Oregon – Cousins and Hazelnuts

Back over the border into Oregon, we continue our slow trek towards home.  The beautiful falls of the Columbia river, the 2^nd most powerful in North American, in Oregon City has furnished power for a lumber mill in 1842, a flour mill in 1844, a woolen mill in 1864, and the first pacific north west paper mill in 1867.  In 1889 this river boosted the power for the first US long distance electrical power transmission.

Now the buildings are sadly abandoned and dilapidated. Local Oregonians along with five Native Americans tribes are developing plans to clean up the area, refurbish the buildings and create a public riverwalk, to include local history, art, and connecting walkways to the downtown area. It will be fun to come back and visit this area again.

We spend a couple of days with my cousins in Aurora. Curtis and Laile live on an organic hazelnut farm. The property is beautiful and wandering through the orchards and adjacent woods leaves me with a sense of peace and tranquility.

Our visit timed perfectly with the harvest. The nuts fall from the trees when ripened and the tractor first goes down the rows to gather the nuts together blowing off the leaves and debris, leaving neat rows of nuts in the center the trees. Then another tractor machine comes and picks up the nuts. More sorting and drying then shelled and ready for the market. It seems a laborious process. Organic hazelnuts are more difficult to find and much of this market comes from the properties in this area.

Antique farming type equipment on the property is still in use; a cider press, a stone mill for grinding grains and a hand crank grain processor. In addition to the hazel nuts, there are walnut trees, massive gardens and vegetable plots. We gathered from the garden and had some lovely meals together. It was so enjoyable to spend time with others in an indoor social environment after so much time sheltering.

Santa Cruz, warm weather, sun, they are calling us.