Emigrant Lake, Ashland (9)

Vacation mode engaged! We made great time and pulled into our site with plenty to spare before our evening show. We decided to head into town and walk around Lithia Park. This park is always beautiful, with duck ponds and the sound of the tumbling water from Lithia Creek as you walk under the shade of majestic trees. Many of these trees were planted over a hundred years ago and it became a quest to prove to Richard that there were redwoods in the park. Most of the redwoodsy-looking trees north of California are cedars, but you can tell by the way their needles grow which is which. There are some large redwoods at the Japanese Botanical Garden, and that is always a nice spot to visit. They have a seriously impressive water feature, with a four or five foot waterfall that cascades onto boulders, and then flows along a curvy meandering riverbed, all the way to the bottom of the park, ending in a large koi pond. The banks are dotted with azaleas and bamboo, while little stone bridges and footpaths crisscross over the water and through well-manicured ornamental trees and shrubs. It is the epitome of tranquility and I admit I have water feature envy.

After our walk, we were ready for dinner. We got happy hour tacos at Taqueria Picaro and enjoyed a sampling of their salsas. While dining, I posted a picture on Facebook and discovered some friends from Lafayette were also in town. We arranged to meet up with them later and headed over to Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory for a chocolate covered caramel apple. Those are just the thing to give you a little buzz before seeing an evening show.

The weather forecast had been going back and forth on predicting rain, but it did in fact finally start coming down around 7pm. We took shelter in the festival gift shop as the skies flashed with lightning and the light sprinkle turned into actual rain. Our friend texted me and said, “Isn’t your show in the outdoor theatre?” Yep. Yes it was. I couldn’t remember for sure whether I had been super smart when reserving seats to try to get ones under a small bit of cover. Some of the seats in the Elizabethan Theatre are set back below the overhang of the mezzanine floor, and for future reference, row L is a good one. They delayed starting the show until 8:20 because of the lightning, but by the time it started, the rain had moved on. We saw “The Taming of the Shrew,” which is a difficult play to do well, but I think they did an outstanding job. The key to pulling off a show like this is in the chemistry between the two main characters. If you can convincingly pull off a relationship of mutual respect, the underlying misogyny is easier to bear. It was staged with lots of music and visual gags, making it a really enjoyable production.

The next day we’d planned to ride along the Bear Creek Greenway bike trail to Puck’s. Weather predictions vacillated and we were in danger of wishy washying the morning away. After debating what else we might do, we just decided to risk getting slightly rained on and headed for the trail. The multi-use trail has been recently re-paved and it is a lovely ride all the way from Ashland to the south side of Medford. Our mission was Puck’s Doughnuts in Phoenix, which we found, but to our chagrin, was mysteriously closed. We arrived around 1pm, so perhaps they had sold out. We were disappointed but not devastated. There is plenty in town to serve as consolation treats. So we just turned around, noting we were not getting rained on at all.

After our ride, we arranged to go visit friends we know not only from Lafayette, but also from Altoistes. Bob and Sue got an Alto some years back and have since relocated to Ashland. They have done an incredible job fixing up an old craftsman style house, which reminded us a lot of our former Ashland house. They have been through the wringer this past year, but they are both still standing and full of humor, in spite of all the challenges. It was so great to visit with them, but I didn’t even think to get a picture. Next time.

Dinner was a super treat because our son Darren treated us. Beth and Jim joined us and we all had burgers at a new place in town, Ashland Burger Company, or ABC for short. It’s kind of like an In and Out. Nothing special, but the company was the best. We all caught up with each other and we convinced Darren to come down when we host a family dinner in October. He has never seen the house since the remodel and he’ll get to be sleepover guest in Dory1. That will be fun!

Our last show was August Wilson’s King Hedley II. Wow. This show packs a punch. The cast was world-class and the play was powerful. I really love seeing the Festival return to gritty drama that showcases playwrights and actors. I also love seeing school groups attending the plays. It reminds me of how I came to fall in love with Ashland and gives me hope that young people are seeing complex plays that make you think.

I’m super glad we kept these reservations and went for it. And actually, a five day trip in the middle of September is pretty damn awesome. We should do this more often.

Total miles from Colusa: 239.6, 16.7, 5 hours 6 min. Site 8 full hookups. Great cell, good free dump.