Y is for Yakima

Y is for Yakima

One of my favorite foods in the world is a good, ripe, juicy apple and Yakima kept me pretty busy.  On my W adventure I encountered a town southeast of Mt. Ranier called Yakima and their Farmer's Market.  It was there I discovered just how good a Granny Smith, Fuji, Rome Gala and host of others could be straight off a tree.  I ate so many apples I thought I was going to turn into one..  I ate apples while we were there everyway imaginable.  I also fell in love with a Braeburn apple.  It is the perfect crisp mix of tart and sweet. Here in Roanoke, where I live you are lucky if you get red/yellow delicious, Granny Smith, and maybe some other obscure variety.  Sigh!

We also traveled down the Colombia River Gorge, saw some incredible wineries, had an awesome view of Mt. Ranier.  It seems that Yakima's weather and temerature is much like that in Italy where grapes are grown so it is a perfect place to grow them here.

All the fruits and vegetables grown in the Yakima area are nurtured in ideal growing conditions. Washington State provides the perfect combination of hot, dry days and cool, crisp nights. Rich, volcanic soil and Cascade Mountain water offer the optimal nutrients for “the best on earth.”  I ate raspberries that were bigger than my thumb, blueberries that were huge, and my favorite.....Ranier cherries.  The girls, Dianne and Cecilia...and me too of course loaded up on the fresh stuff and headed back to Walla Walla.  I have to say that for me Yakima is this tasters choice of a wonderful Y adventure.