Hoppin' Dan

During dinner last weekend, Dan mentioned that he was going to have to get out in the hops vines and harvest.  He invited us down to have a look and maybe help out - he said he thought he'd have enough hops for a couple of batches of his famous "competition Flat Tale IPA." 

I'm always up for helping a friend with his craft.
So here are a few photos of the laden hop vines, a close up and a perspective view.  In the wider framed view you can make out the fencing he had to put up to keep the bunnies out. 

The bunnies eat the vines right at the point that they emerge from the ground, killing them off.  Apparently deer love the hops vines too, but Dan said he doesn't have a problem with them. 



The Cascades hops are producing the most this year.  He has some Willamette vines, and also grows a noble variety, but I'm forgetting which.

After the tour of the hop yard, we took a walk out into the other section of their property on "Fern Trail."  A we hit the trail head, we came across a little orchard of apples and pears - the MacIntoshes are ready, as you can see in the third photo.