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Central Meets East !

Posted at 11:22 AM on July 21, 2008 by Donna McClurkan (2 Comments)

My daughter, Anna, and I set out recently on our annual chick trip, also known as NBA (no boys allowed). The rules: no computer, a very loose agenda, cell phone in the "off" mode (except to check in with Dad) and lots of local food on board, which we planned to supplement with fruit and veggie stands along the way. On the return leg of our 1,400+ mile adventure, we were able to visit Locavore Nation East blogger Autumn at her home in Wallace, West Virginia.

Autumn, her in-laws, and husband Dan warmly welcomed us - in spite of our late arrival due to the slow winding drive through the Allegheny and Appalachian Mountains. After stretching our legs by meandering through their lush herb and vegetable gardens, we hiked up the hilly landscape to their comfortably rustic, built-from-scratch, work-in-process home. We settled in on their deck to enjoy an extremely local lunch - by my estimate, most of the food came from within 100 feet - washed down with delicious, cold spring water. Autumn describes this wonderful meal in detail here. Three local food "firsts" for Anna and me: tasting chanterelle mushrooms and purple potatoes, and seeing a fruit-bearing paw paw tree.

After our leisurely meal and conversation, we strolled down the road to the family barn to visit two young pigs (destined for the Long's freezer later this year) and other assorted farm animals. Here's Autumn posing in the hayloft behind an old farm table graced with giant garlic bulbs laid out to dry.

One more photo before we head to the car where Anna presented our gifts: Kalamazoo Granola (best on the planet) from the Kalamazoo Farmers' Market, and a jar of crunchy asparagus from my first canning project. We said our good-byes and started for home, thankful for the opportunity to visit with kindred spirits in such a beautiful place!

Comments (2)

Donna, thank you so much for sharing this wonderful post! The photos are great (LOVE the Wallace road sign), and your gracious descriptions of our homestead are simply too kind. It was fantastic to meet you and Anna, and I can attest that the Kalamazoo granola is (errr, was) deeeelicious. It takes a truly generous and good-hearted person to share her very first canned goods, so I very much appreciate your beautiful jar of asparagus. And, yes, I think there is definitely mounting interest in a locavore reunion. Good luck with the house-painting project. And welcome home.
Happy local eating,
Autumn

Posted by Autumn Long | July 21, 2008 12:36 PM

Hey Autumn, I'll take blogging over painting any day! Please keep in mind you & Dan are always welcome here. In fact, if you visit, I'll try my level best to arrange for a guided tour of the Kalamazoo Granola kitchen - it truly is the BEST granola on the planet! Oh, and I forgot to mention Carrie's rule about the asparagus: no tasting until after Thanksgiving. :)Warm regards, Donna.

Posted by Donna McClurkan | July 21, 2008 1:08 PM