Win Your Way In!
Want to attend this event for FREE? Simply comment below with your response to this question:
What is your favorite type of wine, and what food does it pair best with?
Winner to be randomly selected Thursday at 10am PST. Winner will receive 2 tickets to this event (winner announced on social media pages), and must be able to attend this Friday at 6pm (no substitutions).
For Sale By Owner Boat Show
All Things LUDLOW
Agra-CULTURE: A Farmer’s Perspective
Finnriver Farm Chickens |
In addition to providing the resort with fresh eggs for its guests, Keith and Crystie Kisler, owners of Chimacum’s Finnriver Farm, share Chef Dan’s commitment to restoring vitality to the rural local community through farm/restaurant partnerships. Below, Crystie offers a farmer’s perspective.
Gathering Eggs |
Life on the Farm |
Farm to Table – Working to Sustain an Artisanal Food Community
Finnriver Farm |
Supporting local farmers is a high priority for the Fireside Restaurant’s management team, and the commitment goes beyond just buying local! In today’s post, Director of Food & Beverage James Robinson explains how the Fireside is partnering with local growers.
Executive Chef Dan Ratigan |
SpringRain Farm Chickens |
Chef Dan’s friend, Graham Kerr, Visits Red Dog Farm |
Just down Center Valley Road from Red Dog Farm lies Finnriver Farm – our sole source for eggs. Like Red Dog Farm, our partnership with Keith and Crystie Kisler runs deep. In addition to continually developing outlets at the Resort for their goods, our most recent project includes creating a roster of agri-tourism events and activities for Resort guests.
A Year In The Making
Beautiful Petal |
Our knitters had a wonderful 3-day retreat in June with a few staying over longer to continue enjoying the relaxing atmosphere of the Resort. They worked hard at the retreat – absorbing new knitting and dyeing techniques taught by their energetic and captivating teachers, mastering new cooking skills with Chef Dan and his team. They visited local Finnriver Farm each day, the source of The Fireside’s freshly laid eggs, tasting boutique apple ciders, preparing dinners for the group, and ending their days feasting on their bounty along with paired wine flights.
A Year In The Making |
How Did They Get Up There?! |
Urbanites to Lavender Farmers
Sequim’s 2012 Lavender Weekend celebration is just a week away, July 20-22! The bloom is right on schedule, shrouding Sequim in a vibrant sea of purple!
Summer Bloom |
The Schiefen’s Story
What would possibly motivate a thirty-something pre-school teacher and her insurance agent husband to pack-up their two small kids (ages 5 and 2) and the dog and chuck their comfortable urban life in Santa Barbara, Calif. — to become lavender farmers? Particularly when neither had any kind of farming experience whatsoever – in fact, they never even had a yard!
According to Jordan and Paul Schiefen, it all began with a search for a more simple, stable life that involved selling the family business, buying a small trailer and setting off on a cross country journey with destination unknown. Their only requirements – wherever they landed must have ocean, mountains, and be within 3 hours of a major city.
After touring the farm and speaking with owners Pam and Randy Nicholson, the stars aligned! This was what the Schiefen’s had been looking for! They made an offer the Monday after Lavender Weekend, and because harvest was imminent, got a 15-day Escrow!
Jardin du Soleil |
“I had no idea one year ago how much work running the farm would be – growing, distilling oil, and running the on-site gift shop,” says Jordan Schiefen. “We’ve taken it step-by-step and the Lavender Farmers Association has been a big help along the way. We’ve loved every second of it! This is the life that we were looking for.”
About Sequim Lavender Weekend
Sequim Lavender Weekend is comprised of two separate events – the Lavender Farm Faire, which features the renowned Heritage Tour of 7 destination lavender farms, each a festival unto itself, plus “Lavender in the Park” at Carrie Blake Park/Reuse Demonstration Park, a free family-friendly central source for all things lavender – food, music, cooking demonstrations, crafts, family programs and more.
Totem Pole Depicts Port Ludlow’s Evolution
Burner Point |
The next time you visit Port Ludlow, take the short stroll from the Inn to Burner Point, a circle of lawn overlooking the Bay, and view the totem pole at its center.
Designed specifically for this site by David Boxley, a Tsimshian carver from Metlakatla, Alaska, the pole depicts the evolution of Port Ludlow from its past natural state to its present state as a residential community, in six Tsimshian figures.
The initial cuts to the log were made at a sawmill in Gorst, outside of Bremerton, and the balance of the carving was done in a temporary shelter erected near to the pole’s present site.
Starting from the top, the figures are:
Eagle and Bear |
The Bear – representing the ancestors of the local S’Klallam tribe.
Two Men with Locked Arms – Mr. Pope and Mr. Talbot, owners of the sawmill formerly located in Port Ludlow.Inn At Port Ludlow in the Distance |
The Six Interlocking Figures – representing the people and community of Port Ludlow.
According to Boxley, one of the six figures represents an actual person. Tony Puma, who was the construction project manager for the Inn and apparently conceived the idea to place a totem pole at Burner Point, is the mustached man with the cell phone.
Life As Live Aboards
Dolphin Spirit |
Have you ever wondered what it would be like to live on a boat with the freedom to chart your own course, traveling when and where you choose in the comfort of your floating home? It’s a dream-come-true for Anne and Don Whipple, a California couple that moors in Port Ludlow for part of every year.
As guest bloggers this week, the Whipple’s share a bit about what keeps them coming back to Port Ludlow year after year.
Boating has been a big part of our lives since the early years of our marriage. We spent nearly 30 years houseboating, skiing, jet skiing, and fishing on a small Northern California lake. Our retirement dream was always to live aboard a boat and cruise. We envisioned ourselves exploring the historic waters of the Intercoastal Waterway–generally known in boating circles as “The Great Loop.”
Anne Whipple |
As sometimes happens to plans, fate and a good friend intervened! Shortly before we were ready to put our California home on the market and set off to follow our nomadic dream, we were invited to join a friend on his boat to cruise for a week on Puget Sound and in the San Juan Islands. We were smitten! We thought this was the most spectacular area we had ever seen!
Don Whipple |
When our home sold a few months later, we decided to return to the area to see if it was still so magical. It was! Perhaps even more so!
We have been living aboard “Dolphin Spirit” in the Resort at Port Ludlow Marina since spring of 2004. We have met many wonderful people here and are active members of the Port Ludlow Yacht Club. We felt Port Ludlow was home from the very first time we saw it. That good feeling surfaces each time we return, whether from our summer cruising aboard Dolphin Spirit or our RV travels south in the wintertime. Port Ludlow is home.
And, as Dorothy said, “there’s no place like home!”
Anne & Don Whipple