Hops are Tops in Toppenish

My morning was spent chasing robins and sticking my nose down gopher holes.  I was so tired by 11:00 that I told Kathe and Jim to leave me at home while they explored Yakima.  I took Kathe's nice soft white fleece jacket and curled up in it for the afternoon.

First, they drove to the small town of Toppenish where there are over 70 larger than life murals splashed on buildings throughout the town.  The murals are a visual history of the town from the early pioneer days to the present.  They add a new mural every year on June first. 

This is one of the murals on the side of the American Hop Museum.  The Yakima Valley is the nation's largest hop producing area due to the rich volcanic soil and Cascade mountain water.  Kathe and Jim learned all about the growing and processing of hops in this very unusual museum.

Next, they visited the Northern Pacific Railway Museum which was located in the 1911 brick depot that is being restored. This museum features tools, trains, photographs and railroad memorabilia.  Kathe enjoyed the collection of dinnerware from the National Park Lines while Jim was fascinated by the old steam engines.

When they drove back into Yakima they took a quick tour of the Yakima Valley Museum.  There they saw a large collection of carriages, coaches and wagons and stopped for a late lunch in the  restored 50's soda fountain.