The Mazama Store

Alpine Welding just installed our new gate and it looks great. We can’t wait to see what the stairs will look like- more functional art! I love it!

All the rain we’ve had is helping us finish the landscaping project at the store. Wow, does it ever look great! Diane Costales is spinning her magic and the store grounds never looked better.
Can pizza night be far away? Maybe not, but if you can’t wait we’re making take-n-bake pizza fresh every Friday.

The 5th day in May is typically greeted with warmer temps and a chance to enjoy the year’s first Margarita. This year however, Cinco de Mayo has ushered in cool blustery weather and even a bit of snow in the AM hours. If you were at higher elevation the reality of sinking into new snow well over your ankles was a distinct possibility. Although we didn’t get much in Mazama, Winthrop had almost 2″ inches on the ground this morning…….go figure.

It’s been a wild and windy week, if not a bit wet, perfect for landscaping which is what we’ve been up to here at the store. The Goat is hoping to have it all done before the big Memorial day weekend arrives…..we’ll see!

OK, the Goat’s been asleep at the wheel lately but that’s understandable given the one-road-in, one-road-out pace of life here in Mazamaville. This all changed last Friday as WSDOT crews opened SR-20 (west of Silverstar Gate) for yet another season of travel using this incredible vista laden corridor.

The change was noticeable immediately as the store became busier than we’ve seen in months. It was good to see many of the familar faces that we hadn’t seen since last Fall.

We begin landscaping this week and hope to have it all wrapped up by June. Can pizza night be far away?

This a great time to live in the valley! Blustery Spring weather yesterday and brilliant sunshine today, March is becoming one of my favorite months!

Even though “mud season” is upon us here in Mazama, it’s a quiet time we’ve begun to appreciate and savor. Case in point- a 20 minute hike onto Goat Wall reveals small streams, lush vegitation, protected alcoves, ideal habitat and panoramic vistas all within walking distance of the Store. And not a soul in sight! This is the time to reflect on just how fortunate we are to have access to such a wonderously beautiful place.

After yesterday’s hockey game extravaganza things are quiet around Mazama today. There’s still a bit of skiing here and there and biking even seems to be a reasonable possibility. Soup’s on, chicken dumpling ……..ummmm ummmm gooood!

Win lose or draw, today’s gold medal game will be one of the most watched events on TV this year. You can bet Canada will be shut down as millions of viewers watch their boys take on the upstart Yanks. We’ll have it live starting at noon!

Some sun, some skiing, a bowl and a roll…….oh, yeah, and a football game. It doesn’t get any better than this! Come in and join the fun!

Whole grain breads fresh out of the oven! Our sandwiches today are made on Polly’s EDB (extremely delicious bread), so if skiing has you hankering for a truly good sandwich, the Goat’s got it!

Skiing is still surprisingly good- fast snow, good coverage, awesome grooming. However we’re all asking how long will it last given “The boy’s” cheeky behavior! Go away EL Nino, we want a “normal” winter again.  We only hope it gets better for the Vancouver Olympics in a couple of weeks, it could be a pretty dreary event in the fog and rain!  Our neighbors to the North a have done an incredible job preparing for this showcase event and I’d hate to see it judged solely on the weather outside.  We’ll keep our fingers crossed!

Speaking of the Olympics, many of our junior racers just returned from a weekend ski race at the 2002 XC ski venue, Soldier Hollow, Utah.  Beautiful weather greeted them both days and everyone seemed to have a great time going head to head with competitors from all over the western US.

Kudos also to Winthrop’s own Casey Smith who has been representing the Methow and US Biathlon at the World Junior Championships in Sweden.  A touch of the flu knocked him down for a few days, but knowing Casey, he’ll be back on his feet skiing harder than ever in the relay race tomorrow! 

Fresh baked!

This is a quick report because I want to go skiing! The skiing is beautiful right now, fast snow and balmy temperatures make for a quick run around the Mazama trails. And its nice to have a bowl of fresh homemade soup waiting for you at the other end!

See ya- I’m off to ski Jack’s!