LET THEM EAT PANCAKES!

the endless road trip isn’t all applesauce and roses. there are moments — days even — when all i want is a sink in which i might leave my dirty dishes and a clean bathroom in which i might take a hot shower. why, just a few weeks ago, in the middle of the night, mazy threw up in the tent, not once, but three, count-em three times. and while i can complain about how annoying it might be to do dishes or do without a bath or sleep in a tent that smells like dog barf, there’s not much i can do but deal with it.

one of the things that makes the vagaries of life on the road more bearable is a good, home-cooked meal. cleaning up dog vomit in the middle of the night is terrible; cleaning up dog vomit in the middle of the night after you’ve had a delicious meal is still terrible, but it’s not as terrible as doing it on an empty stomach. or on a stomach filled with schwazzy food.

this is why, whenever we can, tim and i make the time to make good food for ourselves. there’s an awful lot that we do without (sinks and showers are at the top of a very long list), but one of the things that we absolutely do NOT do without is tasty food. i’ve learned how to make a lot of my favorite dishes using nothing but a whisperlite camp stove and, occasionally, an open fire. it takes a little adaptability and ingenuity, but in the end, the effort is worth it. when you don’t have a lot of comfort, comfort food goes a long, long way.

here’s the first in what may become a series of cooking videos. in it, i make one of our recurring campground breakfasts: spelt/yogurt (in this case, spelt/kefir) pancakes and scrambled eggs with extra sharp cheddar cheese chunks. if that sounds good, well rest assured that it is. this is, without a doubt, the best pancake recipe that i’ve come across and it’s easy to make in the most inhospitable of circumstances. i hope you give it it a try. they might not taste as good as they do after a cold, rainy night spent huddled in a tent on the flank of the white mountains, but i’m willing to bet you’ll still love them. bom apetite!

Banda Jazzco
“3 Jeitos” (mp3)
from “Fevereiro”
(Tratore)

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BACK EAST TO EDEN

for 6 long, beautiful, intense years, tim was the farmer for pitcher mountain csa. perched on the flank of pitcher mountain in stoddard, nh, the farm was the source of joy and beauty, stress and frustration. i met tim during his last two years of farming there and when i began to go up to visit with and help him out with farm chores, i was overwhelmed by the scope of the endeavor. by the time he left, tim (and a small team of interns) was responsible for starting, planting, growing, nurturing and harvesting about two acres of local, organic vegetables; enough to feed 120 local families.

the decision to leave pmcsa did not come easily for tim. after pouring so much of his soul into this rocky patch of windswept soil, he wasn’t sure what would be left to define him if he gave it up. this cold day in august was the first time tim had returned to pmcsa during harvest season in almost two years. since he left, there have been three other farmers and the scale of the operation has diminished considerably. the dozens of raised beds that he so lovingly crafted have been tilled under, the years of constant weeding have been all but undone. but more important than the changes that have occurred is the simple fact that pitcher mountain csa is still going strong. tim has left a beautiful legacy for his community. i am so proud of what he accomplished on pitcher mountain and what he has accomplished since letting it go.

FOOD PARTY OR DIE!

one of the dangers of the endless road trip is that whenever we visit friends and/or family, folks are inclined to show us a good time by making us a delicious meal or taking us to their favorite restaurant. this can lead to a non-stop food party. and while i surely enjoy all of the wonderful, tasty, satisfying food, there have definitely been times — just a few, mind you — when i have been inclined to over indulge. damn you herrell’s!

after coming off of our latest vermont food party, some physical activity was definitely in order. there are only so many blocks of grafton extra-sharp cheddar cheese seconds one can down without beginning to feel a bit lactose intolerant. so. we headed from quechee, vt to the northern end of the white mountains of new hampshire for a few days of camping. the cold temperatures helped us burn through some calories, but really, we had a lot of making up to do. first up, an exhilarating and bracing 14-mile bike ride (7 miles uphill; 7 miles down) along the franconia notch bike trail. we stopped and paid our tributes to the old man of the mountain and watched a group of school kids swim (in 50 degree temperature mind you!) in echo lake. crazy kids and their crazy music!

next, a 7-mile hike to and from the zealand falls hut. if that’s not cardiovascular exercise, i don’t know what is. and happily, my 39-year old body leapt to both challenges with nary a complaint. not that i should be overly proud of my accomplishment. mazy’s 84 years old in human years and she did the hike naked and without shoes!

so now that that’s all over with, i say bring on the next food party!

David Mead
“Riding” (mp3)
from “Arboretum”
(The Guitar Label)

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IT’S TIME TO LEAF PEEP FOR YOUR LIFE!
tim says that the hot, dry summer means that the fall foliage is going to begin blazing early. judging from what’s going on in quechee, vt and hanover, nh, i’d say he’s right on the money. every time i go outside, i’m convinced that the trees are starting to show a little more color. it’s beautiful.

having just spent so much time in the rockies, it is easy to pooh-pooh the miniature landscape of new england. as my friend val says, “the mountains are small, the rivers are small, the distances are small, the snowstorms are small; even the tornadoes and hurricanes are small!” but what is remarkable about this yankee biome is not that it is so small, it’s that so much majesty is crammed into this place, practically filling every nook and cranny. without the soaring heights and overwhelming vertigo of the rockies, these new england mountains can still touch the most obdurate soul. the plethora of new york and new jersey license plates flying willy-nilly about the place is a testament to this fact.

karla, the friend that we’ve been crashing with this weekend, is a full-on city girl. it’s been wonderful to see rural vermont through her eyes, through her exclamations of delight and rapture. as the next turn in the road reveals another spectacular view of a mirror-still river; a mountain setting itself on fire; a pasture filled with scotch highland cattle.

it’s so nice to be back in vermont!

granite lake is a magical place. about 20 minutes from tim’s hometown of keene, nh, this tiny spot of crystal clear water is the center of a charming cottage community. back in the day, all of the houses (or “camps” as the yankees call them) that edged the lake were seasonal dwellings, to be used only during warm temperatures. now, however, many have been turned into 4-season, year-round homes.

tim spent much of his childhood splashing, diving and knee-boarding on granite lake. it’s a special place for him and now that i’ve been fortunate enough to spend a full week along its shores, it’s a special place for me too.we barbecued and kayaked and sat silently while the amber light of late summer danced along the edges of waves. we told stories and laughed and took long walks with mazy and her bff, bella. we ate the most delicious local peaches, survived mushroom palouzza 2010, and celebrated tim’s 35th birthday.

near the end of our stay, a cold wind blew through new hampshire, bringing rain and dropping temperatures. in what seemed like just a few hours, summer gave way to autumn.