Carlton - Day 2

We're staying at the Carlton Inn here in Carlton. This is the town I spent most of my first 15 years in until I moved to Coos Bay. It's an odd sensation. My memories are pretty much stuck in the farming/logging community of the late '50s and early '60. The town has grown and adapted much better than most of rural Oregon. They have fully embraced the "wine country" image. Small boutique wineries who are grouping together into cooperatives to market and sell their wines. They seem to be doing a great job so far. Just about everyone we chatted with talked wine.

The Carlton Inn was a longtime residence and was originally built in 1915. It sits on the main street through town. Its been a B&B about 3 years and is a fun and comfortable place to stay. The owners/hosts are from the Washington DC area and are doing a great job making us feel at home.

Every farming community has to have a grain elevator. The one in the distance across the wheat field is Madson's Grain Company. It sits pretty much dead center of town. When I was in school the owner's wife was my first grade teacher. It's still being run by family members.


Even the old red barns are finding new uses. This is in the nearby town of Yamhill, across from the area's local high school. Apparently its being used to advertise a quilting festival that was held in 2005.