Reprinted with permission from the Methow Valley News; by Patrick Hannigan
Towns of the Methow Valley
Neighborhoods of a widespread community
In the Methow there are six distinct communities dispersed over more than 50 miles, yet instead of a particular town, residents often think of Home as being "the Methow Valley".
Could it be an inland case of island psychology? Instead of water, a ring of mountains isolates and defines the Methow, perhaps contributing to the broad geographic definition of home expressed by many valley residents. Also, more people in the Methow live beyond the city limits than live within them. This too may explain why inhabitants frequently view different towns in the valley as simply different neighborhoods of a single community.
Regardless of which town folks live in, there's a lot of intermingling: people in Mazama go to Winthrop to get groceries; Carlton dwellers drive to Twisp to see plays and residents of the town of Methow might head to Pateros to get hardware.
Still, the towns of the Methow do have their own character and characters.
Tucked up at the head of the Methow Valley, Mazama is the first or last stop for travelers traversing the North Cascades Highway. While not exactly a bustling metropolis-the nearest stoplight is more than 60 miles away-most people who live there prefer it that way.
The Mazama Country Store: Seen by many as the unkown center of the universe, if not simply a good place to hang out.
If you arrive at the Mazama Store on any Wednesday evening in the summer, you'll likely find a scene both lively and bucolic: dogs lounging on the deck, folks snarfing pizza or sipping beverages at the picnic tables, and ice-cream-smeared kids dancing on the grass as a band plays from the nearby porch.
Mazama reseidents likely own more outdoor gear per capita than anywhere else in the valley. Several guide services and outdoor education programs are based in Mazama, largely because of it's proximity to a wide variety of summertime recreational activities, including hiking, biking, climbing and fishing.
Western in allure, charming by nature: Winthrop is a popular destination for those traveling the scenic Cascades Loop Highway.
Behind the Old West facade, Winthrop is a genuine town with real people.
"This is a living town," said Kathryn Wagner, whose energy sparked the Westernization of Winthrop back in the 1970s. "People live in it. They aren't tourist attractions."
The goal of the Westernization project was to preserve and recapture the architectural style of frontier towns like Winthrop around the turn of the last century. Recognizing the potential to draw tourists, local merchants rallied around the idea. In order to make the restoration as authentic as possible, planners researched everything from traditional building materials, to the lettering fonts on storefront signs.
Thirty years later, the tens of thousands of visitors that walk Winthrop's creaky boardwalks each year are a testament to the success of the renovation and its contribution to the Methow economy.
Even Methow locals who don't live in Winthrop often end up there, drawn to the many summer events, including the Rythm and Blues Festival and the Old Time Fiddle and Giant Insect Contest.
Today, many Winthrop residents make their living at the shops, restaurants, bars and lodges in town that depend heavily on tourism (so tip them generously!).
The town of Twisp is a hub of local commerce.
Twisp is where tourists go to feel like locals, and Winthrop is where locals go to feel like tourists-so says one longtime Twisp resident. As the largest town in the valley, Twisp is the center of gravity for daily life in the Methow.
The hub of local commerce, Twisp is known for its eclectic mix of old-timers, artist and small farmers, many of whose crafts and produce are available at the farmer's market each Saturday.
Many visitors cruise right by on the highway, unaware that just one block over is a street lined with cafes, art galleries and other small business. The Made in the Methow store features, as the name suggests, all kinds of locally made or grown products from furniture to essential oils and frozen soups.
After burning to the ground a couple years ago, the local brewery rose from the ashes as the Twisp River Pub, now located in a remodeled muffler shop. While you're enjoying a cream stout or one of more that ten other brews made on site, check out the metal work, tapestries and ever changing displays of local art.
When they say there are turkeys running wild in Carlton, it's not necessarily a description of the human residents.
"This last year we've had a whole flock of wild turkeys strolling around town," explained Diana McAdow, who owns the Carlton General Store with her husband Bill. "But recently there's been one nasty turkey who stands in the middle of the road and then attacks cars when they stop. He's probably just a frustrated male."
Of course not all Carlton residents are turkeys, but locals do have a reputation as quirky individuals. Most live along the river, or up Texas or Libby Creeks, where funky structures, chickens and goats abound.
If you can get by the ill-tempered Carlton gobbler, there's a nice swimming hole with a sandy beach just upriver of the bridge south of town.
The straight rows of grand old cottonwoods lining the street of the tiny town of Methow reveal the age and history of this lower valley settlement. A classic "don't blink" sort of town, Methow is worth a stop for all its easily visible history.
A few years ago, Bobbi and Howard Harbo, the propietors of the Methow Cafe, hung a few historic photos on the walls of their restaruant. An old timer stopped by for coffee and recognized himself in one of the pictures from 1930 and returned with several other old photos of the Methow. Now, the walls of the Methow Cafe offer a fascinating visual history of the valley, including amazing shots of the flood of 1948, which washed away nearly all the bridges in the Methow Valley.
Across the road from the cafe is the Bolinger homestead, which dates to 1892. Nearly obscured by a high hedge of deep purple lilacs and old maple trees, the Bolinger house is a masterwork of masonry built from granite gathered from a nearby rockslide. The home is still owned by the Bollinger family, so please respect their private property and observe the house from the road.
Also of historic interest are the antique, precariously suspended foot bridges that cross the river just above and below the town of Methow.
The mighty Columbia River: terminus of the Methow River and playground for the community of Pateros.
If a fresh peach milkshake on a hot August day sounds like a good idea, you'll be happy you visited Pateros, which sits at the confluence of the Methow and Columbia Rivers. The Rest Awhile fruit stand, which offers shakes made from fresh picked fruit, is a favorite refreshment stop for travelers entering or leaving the Methow.
Pateros is fruit country, where the hot air is softened by the humidity of orchardists irrigating their apples, cherries, apricots, nectarines, plums, and yes, peaches. The 1968 freeze, when temperatures in the upper Methow reached minus 50 degrees, killed off many fruit trees in the higher reaches of the valley. Orchards around the more temperate town of Pateros fared better and are still thriving today.
Other Pateros attractions include the Sweet River Bakery downtown, golfing at Alta Lake State Park, and the annual August hydroplane races, which draws boating enthusiates from across the northwest.
Generally, the Methow Valley is not "on the way" to anywhere else--certainly not for almost half the year when the highway is closed. Chances are, if you find yourself in the Methow, you specifically chose to come here, or you are hopelessly lost (but hopefully having a good time).
So take some time, explore the towns and meet the people of the Methow. Before long, you too will feel like we're all alone out here together.
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