The Applegater

APPLEGATER SPRING 2022--ONLINE

The Applegater - The best (okay, only) nonprofit newsmagazine serving the Applegate Valley with interesting, relevant and educational articles written by community members.

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1 Spring 2022 Applegater Nonprofit Org US Postage PAID Permit #125 Medford OR ECRWSSEDDM Local Postal Customer SPRING 2022 Volume 15, No. 1 Serving Jackson and Josephine Counties — Circulation: 13,000 Applegate Valley Community Newsmagazine Celebrating Years Photo by Ali Mramor • applegater.org ~28~ See GRATEFUL, page 24. See TRAIL DESIGN, page 16. See BAKED GOODS, page 11. Grateful to live in the Applegate Valley BY SANDY SHAFFER With the COVID-19 pandemic forcing us to pretty much stay at home for close to two years, I've come to realize just how much I appreciate living in the forested Applegate Valley, with very few neighbors near. No traffic, no horns blaring, no solicitors knocking on the door at least every week. But we've had plenty of time to read a new book and lots of places to take long walks with the dog and watch the wildlife. I started keeping a diary of which birds and four-footed critters come back each spring or summer probably 20 years ago. After 23 years of living out here, Hubby and I have figured out who's going to show up when. Can you even imagine having to stay at home all this time while living in an apartment or house in Medford or Ashland? I can't! Fortunately, things are slowly coming back to normal, and the weather is looking a little bit like spring might be early this year. (And because I just put that in print, we'll have another winter storm come through and New hiking trail design under way in the upper Applegate BY SUZIE SAVOIE Hiking trails that use the easy contours and established routes of historic water and mine ditches are popular in southwest Oregon, such as the Sterling Mine Ditch Trail in Little Applegate, Layton Ditch Trail in Williams, and Gin Lin Trail in Upper Applegate, along with many local trails that use portions of historic ditches. Currently, the design of a new 9.3-mile, nonmotorized hiking trail in the Upper Applegate is under way that would use a combination of existing mine ditches and new trail construction. The Upper Applegate Trail was proposed by residents and collaborative partners during planning for the Upper Applegate Watershed (UAW) Restoration Project through the Siskiyou Mountains Ranger District. Luke Ruediger, executive director of Applegate Neighborhood Network and author of The Siskiyou Crest: Hikes, History & Ecology, has been designing, mapping, and flagging the trail. e proposed trail would link existing recreation areas at Applegate Reservoir to Flumet Flat Campground and the Gin Lin Trail with a 9.3-mile hiking trail through portions of the Collings-Kinney Inventoried Roadless Area. Bakers, bakeries, and baked goods in the Applegate BY DIANA COOGLE Whether you are looking for the staff of life or a meal or a sweet-tooth treat, you can start and end your day with great baked goods from Applegate bakeries. If you get to the Provolt Country Store and Deli (see page 24 for location) early enough, you can munch on a breakfast sandwich (egg and bacon on an English muffin) or treat yourself to a fresh croissant or Danish. "We are sold out by 8:00!" says baker and sandwich-maker Jennifer Crandall. "If you want something, call ahead!" Later, on your way to Grants Pass to do some shopping, you might stop at Pennington Farms for one of their chicken pot pies for lunch. Longtime Applegate resident Joan Peterson raves about Pennington Farms' chicken pot pies: "Something about their sauce—the most delicious creamy flavor—their crust is outstanding. I could eat those pies from now till Doomsday." Cathy Pennington and her daughter Jackie started making baked goods "to do something with the surplus of berries from the farm" after the day's sales at the farm stand. Now Cathy and Jackie, "along with dear family friends," try to keep up with the demand for their fruit pies, turnovers, and, of course, chicken pot pie. However, on this day of sampling Applegate bakers' baked goods, maybe you postpone dessert because you are on your way to the Grants Pass Farmers Market, where you can pick up a small package of Curly Top Bakery's delicious shortbread. Michelle Bernardi, Curly Top's co-owner (along with her mother, Lonnie Kurth) learned baking in culinary school in Portland. When the owner of the Annie Mac bakery retired, Michelle bought that business and turned it into Curly Top Bakery, next to the Applegate Store. Michelle couldn't tell me how many cookies and baked goods she and the other five bakers do in a day. "I just keep making things until my arms fall off, and then I go home," she said. Okay, but let's say Curly Top's goodies don't fit your diet. No worries! Paulazzo Pasticceria (pronounced "pasti-CHEER-ia" A south-looking view from the proposed Upper Applegate Trail route. Photo: Luke Ruediger. Stoking the fire that bakes the bread in the Rise Up! oven. give us some more snow—right?! No problem for me. I'll take snow and rain over heat any day of the week.) Living out here gives us tasks to do after winter is over, but before fire season starts (historically: anywhere from April through June). So, it's about time to get to work with the chainsaw and then the wood splitter. Hubby and I will look for any dead fir trees, cut them down, and get them ready to split and stack for the woodstove next fall. Our wood supply is pretty low, and we usually go through over a cord of wood every winter. But that's the kind of work that makes you feel good afterwards. Sort of like when you were a kid and learned how to make a batch of your father's favorite cookies for Father's Day—proud! My least favorite task is cleaning out the gutters. Hubby knows I don't like ladders, Keep spaces under decks and exterior staircases clean and free of dry vegetation. Sparks from a nearby fire could ignite leaves and the deck itself. Photo: Sandy Shaffer.

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