Parking / Shuttle:

PLEASE CARPOOL IF AT ALL POSSIBLE. Parking is a little complicated. There are only 22 spots at the barn, and many of those will be taken by people sleeping in their vans. Come to the ranch first and if there aren’t any spots left, we’ll direct you to overflow parking at Smith Creek Village 2.6 miles from the ranch, where the lodges and cabins are (look for the “restaurant parking” sign). We’ll run a shuttle Saturday as needed between Smith Creek Village and the ranch, also stopping at the campground as needed. More info on this soon.

Attire:

~~~FANCY!~~~~  We kindly request that you dress up nice, whatever that means to you. Thrift store find? Great!  A little coffee or mustard stain / too tight?  No one will notice. Blood stains? Maybe not. Just get out of your Crocs and sweatpants for a day and make mom proud. Beware that there will likely be a little tromping through the woods, and that it might get a little chilly after sunset, so bring grandma’s mink stole or that fine mohair overcoat you’ve been saving.  

Out of towners be aware that it could be 59 degrees and raining, or it could be 95. Maybe both, four hours apart. Bring a sleeve, and maybe a way to stay or get dry, if that’s important to you.

Kids:

For parents wanting to party later than baby bedtime, there is a smaller separate room of bunks in the barn where your kid can crash until you’re ready to scoop them up and tote them back to your cabin or tent. We’ll arrange for there to be pillows, blankets, night lights, and a camera/monitor. Maybe we can round up a white noise machine. BYO stuffies.  

Pets:

While dogs are allowed on leash in most of the state park and in some of the cabins, they are not allowed in the barn at the ranch. They will need to be adequately disguised as humans if they are to join us for dinner (see Attire). As they will likely need to be alone in your car for some periods of time, very well-behaved dogs with clean driving records only, please.

Sleeping:

Liberty either has or will be reaching out to confirm where you plan on sleeping to try and make sure everyone has what they need.

• Some folks are in cabins / lodges at Smith Creek Village - check in there starting at 3.

• Some are sleeping in Previas in the parking lot at the barn -head straight to the ranch anytime after 4 on Friday  (same goes for tent campers, bunks).

• Some are camping in the field at the barn  - we’ll show you where to set up your tents, and then ask that you move your cars down the hill or to Smith Creek Village after dropping off your camping gear.

• Some are bunking upstairs in the barn. The bunk beds have rudimentary state-park-style mattresses. (BRING BLANKETS / PILLOWS / SLEEPING BAGS / ear plugs - see things to bring).

• Some are in cabins/tent spots at the actual campground - check in there per your reservation instructions.

LOUD DRUNKS: Please be respectful of people sleeping in the barn and take the party to the outside fire pit at a reasonable time.

Things to Bring:

• a flashlight

• If you’re staying in the bunkhouse bring a pillow/blankets or sleeping bag. Let us know if you’re coming from out of town and need help rounding up these things.

• If you’re local bring COOLERS / ICE with extra room! We’ll need a lot of ice. We also need extension cords, and help transporting stuff if you have extra room in your car (get in touch).

• Also if you have some interesting flowers or greenery in your yard, bring some to incorporate into arrangements!

Schedule:

HELPING:

We are doing this thing ourselves, consistent with our usual mode of operation. Many hands make light work. Liberty has a complicated spreadsheet and there will be someone with a clipboard who can tell you what you can help with. Some of you have already been approached about a specific skill we’d like to ask you to employ, but there will still be plenty of tasks related to set up, decorations, table setting, flowers, food prep and serving, and clean up.

FRIDAY:

Check in for some of the lodges and cabins is at 3. We get the keys to the ranch at 4 PM and will commence to hanging out and  setting up. Come whenever you can/want and get settled in.  In lieu of a ‘rehearsal dinner’, we’re going to get taco fixins in bulk and set up a table for folks to feed themselves while working, laughing, tuning, or telling stories. We also hope to get any bawdy reminiscences and roasting or toasting out of the way on Friday with a mezcal toast. Please let us know by May 17 if you plan to come Friday so we can make sure we have enough food / mezcal.

SATURDAY:

We will have some breakfast foods and mediocre coffee available. Bring lunch snacks. There’s a disappointing restaurant at Smith Creek Village with an equally disappointing coffee shop attached. There’s also a cafe / lunch counter not far away elsewhere in the park, which is maybe just slightly less disappointing. After the coffee and sugar start working, we’ll get to finishing up food prep, flower arranging, setting tables, and so on until noon or 2. And then we want people to be in nature. Go for walks. Sit in the sun (or rain). Check out the waterfalls. Make a new friend.

We’ll reconvene at the barn at 4:30 pm  to commence to hanging out together in a celebratory fashion. Bring your appetite. There will be a cocktail hour with a flight of Zeb-made wines paired with small pintxos (Basque drinking snacks) before a brief ceremony in the woods, followed by some friend-made musical entertainment and a buffet dinner. Then we relax and roast marshmallows.

SUNDAY:

Sunday morning our dear friends Tom and Drew (Red Ladder Bakery) have graciously agreed to make fresh bagels for all. Stumble to the barn (or downstairs if you’re sleeping IN the barn), and eat a bagel, with more of that delicious mediocre coffee.

We need to be out of the barn by noon, so we could really use hands in breaking everything down and cleaning up. And then you’re free. Wander the back roads to Portland. Check out the Oregon Garden, the Frank Lloyd Wright house, Silverton, Woodburn (downtown, not the Outlet Mall), Aurora (more antique stores than you can shake a stick at), Stayton and Scio to the south, wine to the west (cross I 5 and get closer to the coast range for better wine), keep exploring Silver Falls, or go east on 22 into the mountains. Eat ice cream. Go for your first swim of the year. Feel content and happy. Get home safe (see Things to Do Nearby).