Favorite Fall Drives, The Fruit Loop, Hood River, Oregon
Autumn colors are not usually associated with the Northwest, the land of conifers. Yet, outside of Hood River, the 35-mile Fruit Loop feels like a quintessential fall drive back east. That is, until you look up and see the lofty snowcapped peak of Mount Hood towering above 11,000 feet. The route is lined with pear orchards, fields of lavender, alpaca farms, farm stands, wineries, and an emerging hard cider scene. Sample the wares at Hood River Cider Works, Fox-Tail Cider, or Hood Valley Hard Cider, and you’ll be surprised to find that the drink is crisp, refreshing, and can easily be paired with the Chinook salmon and steelhead trout the region is known for. Quaff down a cider at the picnic tables behind Solera Brewery in Parkdale and you’ll be mesmerized by the spectacular view of Mount Hood. Make the wise choice of spending the evening at the Columbia Cliff Villas in Hood River and you’ll wake up to a sunrise over the Columbia River Gorge.
I’ve had the good fortune to work with talented editors who could tweak your stories seamlessly, only enhancing your voice. I’ve also known editors who were used as staff writers, creating well-crafted stories. But very rarely did I find an editor who could do both jobs well, edit and write. One of the few exceptions was Nichole Bernier, my former editor at Boston Magazine. She was a wonderful editor to work with, sculpting each one of my stories effortlessly. I also looked forward to reading her intriguing work. So it comes as no surprise that Nichole’s debut novel was just released by Crown Books. Actually, when you consider she’s now a mother of five, it’s a marvel that she had time to pen one paragraph, let alone a book The Washington Post recently praised: “Why do we keep secrets from those we love most? Is it possible for mothers and fathers to have it all — work and family? Bernier’s excellent storytelling skills will keep you pondering long after the final page.”
Joan Miró’s first major one-man show in Paris was at the Gallery Pierre in 1925. The private viewing opened at midnight and quickly became legendary, both for the art on the walls and the guest list, which included the Surrealist Andre Breton. Miro’s whimsical works of his vivid imagination will be back on display this fall and winter in Paris, when the 
After driving 45 minutes on rutted timber roads on the outskirts of Greenville, Maine, I was definitely tired of driving by the time I reached 
What a difference a year makes. Last winter I was driving around the entirety of New England researching a story on the best winter towns in the region for Yankee Magazine. The deluge of snow created a winter wonderland where I could truly appreciate everything New England has to offer during the cold weather months. This winter, I shoveled twice, saw very little snow, and it’s already March. I was fortunate to be writing about New England’s finest winter towns while they wearing a shiny white dress. That cover story for the Jan/Feb issue of Yankee Magazine is finally out on the web. 
On the last day of our recent safari in Botswana and Zambia, we visited the community of Nakatindi, not far from where we stayed in Livingstone, Zambia. We would learn that the villagers here once had to walk through a national park to get their water from the Zambezi River and were frequently attacked by wildlife. Thankfully a water pump was donated to the community and people can now get fresh water piped to their village directly. This was the impetus behind this year’s charity donation.