Got Honey? An Excursion to Find Local, Raw Honey to Quell Allergies Turns Up Amusing Encounters

has a waiting list of customers looking forward to the next batch from local apiarists.

The have sold their supply but will be spinning some again soon.

So, where does a person find local, raw honey in a desperate attempt to quell surprising allergic symptoms while adjusting to all the pollen?

Who're you gonna call?

Beekeepers.

However, they're a little hard to reach by phone.

Alternatively, take a drive. Hit the road into the backcountry in search of roadside signs and country stores. You won't be disappointed. The adventure, as usual, has its amusing elements.

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When I was a little girl, whenever I had a sore throat, my mother would make me a soothing warm drink made of lemons off our tree and honey. It seemed to make everything feel better ... with the warmth ... and the way the honey coated the raw feeling of my throat.

If I had to take antibiotics, she'd crush them in honey so that I wouldn't balk at the task.

To this day, there's something soothing about honey in a cup of herbal tea, no matter what the need for comfort, be it physical or otherwise.

I even recall a friend's mother putting honey on my toe after I'd been stung by a bee.

In short, honey can make a myriad of situations feel better.

But can it do more than that? Can it heal? Can it alleviate allergic symptoms or, even better, can eating honey ahead of spring build up immunity to local pollen, thereby helping reduce any allergic responses?

As a backcountry resident of seven months, I have gradually become aware that there's something going on in my ears. Everything sounds like I'm under water. "Huh? What's that?" I seem to be saying that a lot lately.

After about three months of building symptoms, I thought I had swimmer's ear, so I took myself "down the hill" for a professional opinion.

"Hmm. Are you an allergic person?" the nurse practitioner asked, peering into the otoscope.

"Well, not usually."

"Mmm. Have you been changing altitude a lot lately?"

"Well, only up and down from Ramona," I said, incredulous that this woman could tell my entire life by looking in my ear canals. I wondered what she might do with tea leaves.

(Of course, since then, I've reflected that there were a couple of trips to the summit of Mount Laguna to see the snow. Oh, and, of course, more recently, a .)

"Well, that'll do it!" she declared. "Your ear drums are flat."

"Flat?" Maybe that explains why they felt like sails billowing in the wind recently when I was having dinner with a friend in a noisy restaurant with bad acoustics. I couldn't wait for everyone to leave.

"Try Sudafed," she said, "and chewing gum."

Now, if you see me chewing furiously while driving up Highway 78 and belting out Cole Porter tunes, you'll know I'm trying to clear my eustachian tubes.

Unfortunately, none of this has helped much. Even the Sudafed behind the counter (the "real stuff") has made little dent in the muffled way I now perceive the world. But I still take it occasionally along with an antihistamine.

After spending most of Memorial Day weekend with a sinus headache that eventually put me on my back with a nauseous migraine, I decided, "That's it! I am hitting the road on Tuesday to find the Holy Grail of allergy relief, wherever it might take me."

Naturally, it led me to higher altitude.

Specifically, it led me to a humble white box on the side of a dirt road in the Witch Creek area, with big black letters: "Honey Box."

"Aha, I've found it," I stared into the recesses of this hive that doubled as a vending machine, while a curious bee buzzed around me.

I wondered what saint had put out four jars of local, raw honey that morning. Someone who didn't know some plugged up, middle-aged woman from Ramona would be on a pilgrimage to find it.

You see, in my desperation, I was following the advice of a beekeeper friend in the San Francisco area, as well as anecdotal accounts from my Ramona contacts about "local, raw honey." They say it will help me build up immunity and fight the symptoms related to the high pollen count this year.

So, when I found these precious little containers, I selfishly wanted to "scoff the lot." But I modestly only bought three of the jars, hoping the vendor wouldn't run out. After all, I knew I wasn't alone and some other poor wretch might be making the drive up the hill after me.

Here I was with the food of the gods in my hands. I couldn't wait to get to a place with a spoon.

My friend who had come along for the adventure looked surprised as I downed three spoons of honey immediately upon sitting down at Wynola Pizza Express.

I waited for the results. The honey was wonderful.

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Across the street is another local honey vendor, Wynola Junction. So, after pizza, we took a wander to see the selection.

We couldn't find anyone in the store. I didn't get any further than the Andrews Sisters CDs but my friend went looking for the owner. Then, with a chuckle, we both noticed a bright pink sign on the counter that read, "We are out back with the donkeys. Come on out for a visit. We'll be right back."

"I can't believe I do this for a living," I smiled, as I reflected on the amusing day that would turn into a story on Ramona Patch. (I swear an office job for me would be a death sentence.)

Then store owner Tracy Turner returned and asked whether we'd seen the other sign, which read, "Be right back! Should you need any help, the cats will be happy to assist you." I hadn't even noticed two cats which had now snuggled into a nap on a sweater behind the counter, with a sense of haughty entitlement. One kept half an eye open, glaring at my camera, as if to say, "What are you planning on doing with that thing?"

(My friend later told me that the only time the cats have gone out the front door is to evacuate from the historic fires or go to the vet. Now, if the front door engendered those kind of memories, wouldn't you stay indoors and nap?)

I bought sage, buckwheat and wildflower honey and returned to Ramona loaded with enough jars to conduct a one-woman allergy experiment on the pros and cons of eating the nectar collected by bees. I gulped some down after dinner, then sloshed some into my tea. I can't tell you that my sinuses are clearing but I know I'm soothing my throat and that makes me feel like I'm on the mend.

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Honey has been used as a metaphor of purity and the goodness of life in ancient literature such as the biblical proverbs and the teachings of Buddha. All the major ancient cultures believed it had therapeutic benefits. Modern sources list its nutrients as protein, amino acids, B vitamins, vitamin C, antioxidants and minerals such as calcium and iron. Honey also is believed to have antibiotic, antimicrobial and preservative aspects.

Most Western science however, does not support the theory that eating honey suppresses allergic responses to pollen. For example, The New York Times reported on the findings of a University of Connecticut study which found no such benefits of honey. Some practitioners also suggest that some people could be allergic to the small amount of pollen found in honey and so anyone trying the honey treatment should be watched for potential reactions. Raw honey shouldn't be given to children under 1 year old.

Meanwhile, many allergy sufferers swear by honey and go looking for it to get relief from sinus, ear, nose, throat and chest congestion—along with the watery or puffy eyes, the sneezing and just plain tiredness.

At the very least, honey has that comforting and flavorful potential to soothe and provide nutrients, sort of like chicken soup.

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I should say here that Patch doesn't assume to provide any medical advice. Neither is this meant to be a comprehensive or even serious primer on the benefits of honey. (You may have noticed.) You can find that information on the Web or in the library.

Rather, we simply hope you enjoyed one woman's mission to become further enlightened on the benefits of the food of the gods, while exploring the backcountry.

You can find the aforementioned "Honey Box" on Rancho Ballena Lane, off Highway 78, just east of the intersection with Old Julian Highway. Look for the sign, shown in this photo gallery. The honey box is owned by beekeeper Lon Lloyd, who has 1,100 hives "spread all over." He uses them to help people pollinate their crops and also to produce honey. The box at the end of his driveway bears the harvest from his hives right there on the hill.

Julian Cider Mill also has raw honey, they tell me—although, they're not sure how "local" the honey would be for Ramona residents. I didn't make it that far up the hill before I turned around with my loot and headed for lower elevation.