ENTERPRISE – “The best breakfast I’ve ever had – period,” says David Cowan of London, travel editor for the London Telegraph, of his visit to Barking Mad Farm located just outside of Enterprise.

A two-story farmhouse with a 5000-square-foot antique barn on 42 acres, this bed and breakfast boasts on-site organically grown vegetable and berries, homemade breads, pastries and breakfast “from scratch” every morning, including homemade butter and yogurt.

The menu might include blue cornmeal waffles, huckleberry drizzle and the breakfast Cowan experienced – warm pears with maple syrup and mascarpone cheese, huckleberry crepes with crandegrave;me fraiche and homemade blueberry cake.

A unique, home-smoked salmon and pepper jack omelet is another house specialty. All breads and pastries are baked on site and fresh locally roasted coffee is served.

Owners James and Diana Hunter stress that Barking Mad Farm is proud to support local businesses. They raise their own organic vegetables, strawberries, raspberries, asparagus and 15 varieties of potatoes. Whatever else they need is purchased from local growers.

“We store and preserve what produce we can and store it in our basement,” says Diana.

As befits any farm, animals abound at Barking Mad Farm. There are four horses – two quarter horses, a mustang and a Lippizaner; three donkeys that were rescued from the BLM; two bloodhounds rescued from an abusive environment; a terrier; and two cats. As a volunteer with the Wallowa County Humane Society, Diana is an advocate and a hostess for animals.

Their bed and breakfast is the only lodging facility in the county that welcomes pets, Diana says.

“We have eight fenced acres with a stream to run in and we provide a ‘doggie basket’ of treats and supplies for the pets of our guests. Probably 40 percent of our visitors have pets and we’ve never had any damage,” Diana says.

The farm also welcomes horses and provides indoor stalls, corrals and large or small pastures. Long-term boarding is also available.

The Hunters moved to Enterprise 2 1/2 years ago. Diana is from Carmel Valley, Calif. She has experience in managing real estate and in hotel management. She has been a professional fundraiser and is a gourmet cook. The Wallowa County Humane Society, the Economic Action Team and local non-profits receive the benefit of her energy and experience.

James is originally from Victoria, B.C. He spent 20 years in Hollywood as a screenwriter and author. He is a leather worker, creating vests, chinks, chaps and purses from his own designs. The name of the BandB was James’ idea.

“To be barking mad is to be ‘out there’ – insane, in a fun way,” Diana says.

Both Hunters are writing books. James’ book is still under wraps, but Diana is compiling a cookbook of her own gourmet creations called “From Buckingham Palace to Barking Mad Farm.” Diana is the chief cook. James does some cooking but is the maintenance, repair and upkeep artist.

The Hunters contend that tourism is the growth industry in Wallowa County. They are full for the tourist season and have guests all year round. They are booked for most of February. If the Hunters have no lodging openings, they refer customers to other BandBs in the county.

“There is no unhealthy competition among the local BandBs. We work together to provide the best service possible to visitors to Wallowa County,” Diana says.

Barking Mad Farm has a huge repeat clientele; in fact, the guests expected this week have visited the farm 12 times.

People come to this little farm on Alder Slope not because it is exciting, not for parties and non-stop entertainment, but for the quiet.

“Our guests seek the middle of nowhere. They come to get away, to relax. Most are from the Willamette Valley, but we have many people from abroad as well,” Diana says.

Cowan, the writer for the London Telegraph, has written an article about Eastern Oregon. He was drawn to the area by Hells Canyon. Paul Arentsen of Winding Waters River Expeditions in Joseph referred him to Barking Mad Farm. The Hunters said he had just returned from a trip to India.

The Hunters take interested guests on tours, make sure they are informed of all the local attractions and allow for quiet time and privacy. There are two units available, the Buffalo Suite in the main house with a view of the Stangels’ buffalo out of the south window, for $120 per night. The 600-square-foot Seven Devils Suite has an outside staircase entry and features a view of the Seven Devils to the east and is $145 per night with a two-night minimum stay on weekends.

The Hunters say they would love to expand the lodging capabilities of their BandB. They hope to build a bunkhouse in the pasture on the west side of the main house. They hired an architect to design a structure that is “low-key, tactful and beautiful” to fit in with the rustic, rural nature of the site.

The purpose of the new structure is to add a more private accommodation, away from the main house for customers who seek more privacy. The plan is to keep the number of units at two; when the bunkhouse is completed, one unit in the house will not be used for lodging, Diana says.

They had obtained a conditional-use permit and have DEQ approval for the additional structure. What they don’t have is the approval of all the neighbors.

A conditional-use permit was granted by county Planning Director Lance Bailey without a public hearing, which is in accordance with policy since the number of accommodation units would not change and because he had received no negative impact reports from neighbors. However, the neighbor to the west of the Hunters’ property, Jo Jean Hinckley, appealed Bailey’s approval process. Several other neighbors have come forth to question the legality of adding another structure intended for lodging to property in an exclusive farm use zone.

The appeal was approved at the Wallowa County Planning Commission meeting Jan. 29. The Hunters’ conditional-use permit will now be open to approval before a public hearing. Anyone giving testimony in opposition must provide proof of negative impact.

Neighbors’ concerns expressed at planning commission meetings have included the opinion that adjacent property values would be adversely affected. An anonymous letter to the commission, signed “concerned neighbors,” supported Hinckley in her appeal and expressed concerns that the proposed bunkhouse would really turn out to be “a couple of motel rooms.”

The letter also stated that the rural location is not the proper place for non-agricultural commercial buildings. More than 30 letters have been submitted in support of the Hunters and their business.

“Our business took off at such a rate, we were shocked. We opened on May 15 and had our first guests on May 20. We have turned down as many reservations as we have accepted,” James says. “Tourism and hospitality is a growth industry here. Ranching is fairly static and logging is gone. This is the real growth industry. There is an entrenched mind-set in this valley that seems to not understand the way this place is going to go.”

Diana adds, “We are what Wallowa County wants – a legal, clean, low-impact, small home-based business. We didn’t come here to change it. We came because we love it and we’ve been good neighbors.

“Now it seems to be derailed with a lot of ‘what-ifs’. People are worried about what might happen in the future.”

The Hunters say they refer many customers to businesses here.

“Perhaps seven or eight of our guests have bought land here. They come with the idea of buying real estate. They do buy and that brings more business to the construction industry in the county,” Diana says.

The farm consists of 42 acres, 39 of which are used to raise hay and graze cattle. It is leased to a neighboring ranch. Improvements they’ve made to the property include intensive noxious weed control, irrigation and controlled grazing.

“We hired experts to come look at the land to make it productive,” Diana says. “We wanted to get the land as healthy and weed-free as possible. We can’t make a living by farming it but we still wanted it productive. We wanted to make it better and we put our money where our mouth is.

“Our land works in a very small way, but it’s healthy as a business and ecologically. The neighbors say building an 800-square-foot bunkhouse will drive down their property values. We don’t get it.”