Today we are in Ashland, Oregon. Ashland is a city in southern Oregon approximately 16 miles north of the California border. The city’s population was estimated to be 21,280 in 2019. Ashland is a cultural hot spot, with galleries, theaters and restaurants. It is a great place to stroll around downtown. I didn’t get an opportunity to explore the museums or theaters due to the pandemic, however the outdoor activities are exceptional. Ashland has a reputation for great outdoor recreation in and out of the city. We visited during autumn, the trees, the blue skies and the views are breathtaking.
We went hiking to Lithia Park and drove to the top parking lot. It was a windy and chilly morning outside, but inside the car, I was feeling very comfortable; I had a blanket on my lap and the heater to keep me warm. I also brought two sweaters, gloves and a hat – I don’t like to be cold. It was time to get out of the car and start walking to the trail, when I felt the need to stay in the car, my body was refusing to get out in the cold; I didn’t move from my seat for almost five minutes contemplating the situation. Then I saw people walking their dogs, other people walking up the hill, and suddenly, I saw these two guys in running shorts and singlets right next to the car. They were warming up and stretching, they were getting ready to run up the hills. I looked at me, in the car bundle up resisting my way out while these guys are moving like nothing- as if it was a warm summer day! This is when I realized how weak and complacent I was becoming, then I said “I refuse to be like this,” so I took a deep breath and got out of the car. I was not going to complain about the weather and instead I was going to enjoy it and have fun.
We visited Weisinger Family winery, this winery produces wine from fruit grown in the Bear Creek Valley around Ashland, Oregon. The founder is John Weisinger who planted the first wine grapes in Ashland in 1979 and the first commercial wines were produced in 1989. We tasted the Tempranillo, Merlot, and Syrah and they were great wines. We then moved to Belle Fiore Winery. This is a wonderful, charming and elegant winery with large grounds, gardens and outdoor patios. It has a beautiful architecture and Italian style wines. The landscape and the views from here are stunning and some of my best pictures were taken from the outdoor balcony. At this time of the year, the trees and foliage show different wonderful colors from green, orange, brown and yellow; here I could appreciate the changing of the seasons and the beauty of it. The sky had a beautiful blue and white fluffy shapes and the sunsets were red, orange with delight of pinks – just magnificent.
Next day, Mike and I drove to Lithia Park to get a running workout in the middle of the day. The park is gorgeous, it has several entrances to various trails of different distances and difficulty levels. Mike, being the strong and fit one, wanted to do the hills and me, well still with a recovering (forever) knee injury decided to do flat and mild hills. We started together and then split into different trail paths. I love the vegetation here; large greens, duck ponds, picnic areas and miles of hiking trails. The park was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1982. There is a creek that inspired me as I was running along side and hearing the steam of water became such a peaceful and blessed moment every step. I didn’t know the trail, so when the path ended, I followed the stairs to go up the hill. It was fun and I was enjoying the turns, the hills and most importantly the smell of green crisp air, hearing the birds chirping and seeing the people strolling around. I was so in the moment that when I had to go back to the car I just couldn’t find my way out and after a while everything started to look the same. I followed my watch to get me back and after a long time finally I found the parking lot, went to the car and Mike wasn’t there. I was surprised because I had been lost for almost 30 minutes. I stretch and went to the picnic area to wait for him. After a while I started to worry about him, so I decided to trace back my steps and hope to see him. I was right, he got lost too and when he saw me he waved at me and we both walked back to the car. He was exhausted but relieved, somehow his watched was not giving him the right directions to get back so he was going is circles. We just laughed and went back home.
Lithia Park
Hiked six miles in 2:25 hours with an elevation gain of 1,680 ft. It was very windy at times, yet I kept moving and enjoyed every moment feeling the fresh air and my conversation with Mike.
This was our last night at Ashland and for dinner we went to downtown. It was very cute and trendy. A lot of galleries, stores with cute stuff, like all kinds of puzzles, antiques, clothing and cafes, breweries and wine bars. We had dinner at Pie + Vine, an Italian restaurant, afterwards we found a very cool and spooky British pub called The Black Sheep pub on the second floor of a building; spooky because it is near Halloween and they had very cool decorations inside. There was a group having fun on a big wooden table near Frankenstein and Mike and I sat near the window next to the Pentagram Goat and order drinks. We enjoyed the place; the drinks were good and it was pretty much us and another couple after the group left. Mike and I had a nice conversation about Ashland. The people here are very friendly, courteous, outdoorsy and have a great attitude.
People is what makes this place special and makes you feel warmth – even in winter!
Lara
