The weather does look like more of the same so we may need to head a bit more South to accomplish that.

Bad Book

So I took two books to read while away. My reading time is actually very sparse and closely regulated by my travel companions, so I slip in a page or two here and there, usually while they are busy.

Anyway, the first was Grisham's "The Associate". Not bad, but not nearly as exciting as the first one of his I read, The Firm. How many vacations ago was that??

My second book I literally grabbed at a store in a split second of time right before we left. A novel, the only reason I grabbed it was because the story was about a world class equestrian.

I started to read it yesterday by the pool. It begins in an interior design firm and my first clue of trouble was the main character in the book dropped an armload of grasscloth samples on the desk. Holy cow! Grasscloth??? How eighties is that??

In the next paragraph they described her "attractive sweater" (who says that?) as "light pink with a lace collar". Crumb! Now I knew I was in the eighties...and totally disgusted. How on earth did I get an eighties book???

Sure enough, it had originally been published in 1988, and now again in 2009. Double crumb!

I tried for a few more paragraphs but just couldn't read it. Never even got near the equestrian part.

Thankfully the resort has a sharing library where people leave their books behind. There is an amazing variety of titles - hardcover and paperback. I decided to share my book with the resort and found another one I hope will be a better read.

She's Here! Day 1

Actually that's old news but I have some recap to do so thot I'd start there. Taryn made it safely to Maui flying solo for the first time. Ryan and & Trac were so kind to get up really early and bring her to the airport.

She was quite apprehensive about the whole process, especially the part about going thru security now with screws in her ankle but Trac assured her she could not recall anyone being arrested for that.

They were able to escort her to the gate and wait with her till she boarded. She did great and we met her on the other end so excited to finally get her here.

First item on our agenda was to get her out of her mainland clothes. Jeans look positively ridiculous and feel awful once you hit the Maui heat. She put on short and a tee and other than feeling incredibly pale she felt great.

There is a convergence zone stuck over the islands which is producing mass rain on the Maui mountains and huge waves hitting the shore. Surfing has been amazing, but it's treacherous for body boarders and snorkelers. Many beaches have double red flags posted which means stay out of the water.

We took her up the coast to see the sail borders maneuver the huge waves and she was quite impressed.

We then took her several miles up the road to Hana - enough of that - and then a brief tour thru the upland before heading to the coast. That short section where you see ocean on either side of you is just spectacular!

We stopped and rented a small board for her to play on in the ocean and had a quick burger in town before taking her to the resort. She loved the condo was quite exhausted by the time we finally let her sleep. It's going to be a whole new trip now with her here. Can't wait.