Hush Valley hosted our first guests of the season! We were thrilled to be enjoying the company of Bernie, Bernie, and Joe. After a harrowing trip, they arrived in the dark, hungry and tired. They were still interested in our legendary trout dinner though. Unfortunately, fish dont eat in the dark but we were able to net us a few beautiful trout in the dark. They werent staying but one night, so we packed as much action as we could in a few hours. This included a trip to Roberto's place. Roberto uses our Hush Valley trout to smoke, and sell at market. Roberto has also recently been using our trout roe to create trout caviar! I think we were all hesitant to try it (Especially Joe!), but it was truly a delicious treat. These guys had a sense of adventure! Bernie Sr., and Joe had no idea where they were going or what they were doing- just that they were headed to Costa Rica. Roberto gave them a 'trout 101' course, the morning they were departing. We all bought some smoked trout, and we made smoked trout Quesadillas later that day. (Smoked HVL trout, cream cheese and cilantro spread, pico de gallo, onion, tomato and sour cream- delicious! ). At times, its hard not to interject when a guest only books for one night. There is so much to see and do in Rio Blanco. All natural entertainment and real, rural Costa Rican living happens up here in the mountains. Far from a 'tourist' type area. If you are thinking about joining us at Hush Valley lodge, our recommendation is to stay at least two days- you wont regret it! We welcome Bernie and his fun crew back to Hush Valley anytime! After the hurricane, we had a fair amount of downed trees on the property. Rather than let them sit, we chose to integrate them into our current project. Using an Alaskan chainsaw mill, Jonathon, Martin and Dave milled up some beautiful lumber! The colors in the wood made some beautiful boards. We aren't loggers, and have no desire to harm any of the fabulous flora/fauna here, but downed (non-native) trees are fair game for projects here. With all of the rain we have had, followed by several beautiful weeks of sun, the flowers are out in full force. Check out these beauties, and then check out Quinns latest blog post at www.thecostaricakid.com
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David and I were able to return to the States for Thanksgiving. I come from a large family and holidays have always been important to us. We were very grateful to have such proficient help at the farm-Martin, Jonathon and his wife Jessica. It made leaving, even for a short time, much less stressful. Of course, given that we live in paradise, it isnt as though we needed a vacation. So we made the most out of our time and visited a fish farm in our local area in Oregon. It was fascinating to me for several reasons. Legend has it, that the origin of trout in the mountainous regions of Costa Rica, was from trout eggs imported from Oregon directly to our Hush Valley ponds. I also found it interesting that though we passed Gnat Creek Fish Hatchery (while living in the States) at least once a week, I had never been there. What a great place! We had a very well educated staff member show us around and explain how/what they do there. They specialize in supplementing the Salmon runs, but they also have steelhead and sturgeon. They grow the hatchlings from eggs, in large trays with a gravity fed water system. Fun fact: Egg bearing female fish are called Hens. We really enjoyed our 'fish hatching 101' course, so when we returned, we jumped in- both feet, and bought 5000 fry. Martin and Dave went to the hatchery here in Costa Rica, and also had a tour of their facility. The process is a bit different, but so is the scale. This hatchery is a business, supplying fry to many/most of the mountain farms. Gnat Creek supplements natural runs for release into the wild. The trout fry here are kept in tanks. They are shocked with electricity while in the zygote stage , to make them all female (or try anyway). Females are advantageous as they have more capacity for meat, and grow to a larger size. They are shocked again later in their development in an effort to make them sterile. Sterile females are ideal because their abdomen fill with trout meat versus eggs. The fry are sent home in large plastic bags, about 1000 in each. We then transfer them to our hatchery tanks, and grow them the rest of the way We had noticed that our trout meat is more pink, like salmon, even when cooked . I asked the guide about the difference. I was told that the color comes from an algae containing astaxanthin. This chemical compound is a keto-carotinoid. Its the same algae that shrimp and salmon eat that give them their pink color. Mountain trout in Oregon do not have the same access to this algae, and thus their meat is much whiter in color.
Armed with our new information, we decided to give it a go. We selected 20 adult hens. Hens must be at least a year old to be able to spawn. We also pulled several males. The hens are kept in a new/old pond that hasn't been actively used in a decade or so. We are hoping to do our first batch of Hush Valley 'start to finish' trout in March. We will keep you posted on that. Next blog, we will talk about our first guests of the season! Spoiler alert- they were great! We will have updates on our new project (its a big one!) AND possibly, a guest blogger too, as partners Peter and Jo will be joining us in just over a week. Thanks for reading! With spring arriving, we are getting the garden healthy and working a bit in the green house. The garden beds are taking off in the fertile soil here, and we are experimenting with some organic fish soil in the greenhouse. The corn is doing well too. We have it in the beds on the island, and on the steep river bank. We used the soil from the bottom of the 'pond of the God's'- that's what we call the pond not protected by an electric fence. We cleaned it out recently, and let the soil sit for a few weeks. The pond bottom is nitrogen rich and will be great for our gardens ( and avocado trees!) We then mixed it with compost from our compost pile. It's currently being used in one garden bed of vegetables, and on the river bank corn. we limited the usage so we could see side by side comparisons. In the states, there was an old saying the farmers used as a benchmark to a crop of corn's progress, 'knee high by the fourth of July". We are about ankle high here and its November. We are going to need a new ' old adage'. We also got the hatchery tanks re-concreted and ready to go for another round of fingerlings. This week, we separated the large fish from the smaller fish in the big pond. Though all from the same batch of hatchlings, they are at 'teenager' stage, and have had different growth spurts. The larger more aggressive fish will intimidate the smaller fish and slow their growth. By dividing them, both ponds should grow faster, and have more space to do so. We have added a few new menu items to what we offer at the casita. Dave has really been enjoying baking here, and using ingredients from the farm. Sour orange sweet rolls were today's breakfast delight. We will have a selection tacos, including a variation of our best selling item at our previous restaurant- Fish Tacos, but with trout! (Not pictured). Featured: Sweet rolls, goldenberry pico de gallo, black bean chicken tacos with a cilantro and jalapeno citrus sauce, bread sticks, english muffins and pineapple pull aparts. We are also adding to your entertainment options in the Casita- games! There is so much to see and do here at HVL, but the evenings are dark and cool- perfect for indoor entertainment. We have a wide variety of movies to offer on DVD, and a selection of great games- including, Monopolio! That's the spanish version of Monopoly. Of course, just like the food, we cant offer it to our guests without trying it out first. We were playing Monopolio Sunday night when we experienced our first earthquake! It wasnt nearly as scary as you'd think for a quake that big (6.8) and that close. The epicenter was about 70 kilometers from Hush Valley. Im happy to report, no casualties or damage was reported in Costa Rica, but it sure messed up our Monopolio game. Quotes of the evening go to eight year old Quinn- 'Is this when we drop and cover?!' and after, 'We have to go now! The tsunamis coming now, remember?!' We explained that we are located far to high in the mountains, 6300 altitude, and no tsunami will ever reach here, and he settled right down. Can you tell he spent all of his life on the Pacific northwest coast? With due respect, we understand how fortunate we are to be here, and to have been relatively sheltered from hurricanes and horrific earthquakes. On the same day, on the other side of the world, hundreds of people in Iraq and Iran lost their lives in an earthquake. Our hearts go out to the people affected by such a tragic event. We wish everyone could have the tranquility we experience daily, here in the beautiful Hush Valley.
The days have been very pleasant here at Hush Valley. The rain is letting up in the afternoon and the stars are shining at night. One of the big indicators that spring is budding, is the Santa Lucia flower. Rumor has it, over the next few weeks we can find these flowers all over every hillside in the Santa Maria area. It, and other flowers- like the Catalina, are the early spring flowers. Just seeing them on the roadside helps brighten up the day. We've been working in the rock garden as well as in the orchard this week. There is plenty to keep us busy. The lemon trees and orange trees are full! Full of fruit and full of buds of fruit to come. We love that they are full and juicy and completely organic- it just feels good to use them in our meals. Earlier in the month, we found that we were running short on eggs each week. With Dave baking so often, and our egg trades, we are cutting it pretty close. Our partners coming, and Casita reservations are pending, so we thought it may be time freshen up the coop. We ordered 14 chicks from the local farm store, with the intent to double our egg count in a few months. I had forgotten several things about chicks. 1.They are very noisy. 2.They are insatiable eaters. 3.They are very messy/dusty/stinky and 4. They grow so fast! In other words, they're like ...children. The chicks were very small when they arrived, and completely adorable. Bobbie was also incredibly interested in the new additions. The chicks soon outgrew the tote and had to be divided into two groups, in two different totes. Bobby couldn't figure out which tote to watch. Both so interesting! It wasn't long before it was just too much for the chicks to be inside the house. We hadn't completed the additional chicken coop yet, so a temporary coop had to be arranged. Fortunately, we had just cleaned a perfect temporary space. Now that they have feathers, they can be outdoors. Its not nearly as cold at night, and the days are warmer, so they are happy to be outside. Its only got to hold them for a few days, updates next week on the coop addition! Yesterday, we walked to the top of the property. This property is so diverse! At the top it is prime forest area. No river, but beautiful meadow-like areas and old growth trees. We found what we believe to be, the oldest tree on the property. Its an old Oak with multiple levels of branches, and its absolutely beautiful. You'll be able to see this on one of the trail hikes available at Hush Valley. Don't miss it! Photo updates on the rock garden coming next week!
We have had so much fun playing outdoors these past two weeks. The rainy season is easing up, and flowers are beginning to bud. We have been working hard in the greenhouse and on the garden island. We have two new raised beds on the island already growing corn, snap peas, bush beans, melons, potatoes and tomatoes. In the greenhouse, we are working on onions, more tomatoes, pineapple, celery, sweet peppers, and various herbs. When our friends/neighbors see what we are up to, they always return with freshly dug starts for us. We have been gifted fig trees, horseradish, thai basil, cilantro, and Chayote. Chayote works its way into every dish it seems. It comes from the squash family and has virtually no flavor, but the texture of uncooked potato or unflavored apple.You can buy chayote 6 for 1000 Colones, in Dollars thats 6 for a little less than $2.00. You'll find chayote in salads, soups, desserts.. we even had cilantro, tomato, chayote and cheese omelets this morning. This evening, we baked a pineapple and chayote crisp. The pineapple is too sweet to resist right now, though we have wanted to try a recipe for chayote pie. Evidently, the chayote will act in place of apples in apple pie with very little difference in taste. Can't wait to myth bust that recipe! We have also been busy reviving our rock garden. We have some spectacular ideas for this new space. The casita trail had been washed out during the hurricane and left some beautiful river sand. So we built a rock retaining wall and back filled it with sand, compacted and graded it to create a new riverwalk. We then added several sets of rock stairs for better, more surefooted access to different areas of the sandy river beach. We are using all natural products, river rocks, sand, driftwood and clay with the understanding that a washout could happen again in the future. We don't want to risk foreign material being washed into the river. (Though they are calling it a 50 years storm.) It is our collective goal to keep things as natural, and organic as possible here at Hush Valley, to protect the beauty and tranquility of what drew us all to this place to begin with. This next week we will be working on a large river rock fire pit with benches made of wood tat washed up on the rocks. The trees had been peeled bare by the force of the water and rocks, leaving them absolutely beautiful as benches around the fire pit.
We have been collecting plants that were displaced in the storm- loads of orchids, bunch grass, ferns, and other shrubbery and are planting them throughout the rocks cape as well. We even transplanted some aloe in the case of a river beach sun burn. It was really disappointing to lose the waterfall garden. It was such a beautiful addition to the amazing landscape of Hush Valley, but we are really excited about this blank canvas as well! In other news: If you subscribe to our email inbox- we will need to have you re-subscribe through this site. The previous email RSS will not allow any changes. Thank you to all who notified us the emails weren't updating! Please look for the updated subscription box on the main page to receive regular email updates! Last Wednesday, Costa Rica caught the tail end of Hurricane Nate. Millions of dollars in damage were done to the road system within Costa Rica. The roadways here have always left a little to be desired, but this storm sought out soft spots and made their short comings obvious. A friend of ours noted 52 slides (large and small) visible between Copey and Santa Maria. A distance of about 8.2 kilometers (5.0 miles). We have been so impressed with the response from roadway repair and clearing crews, telephone restoration and the power company. The response was rapid, they genuinely cared about getting services restored. The day after the storm, we walked down the road and found crews working on a slide near our friends home in Copey. Not even 24 hours after the storm passed, and at an very remote location in the mountains, there they were- working hard to get passage through. That being said, a slide down river of Hush Valley knocked power lines into the river. Putting Rio Blanco and Copey out of power. Unfortunately, the parts to repair it were in San Jose, and the road to San Jose had been washed out. The delay meant we were without power for several days while the parts were shipped in via air. We were surprised to find how well equipped we were to withstand the lack of power. Hot water was still available so showers and dish washing were not a problem. Both the casita and the house have wood burning cook stoves as well. Once he got the hang of baking in a wood burning oven, Dave was inspired. He made cookies, sour dough bread, quiche, and scones. There is quite an art to keeping the temperature consistent in the oven. Without power, Quinn and I stayed busy outside. There was a hillside going up to the fish ponds that could get rather slippery. We dug out stairs, but found they, too, were muddy and slippery when it rained. So we came up with an idea. Just prior to the storm, we had pulled out the cracked concrete bottom out of one of the hatchery tanks, with the intent to re-concrete prior to our next batch of hatchlings. Quinn and I took the concrete, and made a mosaic like pattern on the steps to help keep the steps stable, and our feet out of the mud. Its not quite done yet, but its close. The sides will have river rock, native plants, and solar lights for each step, as we occasionally need to come check the ponds after dark. Its difficult to see in the picture, but on the third step up, in red, green and yellow river rock (all debris from the storm), there are three letters. HVL. Our little rock hound, Quinn, had this idea and gathered up the rocks. Hush Valley Lodge fared well in the storm. However, the river grew very large and transformed the waterfall garden, into a rock garden. I guess even Mother Nature likes to redecorate occasionally. Check out these before and after pictures. There are some amazing looking rocks among all the debris. From above you can see just how many rocks were deposited. Its exciting to see all of the possibilities of this area. To the left, the brown patch is all soft river sand. This is a rather large area ( though you cant tell in the picture) and would be great for sand volleyball, a picnic area, or a nice river rock campfire circle. The area sits up in elevation from the river several feet, so unless we see another hurricane soon, that area should be nice and dry, and ready for grooming. Any great ideas on how to re-shape the 'rock garden'?
This week we have been busy assessing the wonders of HVL. So many fresh fruits grow naturally here! On the property there are Avocados, peaches, lemons, limes, tamarindo (sweet oranges), and others we have yet to identify.. It inspired us to see what we might grow in the island gardens. On the island there is a garden shed, with ample water, a huge passion fruit vine, a ghost pepper bush (it's prolific but I've been scared to try them) an enormous rosemary bush and several lovely floral plants. There have been garden beds there in the past and we thought we could revive them this year. We intend to be able to grow most of our own food for the property, and provide healthy organic goods to our guests and neighbors. Quinn and I planted carrots, beans, melons, tomatoes, onions, summer squash, corn, spinach, watermelon, pineapples, and sweet peppers. They went crazy in the rich soil here! Viable sprouts in four days. The soil is composted matter from the property. We added ash to it, but nothing else. The locals say to add bones to our compost and it will act like a 'Miracle Grow', but we don't have a lot of bones laying around (thankfully!). The sprouts inspired us to get to work on the cleaning up the garden shed. Its the rainy season still, but the mornings are beautiful, so we spent several hours each morning working on the island. This week we will be planting seeds for Cilantro, cucumber, zucchini, golden berries, and various other herbs. Fresh organic foods make such a difference in how food tastes! We cant wait to be providing our guests, family and friends food we have grown from start to finish. I like to call Dave a 'Culinary Engineer'. He makes the most amazing meals. Lately, he has been experimenting with baking. The flour here is different, as is the altitude ( 6700-7000 feet!) so it has been a process to get the correct time, temp and humidity for good baking. So far, he has made bagels, croissants, and various bread loafs. This week, he is working on a sour dough start, as we have been told that sour dough does very well here. Thanks to all who have commented on the blog! I appreciate the feedback, Please don't hesitate to ask about anything you're curious about at Hush Valley, we are happy to answer if we can. I intend to release the blog every Monday, should the internet God's allow it. :-) Lastly, if you haven't seen it, Quinn has his blog available at www.thecostaricakid.weebly.com. He works so hard on his little blog, and has so much to say. Check it out!
Hello Friends of Hush Valley! David and I are thrilled to be the new stewards of Hush Valley Lodge. We (and our partners) are committed to doing our best to maintain the peace and serenity you have come to love about this Hush Valley paradise. As a past reader of the weekly blog, I can only hope to keep you all as intrigued as Anne has over the past five years. Its been a whirlwind since arrival. We spent a fast and furious 48 hours of training with Kevin and Anne. Most of the time spent learning the ins and outs of operating a trout farm. So much thought, and a lot of planning go into the process. Feed schedules, pond cleaning schedules, the quality and quantity of water that goes to the ponds, as well as counting, catching, transferring and harvesting the most delicious trout we have ever eaten. Its been so very educational! Kevin said, more than once, that it was too bad we had had such great weather to learn in. He was hoping we would have some inclement weather to really experience the rush of water and sediment that come down the river. It wasn't hours after they left that we got to experience that first hand. It began to rain about 2:00 p.m. and it rained hard until about 7:00 p.m. The thing about the rain here - as opposed to our home in Oregon- is that its warm, and because it comes straight down, you can still sit on the (covered) deck outside. It can actually be quite lovely. On that particular Sunday it wasn't quite so lovely. Water rushed down the hill side, bringing sediment into the river and ponds. Sticks, rocks, leaves, etc- clogged the grates and had us panicking on our first day. With out exaggeration, no less than six neighbors called and asked how we were doing and if we needed any help mitigating the water. It was so touching. This community was a huge part of the 'tug' that brought our little family here. Our friend (and co-worker) Johnathon came, and Dave and he walked the property- identifying places that could use drainage improvement while it was really coming down. This kind of rain has occurred thrice this week. We have been told multiple times that its uncommon to see this amount of water. We have lost power and internet on several occasions, but the power company is diligent in restoring services usually within the hour. There is an undeniable beauty here, even in the rainy season. It can be terrifying to the unfamiliar though, so we understand why the BNB is closed in September and October. We feel so grateful that its just rain, with minor inconveniences, given the catastrophes occurring worldwide. We are confident that it will not be an issue for us Pacific North-Westerners. We are used to being soaking wet. :-) Pictured below, a normal day on the river, compared to a stormy river. Our eight year old son also started school here this past week. He loves it! The school is small, and within a comfortable walking distance of Hush Valley Lodge. There are three other students in his class, which makes learning easy according to Quinn. He hopes to have his own web page soon, seeing Costa Rica through the eyes of a child. This morning, Bobbie McGee slipped in unnoticed to attend classes with Quinn. She would have stayed all day if she could have. She sure loves him, and it's definitely mutual. Also pictured is Thomas, a new friend. So much to say after this busy first week! Stayed tuned for updates weekly, and thank you for reading!
Our flights were both on time and both landed early. The skies were clear. All documents in hand were the correct ones, both planes were comfortable with lots of leg room. Frankie was an absolute gem the whole way. It couldn't have gone more smoothly.
We landed in Toronto at 5:00 pm and my daughter, Phoenix, picked us up five minutes after we stood at our pick-up spot. If I weren't loaded down with heavy luggage, I would have knelt and kissed the ground of my homeland. It's been quite the roller coaster ride getting back. We're now in Motel 6, in our room. Kevin's sister, Kaz, came by with a care package for us with lots of food and goodie... totally spoiled. And now they went to get us some dinner. Tomorrow we go to pick up our rental car, do some banking, and start organizing our resettlement in suburbia. It all feels a bit surreal right now. Thank you all for hanging in with us, all your comments of support (and sympathy). This blog journey ends for me now, for a while anyway. If I decide to start another, I'll keep you posted. It's been so very thrilling. I highly recommend following your tug!! Over and out! Anne |
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