Cats and Trails and Garden Tales
Musings on cats, travel, gardens and life
Thanks, Benji
“You’re welcome, Sue. For what?”
“The new Fitbit, I really like it.”
“What are you taking about Sue, I didn’t buy you a new Fitbit.”
“No, you didn’t. And I wouldn’t have bought it either, if you hadn’t ruined the other one.”
“I have no idea what you’re talking about, Sue.”
“I didn’t like the look of the old one with your teeth marks in it, Benji.”
“OH, that! Sorry, Sue, I thought it was a toy.”
“My fault, Benji. I shouldn’t have left it out. I won’t do the same with the new one.”
“Good decision, Sue.”
~ Happy Caturday from Susanne and Benji
Editor’s note: The old one still worked fine as damage was only cosmetic. Still, it gave me a good excuse for an upgrade which I gladly took.
I love Road Trips! First Stop – Ashland, Oregon
Being a native of Seattle, and living in the Northwest corner of the USA, most of our road trips go south to Oregon and California and both states have much to offer coming and going!
We recently returned from a road trip to Napa Valley, America’s wine capital, just north of San Francisco. It’s a day and a half drive, so we stopped for the night in Ashland, Oregon, home of the Oregon Shakespeare Festival. I’m sorry to say, it was a short overnight stay, and there was no Shakespeare in our future. We stopped because it was roughly 2/3 of the way to our destination, and because the town itself is small and charming, and just off I-5.
We stayed at the historic Ashland Springs Hotel, on Main Street, from which everything we needed for a nice stay was walkable.
This from their website: “An oasis of gentility & elegance located in a quaint, charming town of Ashland, Oregon. Built in 1925 and lovingly restored, this downtown landmark is a haven of taste reminiscent of small European hotels.
.. nestled in the Rogue River Valley where travelers came from far and wide to experience the wonders of nature and the acclaimed curative waters of the mineral springs and now enjoy Tony-award winner, the Oregon Shakespeare Festival, exciting local food scene and diverse wine region, endless outdoor recreation opportunities, and the beauty and joy of returning to a simpler time.”
Yes, all that. Too bad we didn’t stay longer, but unfortunately Ashland is always on our way to someplace else!
Still, we had a nice stay, a lovely dinner that night and a walk through Lithia Park the next morning. Every town needs their own oasis of nature, and we enjoyed bubbling Ashland Creek and the beauty and fragrance of azaleas and camelias in bloom.
After our walk we were on the road again, and within the hour had entered California where we were greeted by this sentinel – 14,162 ft., Mt Shasta!
So far, so good! Next up: Napa Valley!
~ Susanne
WordPress reminded me…..
It’s been 9 years since I started this blog – April 22, 2016, to be exact!
Since then, it’s mostly been tales of these two – Tiger and Benji – along with my travels and gardens, et al.
It’s been a fun and challenging hobby, both from the angle of the software (changes daily without warning) and from developing content. And after nine years, I sometimes wonder: Do I have anything more to say? But if I bow out now – what happens to all my hard work??
It’s the losing of my stories, if I shut down my blog, that sometimes keep me going. Not a good reason so if you know of a way to download posts in a readable format, please let me know in a comment, should that day come.
In the meantime, I press on, much like Lewis and Clark did ages ago, and hope you’ll keep following for as long as I do. We appreciate it! 🙂
~ Susanne and Tiger and Benji
Celebrating #Earth Day with a Walk through the Redwoods
Today is Earth Day and we celebrated early by walking under the shadow of the giants a few days ago.
We just returned from a road trip to California, which included a stay in beautiful Napa Valley, America’s wine capital – more on that later. We came back on the Redwoods Highway – wouldn’t you? – so it seems only fitting to share these pictures for this week’s Sunday Stills Challenge. (Coincidentally, for those who notice such things, I shared the same trees from a similar trip last year! What can I say?)
Magnificent as always, these ancient trees reach for the sky!
Perhaps our favorite stop was at Founders Grove, dedicated to the founders of the Save-the Redwoods League. According to the brochure, “In 1917, several prominent men traveled to Humboldt and Del Norte counties to view these magnificent redwood groves. When they found these trees were not protected, they formed the Save-the Redwoods League, to preserve representative areas of primeval forests. by 1921, the first grove was purchased by the League in what is now Humbolt Redwoods State Park. Since then, the League has contributed over 57 million dollars to protect 170,000 acres of redwood land in the 35 California State Parks, Redwood National Park and Sequoia National Park. “
Founders Tree recognizes those early visionaries. At 346 feet high, with a circumference of 40 feet, it was once considered to be the world’s tallest tree, when discovered in the 1930’s.
Redwoods can live to 2,000 years old and average 500 – 700 years old. They have no known diseases and can continue to live even after sustaining significant fire damage, due to their thick fire-resistant bark.
When they do fall, usually due to wind, they supply an abundance of organic matter and water that other plants and trees depend on. The Dyerville Giant once stood 362 ft. tall with a circumference of 40 feet, for more than 1600 years.
The fallen become nurse logs to supply nutrients to grow new trees and plants, often the first to grow is Redwood Sorrel, which looks like clover.
“Redwoods once grew throughout the Northern Hemisphere. The first redwood fossils date back more than 200 million years to the Jurassic period. Before commercial logging and clearing began in the 1850s, coast redwoods naturally occurred in an estimated 2 million acres (the size of three Rhode Islands) along California’s coast from south of Big Sur to just over the Oregon border. When gold was discovered in 1849, hundreds of thousands of people came to California, and redwoods were logged extensively to satisfy the explosive demand for lumber and resources. Today, only 5 percent of the original old-growth coast redwood forest remains, along a 450-mile coastal strip.” Save the Redwoods League
It would have been amazing to see before logging occurred, when over two million acres still covered the area, but I’m grateful for conservation efforts that saved at least some of these ancient groves.
~ Susanne
Curvy Benji, then and now
Then …..
and now …
Happy Caturday!
~ from Susanne and Benji
Which Mountain?
No, not Rainier, though nearly as tall, at 14,162 feet.
From any angle,
it hasta be Shasta.
-Susanne
Grand Canyon in Purple
The grandest of canyons is of course, beautiful during the day,
where you’ll enjoy walks along the rim,
and have many photo opportunities for yourself,
and the wildlife below.
But the real magic occurs at sunrise and sunset when the canyon walls turn various shades of purple,
and the sky does too.
So my advice to you if you plan to go: stay overnight if you can, to see the best the Grand Canyon has to offer.
Sharing with Sunday Stills Challenge, Purple
~ Susanne
Travel Stories from the Artifacts – Maui
It was our first trip to Maui, and we were in awe of everything. We managed to score a room on the beach at a nice hotel south of Kihei. It was Maluaka Beach and here is a picture – the first artifact you might say, not my picture, I purchased it from a gallery on the island.
There we relaxed and swam with turtles.
One morning after breakfast we walked through an open corridor where tables were set up and Hawaiians selling their wares.
A cute little bracelet, and though I’d never wear it after this trip, it would make a nice memento.
“My grandmother makes them,” said the woman in a colorful mumu.
A nice souvenir, regardless, I thought and for only $10 (or was it $5?) it was cheap.
The next day we visited an outdoor Maui Market, and came across scores of vendors, selling fruits, jams, shave ice, jewelry, and other handcrafted goods.
More than one of the tables had plastic bins, filled with trinkets, imported from the Philippines, one of them full of Maui bracelets for a $1 each.
I had to laugh.
What a busy grandmother.
~ Susanne
Wooden Shoe Tulip Festival, Rain or Shine
We first discovered the Wooden Shoe Tulip Festival in Woodburn, Oregon, during covid. It was our first road trip in 2021, after we’d (mostly) been released from our quarantine and social distancing. Even though we were outside, we still wore masks.
Fortunately, it was a beautiful, sunshiny day.
We made the same trip the following year but weren’t quite as lucky with the weather.
We tiptoed through the tulips with our hoods up and under umbrellas,
and stayed clear of the benches.
We plan to swing by again this year, hopefully under blue skies and sunshine.
I’ll let you know how it goes!
Sharing with #Sunday Stills.
~ Susanne
Where’s Benji?
In a box, of course!
Happy Caturday from Susanne and Benji!
Cats and Trails and Garden Tales 