Bear BACK in Charge Blog 12? Road Trip!

Little Fox's roommates told me to pack my bags today.  We are taking a road trip.  Should I pack for a day trip or a longer trip?  Ack!  Such decisions, luckily for me my wardrobe doesn't vary much so in a nutshell....I'm packed!

The roommates took me east today.  The first stop was near the town of Hood River.  The fruit trees should be blossoming today so I hope to get some good pictures.

  Hood River isn't served by Amtrak but Bingen Washington is (Jerry and Ben...hint hint).   Bingen Washington is served by Amtrak so if you two are ever taking the train west let me know.  I know a great ice cream shop to recommend, along with good coffee, an artisan bakery, and a few wineries.  

After buying some farm fresh eggs from the side of the road we made our first official stop. Apple Valley General Store. 

 

Free samples of jams, jellies and they sell fresh baked treats. 

 They have a nice picnic area.  Some of there trees are blooming too.

 A nice place to relax and enjoy a fresh baked treat.  Should I get a turnover?  Maybe a slice of pie?  They also have milkshakes and a couple of flavors of ice cream.

They are advertising huckleberry milkshakes.  If they are advertising them they must be good. 

After Apple Valley it was off to Parkdale, Oregon near Mt. Hood. Oh, this place looks good.  Let's stop here.

Before lunch we had to walk around and explore the town.  Nice views of the mountain behind me. 

Fruit trees are blooming, when does the fruit come?

The Mount Hood Railroad is coming into station.  It's a couple hour trip from Hood River to Parkdale then an hour or two in Parkdale.  Lot's of blooming trees and good views on the way up and down.

Enough chit chat. Let's eat.  There's a great BBQ place here called Apple Valley BBQ.  It's an offshoot of the Apple Valley store I visited earlier so I hope it's good.