Whidbey Island FiberQuest With a Twist 5

Hello,

I am finally writing the last part of my trip to the Whidbey Island FiberQuest With a Twist.   Today's post will be about the final 2 stops Skeinherder and I made, and one is part of the Fiber and the other is part of the Twist.

Map of the Day:

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I. Sweet Mona's Chocolate Boutique
138 2nd St.
Langley, WA
360.221.2728

After we finished visiting all of the farms and vineyards, we headed to the picturesque town of Langley.  

This town is on the east side of South Whidbey Island and right on the Sound.  Of course, since the island is very narrow, you are never very far from the beach.  You can look across to Camano Island, and beyond to the Washington mainland.  The last 2 stops were easy walking distance from each other, so Skeinherder and I parked our car on 2nd street and walked to both.

Sweet Mona's Chocolate shop sells handmade chocolates, fudge, caramels, (yes the super yummy salted ones), and coffees as well as other candies.

Very friendly service.  I bought individual caramels and chocolate pieces, just to get a taste (YUMMY), and the counter person didn't blink an eye that I was not buying a pound box.

You can also buy on-line and of course, ship home or to a friend.

J. Knitty Purls
111 A  Anthes Ave.
Langley, WA

Walk up 2nd and across Anthes.  Turn right and there is Knitty Purls.  This is a somewhat small yarn shop, but absolutely packed with wonderful yarns.  

I had been here before on the 2012 Puget Sound LYS Tour last May.  This shop has all kinds of really special yarns.

They also sell Alpaca yarns from local farms, so locally raised yarn.

A truly LOCAL YARN shop.

The staff is friendly and very knowledgeable.  They had a knit night, and offer classes.  There is a bathroom =).  Always important when you are on a tour of many places.  If you are headed to Whidbey Island, and if you come to the Pacific Northwest you really should visit this beautiful and easily accessible island, this shop is a must.

After this last shop, we caught the ferry to Mukilteo, and drove back to Bellevue.  The ferry trip is really fast, we didn't even get out of the car.  And I just want to say, that to show how magical this day was, as we reached the booth to pay for the ferry (for the return trip you just pay for the car, not the passengers, something to remember if you are tripping with buddies), we saw foot passengers heading up, which meant that the ferry had just arrived.  We didn't wait at all.  Then, even better, as we drove onto the ferry, the car right in front of us in our line was directed to the top left side (sure to get off last), while the guy directed us to the bottom middle lane.  We were the 3rd car off.  Truly, a magic ending to our day.

I won't admit that because Skeinherder and I were talking so intently, we missed the fork to the 405 freeway, and had to drive all of the way through downtown Seattle to the 90 freeway to get back to Bellevue.  This was partly because I am too cheap to pay the toll on the 520 floating bridge.  Thank you, Skeinherder, for being such a sport about this.


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Stay safe and well.
Yours,

f1bercat
shaping the planet without paying the 520 toll.

Whidbey Island FiberQuest With a Twist 4

Hello!

By my opening photo, you can see I am back to posting about my day at the Whidbey Island FiberQuest With a Twist.  Today I will write about the last two farms we visited, and tomorrow (or Sunday) wrap up the day with the last two stops.

Map of our trip:

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F. Fern Ridge Alpacas
7343 Holst Road
Clinton, WA
206.778.9619
 
This farm seems tucked away in the woods.

 

We drove up a narrow lane through the Pacific Northwest's signature tall evergreens to find ourselves in a cross between South America and Central Asia.

By Central Asia, I mean the Yurt, which is the Farm Store.  And, of course, by South America, I mean ALPACAS!  Honestly, Skeinherder and I squealed just as loudly at the sight of the lovelies on this farm as we had at the first farm we visited.

One of the things that was so lovely about this farm tour is how friendly all of the owners are.  

They can't wait to show you their animals.  They love to explain what their farm is about (alpacas!).  They are eager to answer any questions.

We got to go inside the alpaca pen here, to greet and photograph the animals up close.

When we were back at our Wednesday night Eastside Stitchers Group, someone asked if the farms smelled... well, like.. Farms.  The amazing thing is that none of them did.  They are all kept so clean.  You can see how healthy and happy the animals are.

This farm offers knitting classes.  The farm store, or farm YURT, was so open and light, and full of goodies.

Of course there are all kinds of yarns and fibers from their own herd,

but also crafts for sale from local crafters:

These pieces were made by kids in the local 4-H group, as well as the owner's wife.  We are talking really local here.

G. Paradise Found Fiber Farm
4081 Springwater Lane
Clinton, WA
360.579.1906

The last farm we visited on the tour was Paradise Found Fiber Farm.
This farm really seemed like a FARM.

O!  I didn't get a photo of the chickens.  Ratz.  Well, they had farm produce, including eggs, for sale, as well as their wonderful yarns and fibers for spinning.  But more on that in a minute.

Mary, the owner of this delightful farm, is the whole reason we came on the FiberQuest.  She contacted me on Ravelry through the Eastside Stitchers, to let me know about the event. 

Her farm is a bit different from the others we visited, not only for the chickens and produce, but because they don't just focus on alpacas.  They actually started with llamas.

About a third of their animals are llamas.  They branched into alpacas as a rescue operation mainly, not for the fiber.  But of course, if you are going to rescue alpacas, might as well use their fiber.  So another third are the alpacas.  The final third are their goats.

They run a small herd of Pygora Goats.  These goats were originally a cross of pygmy goats and angora goats.  They now are recognized as their own official breed.  

So, when you enter the small but well stocked shop,

 you see yarn and fiber from all three types of animals.

Mary has her wheel set up in the corner, and offers a great selection of her own handspun yarns, as well as millspun.  For people looking for crafted items, there was a wonderful display of her knitting, as well.

Of course, we had to buy some of the llama fiber.

Stay safe and well.
Yours,

f1bercat
shaping the planet with llama yarn.

Whidbey Island FiberQuest with a Twist 3

Hello!

I am going to continue my posts about my day on the Whidbey Island FiberQuest with a Twist last Friday, November 2.

Map of day:

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 Stops D, E, and H

D. Spoiled Dog Winery
5881 Maxwelton Rd.
Langley, WA
360. 661. 6226

To get to this winery, you drive down a smallish lane, turn a corner, and see the vineyards.  On the day we (Skeinherder) and I were there, it was sunny and crisp, and it was a delightful sight.

The owner, Karen Krug, came from the vineyard with her 2 lovely dogs, to greet us and open up the tasting room, and wine shop.  It was a bit early for drinking wine, and anyway, I was the designated driver, so we did more looking than tasting. 

It looked wonderful, and smelled even better.  Whidbey Island is the perfect micro-climate for growing pinot noir grapes, as the island gets much less rain than we do in Bellevue and Seattle, because it is in a rain shadow.

Only portable toilets there.

E. Pickles Deli
Hwy 525 @ Ken's Corner
Clinton, WA
360.341.3940

The perfect stop for lunch on the tour was Pickles Deli. 
There were real barrels of pickles in the shop.

All of the salads and soups were homemade (store made).

There was a great selection of sandwich meats and cheeses. 

We had the soup of the day, a small salad and amazing toast, some type of herb-bread that also, was store made.  The shop had steady stream of customers, but the line moved quickly.  There was a nice big seating area in the back.

Nice indoor bathrooms, too.

H. Comforts of Whidbey
4361 Witter Road
Langley, WA
360.969.2961

What is it about these vineyards...  so pretty.  Again, we drove down this side street, and suddenly we came upon this delightful view.  Comforts overlooks a beautiful view of Puget Sound.

They have a really pretty yard area that makes the most of the view with a bench and a sweet arch.

The tasting room-wine shop was small, but again, delightful, and smelled wonderful.

We ran into other people on the tour here, who know the winery, and had come to taste wine, but also buy HONEY.  I plan to ask for honey next time I am on the tour.

Forgot to ask about bathrooms (as we had used the facilities at Pickles Deli, it didn't seem quite so important in the afternoon part of the tour.)

That's all for today's post.

If you are into wine, Whidbey Island has a Fall Wine and Art Tour coming up this weekend, November 10 and 11.  It is worth the trip.  The island is a really beautiful drive regardless, and the 2 vineyards we visited were welcoming and lovely.

Stay safe and well.
Yours,

f1bercat
shaping the planet with doggy kisses.