Roadside Art

Here are four metal sculptures that were by the side of the road coming out of Pomeroy. They were impressive.

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Walt Wright
917 783 6540
Walterwright@brooklynny.us

www.walt-fatmanonabike.blogspot.com

Pomery, Washington to Lewiston, Idaho

Mileage: 34.7; 512 total

Slept well in the gazebo last night except: (a) at 11:15 pm some teenage boys ran into the gazebo "looking for a clue -- they were on a scavenger hunt, and were well well-behaved given the circumstances; and (b) at 5:00 am the sprinkler system went off (I guess I am a slow learner).

I had an early breakfast, talked with other customers, and left town early.

The ride featured a long uphill followed by a 12 mile downhill from Alpowa Summit (2785 feet) to the Snake River.

The sky was clear today and I stopped frequently to take pictures, some of which are attached, below.

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Walt Wright
917 783 6540
Walterwright@brooklynny.us

www.walt-fatmanonabike.blogspot.com

Day 22: Dayton to Pomeroy, Washington

Mileage: 39.1; 477 total

This was a pleasant ride through the Scapouse Hills, noted as a scenic
area of Eastern Washington. It was scenic, and would have been more so
if the sun had been shining.

After a long gentle climb out of Dayton I came to a welcome road sign
annoucing a 6% down hill grade for the next 3 miles. This turned into
a 4 mile coast and, with the exception of a few short stretches
requiiring easy pedaling, turned into an 8 mile coast.

Contrary to what the highway sign (see photo) seemed to suggest, there
was no place to stop for coffee. In fact the only public service
between Dayton and Pomeroy was a state-maintained outhouse. However,
the scenery was nice (see several photos).

Coming onto town I noticed a sign saying something like "Welcome to
the Friendly Town of Pomeroy." And it has been friendly!

The folks at the general store, who served me a milkshake, were very
friendly.

The sheriff who told me it would be fine for me to camp in the town
park was friendly. (See photo of the gazebo in which I plan to pitch
my tent tonight.)

The long-time-Pomeroy family (see photo), who invited me to join them for cake
and ice cream to celebrate Ian's 2nd birthday were friendly. Ian's
parents, both grandmothers, one great-grandmother (who grew up in
Pomeroy and remembers playing in the park as a child while her father
entertained on a piano in the gazebo), and other relatives and friends
were there. I was lucky to be able to join them. Thanks, Ian's family!

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Walt Wright
917 783 6540
Walterwright@brooklynny.us

http://www.walt-fatmanonabike.blogspot.com/

Day 21: Walla Walla to Dayton, Washington

Mileage: 28.5; 438 total

This was a relatively easy ride through the hills that are just to the
north of the Blue Mountains, which I was happy to avoid even though I
had never heard of them until recently.

The route was through a rural area of wheat fields (photo).
Unseasonably cold, mid-50s, and a light rain at times, but a pleasant
ride overall.

Dayton turned out to be a pretty town. Population of about 2,700 in a
county of only 4,000. Was once the 3rd largest city in Washington, and
has a number of nice old buildings. The two most notable are the
county courthouse (1887) and the railroad station (1871) -- see photos.

While I was taking a photo of the courthouse the editor of the local
paper stopped to talk. In about 15 minutes he gave me a good history
of the town. I was particularly impressed by a story about the
restoration of the courthouse, which was done in the 1990's. Two of
the bronze statues on the roof had been missing for many many years.
Then, just by luck, one of them was discovered in Alanta. The Atlanta
statue included information that led to the manufacturer in Boston,
and this led to finding the other statue!

I took a little walking tour of historic houses on one side of Main
St, and will probably check the other side tomorrow morning, as I am
leaving town. Lots of Queen Anne and Craftsman style houses from about
1870 to 1910, although many are in ill-repair.

Surprisingly, Dayton also has 3 or 4 excellent restaurants. I had a
very good dinner at the Manilla Bay Cafe: a big piece of poached Coho
salmon with Japanese spices, rice and salad, chocolate torte, and a
Washington Reisling. Plus good conversation with other customers.

Today marks the end of my third week. Although my progress probably
seems very slow, I am actually quite happy with the way things have
gone. I have managed to get plenty of rest and not get sick, and have
probably strengthened/prepared myself as well as I could have over
these three weeks. When I depart from Lewiston Idaho sometime next
week I will probably be starting the most strenuous part of the trip.

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Walt Wright
917 783 6540
Walterwright@brooklynny.us

www.walt-fatmanonabike.blogspot.com

Walla Walla Wrap-Up

Mileage: 9.3; 409 total

This mileage resulted from running errand and sightseeng in Walla Walla, which turned out to be a great town for rest and recuperation.

I will just catch up on a few loose ends and then get some sleep:

1. A reader posted a comment that she loved the town slogan -- "The town so nice, we named it twice." -- and wondered if they still posted this on signs. Sorry to disallusion you, Grammy, but I haven't seen that motto
anywhere.

I did ask, at the library, how the town got its name and was told that it meant "many waters." I have seen a statue of an Indian chief who appears to be famous either as a wise leader or as the instigator of a massacre of white settlers, whose name was Peupeumoxmox. So maybe the natives in this area (Cayuse) liked repeating sounds.

2. Correction: The wines I tasted earlier today were not from Walla Walla Winery, but from Fort of Walla Walla Cellars. Sorry about that, Terry.

3. I haven't previously mentioned that Walla Walla has a lot of outdoor sculptures. My favorite is Matilda Goes to the Market (see photo).

4. Dinner tonight, at Saffron Mediteranean Kitchen, was another great meal: a hot salad of grilled asparagus, grilled onion, grilled red pepper, blue cheese, vinegar; a tender, flavorful leg of lamb served with a salad of strawberries, rhubarb, and other greens; a chocolate torte w/mint chocolate ice cream; a glass of local Tempanilla. I don't know of any other small town that has such excellent restaurants.

5. Someone told me this evening that last Friday's NY Times had an article about Walla Walla in the Travel section. So check it out on the Internet, and see what the Times had to say about this town. And let me know--did they give it good reviews?

Sent from my iPhone

Walt Wright
917 783 6540
Walterwright@brooklynny.us

www.walt-fatmanonabike.blogspot.com

Pastry, Wine, and an Eventual Huckleberry Milk Shake

This morning I enjoyed an almond croissant at the Colville St. Patisserie. A foodie I met last evening highly recommended this place, explaining that the proprietor had trained as a pastry chef in Portland, Seattle, and NYC before opening this shop several years ago. The patrisserie was another great find!

While enjoying my pastry and coffee I was lucky to get into a discussion with Ron and Barbara, and their friend Kathy. They were enthusiastic about my bike trip, and very helpful--both Barbara and Kathy even went out to their cars to get roadmaps to review with me. They were all familiar with my route and had lots of good suggestions. Among other things, Kathy recommended the huckleberry milk shakes in Wolf Creek, near Gates of the Mountains--little did she realize how much motivation that will be for me as I peddle through the mountains to get there.

After talking with them I spent some time at the town library, and then stopped at the Carnegie Art Museum (where Kathy works) to see their current juried art show -- a nice mix of artwork.

Then, on Ron's recommendation, I stopped in the Walla Walla Winery tasting room. I very much enjoyed a Cabernet, a Syrah, and a Merlot, as well as the cordial hospitality of Terry, the host.

A very enjoyable day so far, but now I need to pick up my bike.

Sent from my iPhone

Walt Wright
917 783 6540
Walterwright@brooklynny.us

www.walt-fatmanonabike.blogspot.com

Walla Walla Cuisine

As I walked around Walla Walla yesterday I realized that my excellent dinner at T. Macarrone's the night before had not been unusual for Walla Walla, and that this little town is really a culinary delight.



Since the mid-to-late 1800s Walla Walla has been the commercial center of the prosperous Walla Walla Valley. This was excellent farmland, noted for wheat, asparagus, sweet onions. and a few vinyards established by its Italian immigrants. Plus cattle. There are many signs of Walla Walla's affluent past, including: the remains of the Opera House (@1893, I think); many Italianate buildings along Main Street, dating from the 1880s and 1890s; the fact that the Baker Boyer National Bank, Washington's oldest, was founded here in 1869 (and the fact that there are numerous other banks in this relatively small town, population about 40,000).



In addition, it's home to Whitman College, Walla Walla University, and Walla Walla Community College,.



And, most important from a gustatory point of view, the number of wineries in the region has expanded to more than one-hundred. I had always assumed that most of Washington State's wine production was along the coast, but actually it is here in the Walla Walla area. Walking through town, virtually every other storefront is now a wine tasting room! This influx of wineries has brought in a lot of "wine tourists" and skilled chefs, and it is no wonder that the restaurant scene is so outstanding.



So all you sybaritic gastronomes should consider flying out to Walla Walla to wallow for a weekend in the outstanding food and wine.



P.S. My dinner at T. Macarrone's: roasted asparagus and roasted mushrooms, with a zabaglione sauce; pasta carbonara with fresh peas and fresh salmon; strawberries with zabaglione; a glass of a light red wine.



P.P.S. Last night I ate at Whitehouse-Crawford's: aspargus soup; poached halibut served on pasta and aspargus; rhubarb crisp; a refreshing white wine.