Exchange in the Walgreen's parking lot...

It is fig time...

I had to laugh. I had been peeling figs for about 30 minutes today when I thought, "I should take some pictures and share this recipe." I did take a few photos and then finished peeling the figs. After measuring out sugar and covering the two batches of figs (and one of tomatoes) that will be canned tonight, I sat down to start the post only to discover that I had already written one for my private family stories.

So the photos here are from 2013 (the pictures are better).

My grandmother, Grace, always made fig preserves. She had 6 or 8 trees in her side yard where she grew little brown honey figs.* I remember her  sitting on a white stool at the sink in her kitchen where she would trim figs for preserves and peel apples for coffee cake. I have a few of her recipes that Mom made sure had "real" measurements. Grandma was a "little of this and little of that" cook. I remember her measuring out a cup of flour with a tea cup.

Yes, every year Gracie made fig preserves with the little brown "honey figs."** Mama made fig preserves too, with Gracie's recipe. *** And for years I have made them as well. I made them for Mom when she couldn't make them anymore. I still make them for my sister and other folks who grew up with them and have a "taste for" figs.****


I have tried to grow fig trees and have not been very successful. I am still trying, but the tiny tree I have is just surviving. It will be a good long time before it produces figs.

For some years I picked large figs at a neighbor's house, but the trees were damaged by cold winters and drought and are gone. One of the women farmers at the farmers market became my "supplier" a few years ago. She no longer comes to the market, but Virgina calls me in mid-July when the figs are ready. We meet in the Walgreen's parking lot and conduct our business. We laugh about how we look like we are conducting some illegal business.

This year, as Virginia thanked me, I hugged her and explained that making fig preserves is one connection I still have with my grandmother and mother. I feel them right beside me as I peel and measure figs. I can almost hear them whispering gentle directions as I stir the figs until thick and fill the jars.

Two batches of figs wait for me. I will cook and can them tonight, after some running around with the kids. And this year I will eat them the way my youngest child does - with brie on crackers. I am sure that Grandma and Mama would approve.


Gracie's Figs

3 Cups figs
2 Cups sugar
Juice of 1/3 lemon
A little water

Wash figs twice in water in which you have dissolved some baking soda (I just rinse them as I peel). Trim stems from figs and boil slowly over medium heat stirring regularly to avoid scorching. Can according to directions and use a boiling water bath for 10 minutes.

[This is a good recipe for any variety of fig. It is wise to cut larger figs in half to insure they cook through. I don't like the skin on my figs so I peel them and then follow the rest of the recipe. Daddy didn't like lemon in his so Mom put lemon juice in, but did not use lemon slices in the mix. I always add at least one lemon sliced to each jar of figs. The jars are so pretty with the honey colored figs and a few lemon slices showing.]

 Box of figs

Peeled figs in measuring cup

Figs in the pot

Figs starting to boil

Rapidly boiling figs - stir to make sure they don't stick to the pan

Magic! Fig preserves in jars - labeled (they really are best within the year).

Aren't they pretty? The middle jar is for my sister. She likes her figs whole.

NOTES:


* The big leaves of Grandma's fig trees provided the perfect shade. When we were children,  we spent hours playing house under the fig trees (with little folding stools, "give-aways" from the Indian Missions, and miniature pots and pans). [All these treasures were stored in the toy box under the coat tree in Grandma's back bedroom.]

**I don't know if they are called "honey" figs because they are so sweet or because they ooze a thick sweet juice - like honey.

***Mother only had one fig tree. She would hoard the figs until she had enough ripe figs to make some preserves. Mother gave me lots of hints - slice large figs in half in case there are insects inside (they get in through big "eyes" at the bottom of the fruit). She also said that you need to remember to clean the rim of the jar so that your seal would be good. She once had a fig seed left on the rim prevent a jar from sealing.

****I disapprove of making ersatz strawberry jam by adding strawberry Jello. Really, this is sacrilege.

River stories, Number 2 - Lizards that run the river...really...

We float in the morning to avoid the rowdy ones. Of course, we also get to see more wildlife as it has not been chased away by too many people and music too loud.

On one of our first floats many of us were already in the water, but DH was standing on the shore with his tube. Suddenly I saw the flash of a striped lizard running - nay dancing - across the river. He reached the shore and immediately ran up onto DH (who, I should say, always dresses is browns, tans and olives and could be mistaken for a tree, I guess.).

"Did you see that? Did you see that?"* I asked the company.  "A lizard just ran across the river and jumped up on DH? I didn't know lizards can do that. Oh, the lizard IS STILL ON YOU!" said I.

DH looked down. Set his tube down and looked down again. Finally he found the lizard and "scootched" him off onto the rocky bank.

This lizard had green stripes and was larger than the anole, but shaped like it. It was moving so fast that it almost looked to be walking (or running) upright.**

So this is a story with a question (or two): Has anyone else seen a green-striped lizard run across the surface of water? Do you know what kind it is?***


NOTES:

* Yes, I am one of those irritating people who repeat themselves when it is not necessary. I don't know why I do that. Is it that the first statement is a practice and the second sincere? Unfortunately I only realize I am doing it once done.

**Trust me. I saw this with my own two eyes. I had my glasses on. I was not imbibing anything.

***Feel free to comment below. I am wondering if it was a Texas Spotted Whiptail. Jim Conrad has a photo on his website, but I didn't see any discussion of them walking on water.  http://www.friocanyonnature.com/n/a/whiptail.htm

Damage on the Frio - 2014

I took these pictures as we have recognized the treasure that old photos of the river can be - documenting us and the river. As I worked on other posts I tried not to look at these and put this post off until last. I will try and "locate" the damage in my descriptions. This is your fair warning. If too sensitive of soul, go no further.

The Frio floods every now and again* and I understand there was a flood earlier in the year. But in June some wild thunderstorms with hail and rain-wrapped tornadic winds hit the Real/Uvalde area. Our river spot did not escape the weather.

So this is not a fun walk.

The good news is that damage was limited. Most of our dear cypress and oak friends, while not "whole," are still there. They should survive.**


The first damage you see is this cedar. It is just past the office/hotel units on the edge of the road. The pond would be downhill from here.

Notice the twisting motion demonstrated by the damage.

Another view.

While we were drinking coffee and watching the birds one morning, my brothers spied a big limb down behind the cabins where we often stay. These are the first cabins you find on the right side of the main road.
 

The break (this is one big limb).

The rest is obscured.

As you walk down the road to the lower campground you can see that there are limbs down in the woody area to your right. The "secret passageway" is open to view. (That may be something that happened a while back. It seems to me that it was clearer each year).

Then, at the top of the hill, you notice*** the roots of a big oak that have pulled-up (peeled-off of the limestone below). This "root ball" is well over 6 feet in diameter. There was a bit of a "domino effect" here. One tree fell and hit another and there are at least three trees in this mess that either went down completely or lost major limbs. This will take a huge effort to clear.

It is hard to comment on these. I can barely bring myself to look at the pictures.

The rest of what I saw was down on the river. One of the "monster" trees, the old men of the river, lost some limbs.

You can see where the limb broke off at the crown of this tree.

It looks ok from here, but scattered limbs block the trail

River trail impassable here.

Another, younger tree keeled over across the river. I am not sure if this tree was from our campgrounds or from upstream. This is where it "rested" while we were camping. It is just below the main swimming area (perhaps half-way to the cliff).

The river is still "floatable." This doesn't look too impressive until you get...

closer...

and closer...and see how large a tree it was.

View from across the river. You can see the river is clear on the left.

I am sure there were other limbs down that were cleared for safety and so the campgrounds could be used.

All in all, it is a lot of damage, but we were pretty lucky too. It is possible that some of the damage was in trees weakened by the drought that has hit this area so hard. We have been seeing a number of dead trees over the past couple of years and have attributed it to the drought. We have listened to stories of farmers' wells drying up and more.

Change is always hard and the river always changes. What change there may be, the river always welcomes us back.


NOTES:

*We have high water stories and flood stories too. One - YC was camping with friends one summer (the week before the family was to go) and had to evacuate, just ahead of the rising water (fortunately she was with people I knew were more careful than I am). They made it to Hondo before they had to stop as all the roads had become impassable. I received phone calls (pre-cell days folks) from the campgrounds and then from Hondo. YC thought she would have the "adventure" of sleeping on the high school gymnasium floor. But then the water receded and she spent some time in the hot tub at a hotel further down the highway before bed that night. We STILL went to the river the next week (and witnessed just how high it can get and the power of its flood waters). Campsites were washed away. Trailers were up in the trees. That is the worst flood damage I have seen.

**I have to remind myself that storms often take out the weak limbs and the weak trees. It is just the way things work.

***You notice if you are paying attention. I was walking my 1 year-old great-nephew down the road (I was holding both of this hands and helping him keep his balance on the rough road) so I didn't see it until I walked back up the road by myself.

River stories - Number 1

Buffalo Creek:

I walked down to Buffalo Creek. It is a muddy thing just behind the screened-shelters-on-the-hill at our favorite retreat.

We used to camp there as children - with the family of my mother's best friend. My next younger brother and the youngest brother of our friends spent a good bit of time in the creek. They built dams. They played with a waterwheel (made by Uncle L, I think).

The trail is steep. I was always cautious about walking down to the creek. It was covered in fallen leaves and slippery. When you made it to the water, the creek was often yucky...silty, algae-slimy.

The trail is treacherous today. I walk only half-way down.

The trail to Buffalo Creek.

A fairly clear view of the creek

A view down the creek to where it meets the river

 Our friends' screened shelter (it will always be their screened shelter, like the one we used 40 years ago will always be ours) was empty when I walked by, but still I expected to see little boys playing in the creek. I listened for them laughing and splashing in the water. I looked for a waterwheel spinning.

Some of the reasons we go to the river

Birds:

Most mornings at the river we drink coffee and eat breakfast on the porch. Birds are everywhere. Some of us sit with binoculars. Others are less formal in their watching.

Some birds I know. Some, well, I have old eyes and bad ears. One fellow was making a racket and I looked to my youngest brother, "What's that, a jay of some kind?" He glanced over to a cedar tree and replied, "woodpecker." "I did not know they made that kind of sound. I only know them if they are pecking," said I. "Well," he said. "That's the only bird I know that can hang onto the bottom of a branch like that." Sure enough, the woodpecker wandered all over and around the cedar limb (hanging underneath with no problem) and then flew off to a post where I took his picture. He never "pecked," but even my poor camera shows him to be a woodpecker.

Woodpecker (don't ask me what kind)

(Told you it was a woodpecker)

Anyway, on this trip we saw tufted titmouse (small mouse-grey bird that has a crest like a cardinal), scarlet tanager (bright orange-red, NOT cardinal red, with dark wings), wrens, a roadrunner, cardinals, hawks, turkey, scissor-tailed flycatcher, turkey buzzards, numbers of doves, and ravens - among others I often lump together as "little brown birds." [I am sure my brothers identified more than this. I am only claiming what I can claim.]

A word about the ravens. They were numerous around the swimming hole. They seemed to be calling and answering each other. I called and they answered. My just-younger brother identified them (and he knows birds). And I realized that the "haw" in the park that I have been identifying as a crow call just might be from a raven.*

Don't even bother blowing it up. It is a blurry bird, but almost certainly a scarlet tanager.

Deer and other warm-blooded four-legged creatures:

We made repeated "game crawls." At times we met each other coming and going. With no cell phones, it was sometimes hard to coordinate who was going with whom and when. The crawls occurred early in the morning or just before dusk when the animals were more likely to be out grazing. One weird afternoon trip found a good number of white tail deer and axis deer and a couple of other creatures wandering the road near a small town off the major roads.

The axis deer were everywhere. They are beautiful creatures and the bucks have quite impressive antlers. We saw herds of up to 30 animals.

We stopped to see these beauties.

They were almost so close we could touch them.

Two axis bucks were grazing in this clearing.

Closer - beautiful antlers

The white tail deer population appeared in good shape as well. We saw a few small bucks, but many doe, yearlings, and fawns.

OK. I know it is bad, but this is the best photo I was able to get of a white tail. I suppose you can see it was a doe and twins.

On one of my last crawls made just after I dropped off the evening floaters, I saw two does cross the road. I turned onto the cemetery road and twin fawns turned and ran ahead of me. They disappeared about 20 feet from the car, just behind a bush next to a game fence. They DISAPPEARED. I did not understand until I drove up to the the bush and discovered a big hole in the fence.

Escape hatch in the game fence - it was easier to see in person.

Close-up. I cannot imagine patrolling a good sized property to insure no one (or no thing) is "making holes" in my fence.

We also regularly saw a large group of blackbuck grazing in a field. They were too far for good photos until a last minute, unscheduled ride caught them close to the road.

Blackbuck

Closer

These guys are not exotic, but it was interesting to see them on the side of the road.

Not horses. Not deer. [They make me laugh.]

On our final, early morning cruise we must have seen over a dozen rabbits. I cannot remember the last time I saw so many jackrabbits and cottontails in such a short time span. RF suggested that some of the clearing of brush must have improved the rabbit habitat. I later wondered if the parvovirus outbreak I heard about in our area was also a problem in the hill country. Perhaps a lack of predators has resulted in an increase in rabbits.

We saw one armadillo during the middle of the day as we walked down the river trails looking for a missing kiddo. He lumbered along and we hurried past - too busy to really pay too much attention.

I saw a house cat stalking through high grass - another sign that big predators may be absent.


Insects and bugs:

In the late 1990s we took the kids and cousins on wild insect gathering expeditions at "any place with a light" in the tiny town north of our campground. The car wash was especially rich as the insects were attracted by both light and moisture.

Now we don't collect insects, but we do still appreciate them.**

My sister found a huge beetle in the roadway on her way back from a domino game. I am sure she would have kept it had it been a rhinoceros beetle. I did have to "put it away" as some in the party found it disturbing. It came home with me - thought I would share with some of my biology friends.

Beetle and river rocks and Texas buckeyes

We found a number of other creeping and flying creatures. It is good to see all of them - especially the bees!

Dung bug - I love these guys. I saw my first one at the hunting lease when I was a kid. I don't know that I have seen one in 10 or more years. And here this guy was rolling its prize along the main road. Needless to say, I stood in the road to keep the vehicles from "running it over." I later saw 8 or 10 "taking care of business" on the cliff trail, but I was picking up trash and did not have my camera.***

"You been messing with the bees?" ~ Harry Nilsson****

We stopped to take a photo of the "old man's beard" and saw this.

This butterfly was maddening. It finally cooperated and opened its wings for me.

The dragonflies hover above the river, dipping down for water (or for a meal).

Other:

I discovered at least two specimens of the dreaded "fishing bobber" grabbing tree.*****

While wandering along Buffalo Creek (looking for PJ) I noticed this tree had snagged two bobbers.

My walk along the cliff trail lead to this dangerous bobber-grabber.

Close-up of two tangled bobbers

Wildflowers to come in a separate post. I am tired and there are simply too many of them.


NOTES:

*I hang my head in shame. I am such a "close enough" naturalist. No one should rely on my identifications, I guess. I promise to go to the Cornell site, review film, and listen to recorded songs to clarify what the park black birds are - at this point, I suspect ravens. I didn't even know we had ravens here...I thought they were an east coast bird. You know, Baltimore...

**DH appreciates NOT finding plastic bags full of frozen insects in the frig. I find it a little boring to store only ice cubes, Flavor Ice and bacon.

***http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dung_beetle

****http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Point! (For RF)

*****These creatures are generally found growing on the banks of streams, rivers, ponds, and lakes.