Dinner in Ashland

It was a hot, unscenic (except for the last 75 miles past Lake Shasta and Mount Shasta and over Ashland Pass) drive, quite a bit of it done with our legs crossed because three rest stops in a row were inexplicably closed. There were too many trucks, too many cars and not much of interest to look at.  Ozzie wouldn't sit down, and we were becoming grumpy.

Since it was 99 degrees outside, I couldn't take pictures through the dirty windows, and I couldn't open them because we had the air conditioning going full blast to keep Ozzie cool. Every time we stopped, I had to take off my sweater. Ozzie couldn't do that so we didn't stop much.

Ashland, where we always break the trip, saved us. We checked into the same hotel we always use because they welcome dogs and this time they outdid themselves. We got a little welcome package consisting of a sheet to cover the bed how did they know that Ozzie always sleeps on our bed?), a packet of dog treats, a packet of people treats, and two bottles of ice cold water.

By the time we were checked in, we were both feeling pretty grumpy and Ozzie was puffing like a locomotive. We were beginning to think that perhaps we were all getting too old to keep doing this. 

It was still 93 degrees when we went into town for a little walk before dinner. Ashland is a pretty little town with lots of charming little wooden bungalows and Southern Oregon University. It is also home to The Oregon Shakespeare Festival, a regional repertory theatre which produces eleven plays on three stages every year.

A number of years ago we discovered the Peerless Bar and Restaurant which just gets better every time we come to Ashland. Tonight we enquired about the possibility of dining with Ozzie and they said, of course...they had a special section outdoors in the garden with tables in the shade which they reserved for people with dogs.

Although it was still 90 degrees, there was a breeze and our table in the shade was quite pleasant.. Water for humans and Ozzie appeared, followed quickly by wine. My picture shows one of the two dogs who were with the two couples dining at the table next to us.

We had a wonderful salad of little gem lettuce, radishes arugula and some kind of puffed, roasted rice that was delicious, followed by some of the best crab cakes I've ever had and roasted cauliflower with Harissa.  OilMan, who can eat forever without gaining an ounce, ordered a chocolate/strawberry ice-cream cake, which I was happy to share with him.

Tomorrow we will make the shorter and hopefully cooler four hour journey to Corvallis. Our friends there usually do the entire journey from Corvallis to Santa Rosa in one day. I honestly don't know how they do it.....