Lectures in the Park

The other night while my friends and I were hanging out at the Victory Club, I pulled up my new favorite website, gosalem365.com. It's a great way to see what's happening in downtown Salem - check it out! As I scrolled through the page and took screen shots of things I wanted to do, I came across the River Current Lecture series. It appeared to be a weekly naturey lecture series that takes place on Tuesday nights in the amphitheater at Riverfront Park. That concept sounded pretty cool, so I started planning to go to the next one.

Later, I researched it a bit more and found that the lecture series is a function of the Salem Parks department and saw a synopsis of the lectures that were coming up, including the fact that the next topic was "Little Brown Fishes of the Willamette Valley." As Tuesday night inched closer, I could not find anyone to go to the lecture with me. That's not super surprising because sometimes I like to do offbeat things, and I love nature and science more than the average person.

I was still determined to go, so when Tuesday night rolled around, I got home from work, grabbed my sunglasses and water bottle, put on shorts since it was a warm night, and headed over to the park via the streets of downtown a little before 7pm.  As I walked, the sun was on its way down and made my favorite type of shadow - the long extended ones that warp the way things look.

When I got to the park, the splash pad was going and I heard the excited shouts of kids shrieking from the pleasure of the cold water. I took a shortcut across the big expansive grassy area to make it to the amphitheater quicker.

As I approached, I knew I was in the right place because I saw a small setup with a microphone and speaker, but otherwise I might have thought I got the time or place wrong. There was hardly anyone there, which I guess should not have surprised me, but I thought it was a unique experience that more people would want to take part in! I looked around at one point and counted 13 people in the crowd, including me. And, I think I was the youngest person by far. Almost everyone looked to be of the grandparent variety. But don't let the small size or the average age of the crowd fool you, it was still a cool event!

First John Yoder opened it up. He's part of Salem Environmental Education LLC, which I think cosponsors the event. Fun fact - he's also a DJ of a local radio station, KMUZ. He said that the lectures have been going on every Tuesday night since June! Wow! Somehow I never heard of it till now, too bad! He introduced the main speaker - Karen from the Department of Fish and Wildlife.

Karen was great. She started off by saying that fish are her passion, and that definitely came through during her lecture, which made it enjoyable to listen to. She explained that others of her colleagues study the "big" fish like trout and salmon, but she studies the smaller less popular fish. She calls these the "little brown fish." Karen said that there are 25 native species in the Willamette Valley, and launched into telling us fun facts about each fish, then passing a picture of the fish through the crowd. I learned about a fish that eat parasites that harm salmon, and about a fish that sparkles. I learned about a vilified fish (the northern pike minnow). I learned that we had an endangered species (Oregon Chub) that recovered its numbers and became the first de-listed fish in America. I heard about the lamprey (kinda looks like an eel but is not an eel) where the mates both build a nest (called a redd) together, then they both die after spawning. My favorite comment she made was when she asked us, "Have you ever known someone who was attractive but every time you see a picture of them you're like, 'ugggg!'?  That's this fish!"  She was talking about the three spine stickleback, which is apparently not very photogenic.  Fun fact - hearing her talk about the three spine stickleback made me remember this book on tape from my childhood!

The lecture only went about half an hour, which was a good length of time in my opinion. It really was an enjoyable experience. I liked sitting outside in the setting sunlight next to the Willamette River, being with a other nature-minded people, learning about my home, and watching groups of people run by through the park. It also made me feel super Oregonian.

After it was over, she passed out a little fish card (though it was for the more popular fish) and then I had a pleasant, calm, short walk home through the city. I found it interesting that it got warmer and warmer as I entered the concrete jungle. It had been nice and almost too cool for shorts next to the river.

If you'd like to partake in the lecture series, there are still two more opportunities left.  Next Tuesday (August 23rd) the topic will be the creeks in our area, and the last lecture (August 30th) will discuss park opportunities and ways to use our parks. Check it out!

Friday Night in the Alley: 1859 Cider Co. & Victory Club

My last blog about On Your Feet Friday ended on a cliffhanger! What did the rest of my night hold? Did I have any other downtown fun in store for me??

Yes!

As OYFF wound down, my friend and I had the great idea that we should keep hanging out. We decided that 1859 Cider Co should be our destination, but the only problem was, they don't serve food and we needed to eat. I remembered that they allow patrons to bring food in, so then my friend had an even better idea - that we should call and order food to go from Ventis so that by the time the raffle at OYFF was done our food would be ready. Brilliant!

We checked out Ventis' downtown menu online and called and placed our order as raffle numbers rang out through the air.

Soon we were headed out to the rest of our night, despite the fact that we were both in our sweaty running clothes (reminder, this was a 100-ish degree night in Salem). I walked about a block over to Ventis while my friend moved her car. When I got there they told me they'd been busy and didn't have our food ready. They were nice about it and asked if I wanted a cup for water while I waited (maybe I looked dehydrated!) and it was a pretty pleasant wait, as far as waits go. I sat at the bar stools by the window and took a few moments to observe the construction that is going on to expand the upstairs dining area. It was my first glimpse at their new look. I'll be interested to see it when it's complete.

They also have a basement bar, which has a cool vibe that is super different than the upstairs. I will have to visit and blog about it some other time.  Here's a little peek at the stairs that lead down there.

Since it was a nice night, the waiters and waitresses were constantly in and out the door delivering food to the people eating out on the sidewalk (I've had that experience before and recommend it!). I also enjoyed the music that they had playing. I recognized The Shins but couldn't think of the song so SoundHounded it. Overall, it was pretty peaceful even though I was waiting.

Soon I had our food in hand and headed over to 1859 Cider Co. 

1859 is actually in the same building as my apartments (it's a mixed use building), so I made a quick stop at my place to pick up some stuff I needed. Then I went out the back way (shortcut!), into the side alley, and just around the corner into the main alley to the home of 1859 Cider Co.

I like the rolltop garage style doors on the units back here. Kinda hip :)

I'd only ever been to 1859 one time before, when I went with my brother, sister (aka Salmonista), and brother in law during their grand opening about a month ago. While the grand opening night was hopping, this Friday night was pretty chill. 1859 seems to be a pretty simple cider house. They brew six of their own ciders, and this night they also had a couple guest beers on tap.

Since I live just upstairs, I've smiled to myself at the thought of coming down here wearing slippers to get my growler filled, or bringing my homemade dinner down to eat with a glass of cider :).  I haven't actually done either yet.

The seating area inside is fairly compact and has a trendy vibe about it.  They also have a large open space that houses their brewing vats, and which I assume they also use for their Sunday night salsa dancing sessions.

The seating inside wasn't super comfortable. I ended up on a bench that rolled, which was a little awkward given that there was a lady sitting at the other end of it and I sent her rolling. We decided to move to the tables outside instead. I started in on my garlic sesame tofu (one of my usual orders from Ventis - it's good) while my friend enjoyed her Thai chicken peanut rice dish.

Then our drinks arrived. My friend tried out a sampler of each of their varieties. Since I'd already done the sampler on the grand opening night, I knew that I enjoyed their "Statehood" cider and ordered a glass of that. I really enjoyed mine. Sometimes ciders can seem overly sweet to me, but this one wasn't and had a nice flavor. If it's your first time visiting them, I would recommend the sampler of all six because it's a fun experience to taste the differences.

It was a great temperature out in the alley and a nice night to sit outside. And, being in the alley did afford us some interesting experiences. A drunk guy wandered by and couldn't quite grasp the concept of what alcoholic cider was and said he preferred rum. A little bit later a couple motorcycles drove through the alley. Mostly it was quiet back there with a limited amount of regular city activity.

As the night got later and darker, another one of our friends joined up with us. We enjoyed some conversation then plotted our next move.

Originally we thought we'd walk down the street for some froyo dessert. But as we got to the end of the alley and crossed Court Street, we could see Victory Club's crowd in the next alley and decided to do a "drive by" to see what it's like. It's a pretty new establishment as well and I'd been wanting to check it out, especially because it's in an alley, and I appreciate that new trend. As we approached it, my friend and I got a little hesitant because we were still in our running clothes. Our third member (in normal clothes) went in to check it out for us and told us we'd be fine. We threw caution to the wind and went inside.

The vibe was hard to put my finger on, and I'm still not quite sure how to describe it. I like the interior design of the place. The multicolored wood walls in the main bar area and the mural in the side room (one big open room that appeared to probably be intended for music shows as well as regular seating) made it feel Oregonian.

There was also a cool brick wall that I appreciated behind the tap.

We ordered our drinks (I got "two thorns raspberry/rose petal" cider by Two Towns) and grabbed a booth.  My cider was great, BTW.

As we sat, I observed the surroundings. It seemed to be a pretty young crowd overall, and the place was fairly packed but not too overcrowded. It wasn't really a hipster vibe, and was maybe more like the typical bar crowd of a mix of local people. (We even saw the Gallaghers there who had hosted On Your Feet Friday earlier that night.) It kind of felt like a bar-ish taphouse. (Their facebook page says they serve spirits too, but I only noticed all the taps.)  It was *loud*, and my friends and I have reached an age where we don't really appreciate that. Our hypothesis was that the wood siding made the sound reverberate. We enjoyed that the bar was playing Olympic coverage so we could catch some glimpses of what was going on. There was also a photo booth in the corner that piqued my interest, but there was no price listed and I wasn't totally in a photo boothy mood.  Perhaps some other time :)

I also thought it was pretty cool that the candle holder on our table was made from a cut beer bottle! 

One other thing to note is the fact that they served actual food. We didn't get any so I can't say how it was, but I still found it impressive since most taphouses choose not to serve food.

As we left, we saw a good amount of people enjoying the outside patio on that warm night.

What a jam packed Friday night we had in downtown Salem!  I'd recommend both new Salem alley locations. They didn't disappoint.

On Your Feet Friday

Even before I moved downtown, one of my favorite downtown Salem activities for the past few years has been On Your Feet Friday. It takes place every 2nd Friday of the month from May through October and is organized by a local downtown running gear store, Gallaghers. (Sidebar, if you ever need running shoes, go see them! I bought some shoes there a few years ago and it was a great experience. They watch you run and diagnose what kind of shoes you need.)

The premise of the event is as follows:  Run around downtown with a paper "passport" that you get stamped at different locations (usually businesses). You must return within the allotted amount of time. For every stamp you obtain, you get a raffle ticket for some cool prizes. And, it's all free! Sounds fun, right?

Attending On Your Feet Friday is even better now that I live downtown. It means that I don't have to try to find a parking spot (not a fun task on a Friday evening) and I only have to walk about 2 blocks to arrive at the meeting area. Super convenient.

This Friday evening was sweltering hot. I think it was hovering around 100 degrees. I put on some shorts, slathered on sunscreen, tied my hair up, filled my water bottle with ice water, put on my sunglasses, and headed out the door to Pioneer Trust Bank's parking lot, which is right next door to Gallagher's.

When I arrived around 6:20pm, the usual scene met me.  There were lots of people in brightly colored running gear, and a few local vendors selling food, alcohol, or giving away free snacks. There's also always one shoe manufacturer at every OYFF. They have an area set up where participants can try on/try out a pair of their shoes for the night.

I signed a form and grabbed my passport and waded through the crowd to find my friends. 

The locations on the passport change every month, though there's always a stop at the globe (a literal large globe) in Riverfront Park, and a stop across the pedestrian bridge that spans the Willamette River. All the rest of the stops are at various downtown businesses. It ends up being a fun way to explore Salem and get introduced to new places I've never checked out.

I myself am not, shall we say, directionally gifted. And, even if I knew where the locations were, I'm probably not the best person to chart a course. My favorite type of OYFF is when someone else figures all that out and I just follow :). We took a look at the map they had posted, and thankfully one of my friends figured out our route for us.  

When 6:30pm hit, we were all off!  Nowadays I just walk at OYFF, but quite a few people run it. (I used to run it back in the day when I was attempting to be a runner.) You can usually reach most of the locations by 7:15pm, the rendezvous time, just walking. But, if you want to hit all of them, you almost always have to run to make it possible.

We made our way across the street to Riverfront Park to the globe for our first stamp.  

My water bottle was definitely my friend in the heat.

Then we headed to ABC Music for stamp #2 - where we also met up with another one of my friends who joined with us. 

From there it was on to stamp #3 at Create A Memory (a pottery painting place). The highlight of getting that stamp was the fact that the person doing the stamping was sitting next to a fan, and as he stamped your passport, he also squirted a spray bottle at the fan so that you'd get a nice mist :).  That was very thoughtful since we were all overheating. Then we went into the alley behind my apartment building for stamp #4 at 1859 Cider Co, a cider taphouse. We headed down the street to Ricky's Bubble and Sweets for stamp #5, then over to Deja Vu Salon for stamp #6. Through all this downtown traversing, it's always fun to see other people with their passports scrambling to get them stamped or figure out their next stop too. Kinda makes you feel like a part of something cool :)

We paused for a minute to evaluate the amount of time we had left and the fact that the next stop was further away, but we decided to go for it. We walked south through Pringle Plaza and got to briefly see the resident ducks who like to hang out around the Italian restaurant, Gamberetti's.  

Eventually we made it down the street to the Waterplace building (I love the look of that building, very modern) for stamp #7 from CB2 Architects. I ended up with 7 of the 8 stamps, yay :)  Hint - if you are going to walk and want to get the most stamps possible, I'd recommend avoiding the stop across the pedestrian bridge. That's definitely the longest one and will use up a lot of your time. That's the only one we didn't hit.

Then we crossed the street by the civic center and started making our way back to the meeting place. As we went, I appreciated the water view that was available to us. I love that downtown Salem is urban but with a  mix of natural elements. What can I say, we're Oregonians :). I also enjoyed the sultry summer sunset as well as some pretty flower beds outside of the convention center.

We made it back to the parking lot just in the nick of time (I think it was 7:14pm), turned in our passports for raffle tickets, and waited around for the prizes to start.

While we waited, LifeSource (an awesome natural foods store in south Salem) had free samples as well as whole carrots, stems and all. We munched on our carrots as the temperature got cooler.

While I waited, I also looked longingly at the condos I would love to live in. Don't get me wrong, I love my apartment, but I would also love to have one of these condos overlooking the park with a sunset view every night.

Before too long, John Gallagher was up on the stairs above the crowd ready to start the raffle. The prizes vary from month to month. The businesses that house each stop almost always donate a couple prizes, Ventis (a Salem restaurant) seems to always have a few too, and whoever is the shoe sponsor for the night donates goodie bags as well as the crowd pleaser - shoes!  Yes! They really do give away multiple pairs of running shoes every time!

This month the prizes included things like a candy basket from Ricky's Bubble & Sweets, a restaurant giftcard (to Orupa) from CB2, multiple growlers (with free growler fills) from 1859 Cider Co, a massage (? think that's what the prize was) from Deja Vu, a "spa day for your guitar" from ABC music, a free entry into an upcoming run, a ceramic shoe to decorate from Create A Memory, and I think Ventis was giving away water bottles with giftcards inside. New Balance provided the shoe and goodie bag prizes.

The raffle drawing is a pretty long process and they aim to finish by about 8pm. To break up the monotony of listening to numbers being read, there are usually two portions of the evening where they throw prizes into the audience. This night was no different and water bottles and T-shirts went flying. I wasn't paying attention because I figured I was too far back for anything to reach me, but then my friend yelled my name and I looked to see a water bottle on a collision course with my face. My first inclination is always to cower (I almost got hit in the head with a baseball at a Volcanoes game one time because of this) so I ducked. Needless to say, I did not get a water bottle.  However, my friend did end up with one later!

As usual, I eagerly listened to all of the ticket numbers, but didn't win anything. Out of all the times I've attended, I've never won a prize. I did think of a good tip for next time, though. I finally realized that I should really try out a pair of shoes because everyone who does so gets a special raffle ticket for a special drawing for shoes. I think that only 70 people get to try shoes out, so that means I'd have a 1/70 chance instead of a 1/a-lot-more-than-70 chance of winning. Note to self.

Also as usual, even though I didn't win anything, I had a great time. It's a good way to get some exercise, spend time with friends, be a part of a larger group, check out local businesses, and enjoy some fresh air. I will keep coming back for more.

My fun for the night did not end here, it was just getting started! To be continued in a future blog post :)