Dutch Oven Success

Because of other commitments on the weekend, we were only able to camp at Ledge Park, our favorite, on Saturday night. 

It was an opportunity to experiment with our Lodge Dutch Oven and, as is my wont, I tried something new when company was coming for dinner. We had stopped at the Lodge cast iron cookware store in South Pittsburg, Tennesse on our way back from Florida this past January. We picked up the proper lid and stand to use for outdoor cooking. And a recipe book, too.

I prepared a basic pot roast with potatoes, carrots, onions, and mushrooms. The biggest challenge was browning the meat. I ended up using our camp gas stove to do that because the Dutch Oven just didn't seem to get hot enough. However, the temperature was just right to cook the meat and veggies to a delicious doneness. The Dutch Oven just might replace my Cobb Grill, but I'll have to make sure I have enough charcoal briquettes since I used about four times as many with the Dutch Oven as I would have with my Cobb.

Our friends, Greg and Laurie, and Rick’s brother, Randy, sister-in-law, Patty, and their grandson, Devin, were our guests for dinner that finished with cherry pudgy pies. No leftovers – always a good sign.

We checked out the sunset over Horicon Marsh later in the evening and continued banter around a blazing camp fire as the temperature dropped.

Red sky at night, sailors' delight. It was a clear on Saturday night
and a beautiful Sunday.

Rick’s vintage camping trailer was nice and toasty during the night with just a small electric heater providing the warmth we needed. Breakfast on Sunday morning was followed by a couple of hours of relaxation and conversation with another Devin, grandson of the Ledge Park managers, our friends Joe and Suzy. 

Trilliums turn pink at the end of their season. Lots of them at Ledge Park this past weekend.

 We'll be back – maybe as soon as the coming weekend – for another Dutch Oven dinner.      

Camping Season Begins

It was another vintage camping trailer weekend in northern Illinois with some new old friends. BJ Frantz was our hostess with the mostess at the Thomas Woods Campground in Marengo, IL. Okay, we wandered out of state again but there was a Wisconsin connection – the site is a moraine left by the retreating Wisconsin glacier. 

Blooming wildflowers were abundant throughout the campground.

We gathered to show our trailers (some in the group had procured new vintage ones over the winter), share cocktails, good food, and stories around the campfire. And plenty of good-natured ribbing!

BJ restored her Yellowstone "canned ham." Its floor plan is similar to that of
Rick's vintage Trailblazer.

This 1973 Avion owned by Bill and Anna from Freeport, IL was new this year.

Mike and Jessica from South Milwaukee acquired their 1972 Avion this past winter.

 The Illinois Railway Museum – largest in the country – was nearby so we checked out the really BIG rigs on Saturday with our friends, Anna and Bill.

Some of these engines weigh nearly 150,000 pounds.

We took a ride on an electric train about 5 miles out into the country. Our volunteer motorman explained
the history of this type of train.

Was Thomas the Tank Engine patterned after this engine?
Thomas visits for two weekends at the end of August and thousands of big and little kids come to see him.

So many Trail Blazers - not just Rick's vintage camping trailer! 

We stopped at Donley’s Wild West Steakhouse for lunch – great food but a spacey waitress who kept forgetting to bring all of Bill’s order!

We didn't think this guy mounted inside the restaurant was a white-tail deer - too mean looking.

 BJ treated us to an excellent Dutch Oven breakfast on Sunday – fortunately we were able to finish before the rain deluge.

We’re looking forward to other vintage gatherings this fall and to meeting up with friends once again.

Pretty much the theme of us vintage trailer campers.....

Moments on the Marsh

One of Wisconsin’s natural treasures is the Horicon Marsh, the largest freshwater cattail marsh in the United States. The Rock River flows through the marsh which is located mostly in Dodge County. The marsh itself is under the auspices of both the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (southern third) and the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service (northern two-thirds). Both agencies work together to manage the marsh as one wetland ecosystem. The marsh has been recognized as a wetland of international importance. Our favorite camping venue, Ledge Park, overlooks the marsh on its eastern  side.

This past weekend we were in Horicon to have a beer and a burger with our friends, Joe and Susie, managers at Ledge Park. We also stopped in at the Friends of Horicon Marsh International Education Center to see the latest nature photography exhibit.

One of the most iconic images of the marsh was taken by Edgar Mueller a Horicon photo journalist.  This photograph, along with many other Mueller images of the Horicon marsh and its many bird inhabitants, can be seen at the Mayville Limestone School Museum.

In 1966, Edgar Mueller's single most-famous photo, Goose Explosion, was
published in Life magazine and was subsequently published worldwide.

--Photo from the collection of the Wisconsin Historical Society

While most people think of Canadian geese when they think of the Horicon Marsh, geese are just one of the approximately 300 bird species that have been seen at the marsh over the years.

A heron, perhaps, in the fall (I'm not good with bird identification).

The marsh this past weekend -
as seen from the Education Center.

Another view of the marsh - from Ledge Park.

Spent cattails on the north end of the marsh in the fall.

The land around the marsh is also important to its ecosystem.

My favorite view of the Horicon Marsh -
sunset over the marsh as seen from Ledge Park.

Spend a few hours on the Horicon Marsh. Take a guided tour to appreciate another breathtaking resource we have right here in Wisconsin. Or if you're really lucky and have a friend who knows the marsh like the back of his hand, you might even get to see the marsh in the quiet morning hours from his duck boat. (Thanks, Troy, for taking us out for a spectacular ride!)

Last Earth Day at Lambeau - Mash-up

For fear of being labeled a heretic, I have to admit that I’m really not a genuine fan of the Green Bay Packers. Rick, on the other hand, is a true fan and has been all his life. I don’t remember watching football games with my parents and sisters when I was growing up. Being a Packer fan wasn’t something ingrained in me.

Image from the Last Day at Lambeau poster
at the entrance to the theater.

Even though I watch Packer games with Rick and possess a Packer t-shirt, my take-away after seeing Last Day at Lambeau at the recent Wisconsin Film Festival here in Madison was the realization that I lack real fan status. From my perspective, football is just a game, not a matter of life and death. If I miss a game, it's no big deal. However, that’s not to say this wasn’t a good documentary. I enjoyed it – perhaps more as a character study than as a film about one particular former Green Bay Packer and his fans.

The film’s director, co-writer, and editor, Michael Neelson, documents the demise of Brett Favre through his eyes – a Packer fan who idolized Favre like so many did throughout their youth. In fact, the film ends with a picture of Neelson, his dad Dave (the film’s producer), and Favre taken when Neelson was a young boy.

The film covered the time between Favre’s “divorce” from the Packers in 2008 and his last game at Lambeau Field on October 24, 2010, as a Minnesota Viking. Neelson’s documentary included football game footage which was cheered by the audience at the screening, interviews with sportswriters who covered the Packers for years, and discussions with fans who both adored and scorned Favre. All in all, Neelson handled the story in a fair minded way.

While fans feel close to their heroes in any number of sports and even regard them as family, the athletes may not care as much for them. That certainly seemed to be the case with Favre. His job was a player for the Packers and when there was a falling out with the boss, he left - eventually. And so when Favre returned to Lambeau as a Minnesota Viking, archenemy of the Packers, many fans would boo him as he ran onto the field. The more reasonable ones, however, recognized that the man was a great player no matter what the color of his jersey.

The Q & A session following the screening was quite fascinating. Neelson said he made the documentary because he wanted to explore his own emotions about the events in the Favre saga. However, as he got into the nuts and bolts of editing, Neelson told us he was able to put emotion aside to tell the story. John "St. Vince" O'Neill, a Packer super fan featured in the documentary, was on hand to answer questions, too.

St. Vince spoke about Bart Starr, a former Packer,
 who values his fans as shown by his support
for the Green Bay community to this day.

Another fan at the documentary's screening.

Earlier in the day, we stopped to smell the roses (actually, just the early spring flowers) at the Allen Centennial Gardens, a botanic garden that serves as a free outdoor public garden and teaching garden for the Horticulture Department on the UW-Madison campus. Maybe not much of a way to commemorate Earth Day but, nonetheless, a lovely interlude that afternoon. 

On the Trail of Texas Barbecue

Last Saturday was Rick’s birthday. His present–barbecue from Texas. A couple of years ago we were in Texas about this time of the year. Rick was determined to find as many BBQ places as we could. One of the places we found was Chisholm Trail Bar-B-Q, on the Texas Barbecue Trail. Yes, there actually is a trail! Rick learned that this restaurant will ship its barbecue anywhere so I ordered his favorite beef brisket, pork ribs, and a fryer for his birthday. Delish!

Lockhart TX was on the old Chisholm Trail that was used for cattle drives
in the  late 19th century. Chisholm Trail Bar-B-Q isn't quite that old.

Barbecue is taken seriously in Texas as well as in a number of other southern states. Probably like we take our cheese and beer seriously here in Wisconsin.

Rudy's in Austin serves its barbecue on pieces of butcher paper.
No dishwasher is needed for restaurants that are part of this chain. 

Speaking of Wisconsin, I don’t think it’s ever too hard to find Wisconsin connections wherever we wander – even when we go out of state.

I'm not sure where I saw this sign - maybe it was in a Texas antique store.

Ardent Green Bay Packer fans are in Texas, too.

Karen Hein, a friend of mine and former colleague, lives in Austin and we saw her and her husband perform with the Cornell Hurd Band one night. The venue was Jovita’s, a great Mexican restaurant with some attention-grabbing murals on the walls.

Even though Central Texas, where we visited, has a great deal of appealing scenery, I’ll still take Wisconsin any day! 

These are Texas blue bonnets; lupines here in Wisconsin.
The flowers in my garden at Rick's are twice as tall
as any I saw on our trip. So take that, Texas!

Good Friday - Seminary and Speed

Last Friday we didn’t wander too far from home where we discovered Nashotah House nestled in the  Kettle Moraine on the shore of Upper Nashotah Lake (northwest of Delafield). Nashotah House is a seminary of The Episcopal Church, serving the world-wide Anglican Communion and the wider Christian Church. Both men and women train there for ordained and lay ministries. Chartered in 1847, Nashotah House is the oldest institution of higher learning in Wisconsin. Five years before its charter, Nashotah House was born in a little blue house that stands today.

The basement in the Library goes down three stories.

We joined our friends, Pat and Gary from Milwaukee, for the final fish fry of the Lenten season - a fundraiser to help the seminary students with their educational expenses. After dinner we were treated to a tour of the beautiful campus and learned more about the philosophy of the seminary. All at the Nashotah House practice the Benedictine disciplines of work, study, and prayer. 

Beautiful stained glass windows in the Chapel.

The bell is rung three times a day calling all at Nashotah House to worship.
Visitors are welcomed at services held at 7:30 am, 12:30 pm, and 4:30 pm.

Earlier in the day we were at the Slinger Super Speedway to watch Brittiny Helmers, one of our young friends and future star race car driver, practice for her opening race on April 29.  Brittiny's racing organization is Tiny Motor Sports. She drove a late model around that quarter mile track in a little over 12 seconds!

Brittiny is in her lucky number 13 car. Rick is the Rascal, one of her sponsors!

Here she comes around the track. I couldn't get too close because of the fence.
Check out Rick's video below. This young woman is definitely speedy!

History of Spring

“History is what you see no matter where you look,” according to Bill Cronon, Professor of History, Geography, and Environmental Studies at UW-Madison. As I looked out over Library Mall on the UW-Madison campus yesterday I realized that the historic crab apple trees had slowly disappeared over the years. The space had been so much prettier in the past. A wave of nostalgia passed over me as I yearned for the springs that went before. Those were the springs the trees flowered when they were supposed to – around the first of May, not the first of April!

One of two flowering crab apple trees that remain on Library Mall today
in front of the Wisconsin Historical Society's headquarters building.

The other remaining tree is on the Langdon Street side
with the Memorial Union in the background.

Another burst of spring this year in front of the Old Red Gym.

One of the pleasures of working on campus in the 1980s and then again 20 years later was seeing the crab apples blooming on a beautiful spring day.  

Historical photos from May 12, 2008.

More history captured on May 3, 2006. . .

The view in front of the Wisconsin Historical Society.

Another beauty of a bygone time.

These trees on the Memorial Library side of the Mall are gone today.

Maybe after all the construction of the East Campus Gateway is finished, new trees will be planted and Library Mall will once more be the beautiful place it had been in springs past.