Communing with Mother Nature

The old commercial said, "It's not nice to fool Mother Nature." I'd always taken that to heart. So, it came as quite a surprise when a few years ago, we experienced Mother Nature's wrath in what we fondly call "The Summer of Camping from Hell." We did a lot of camping than Summer...at least a couple of times a month. But, most trips were "marred" by some freak act of nature.

It all started with a trip over Memorial Day weekend. We had just purchased a new tent (one we could actually stand up in, at least if you stood in the exact center). We went with Tom and Suzie, our usual camping buddies, to a spot Tom had scoped out on a previous trip. By our usual camping standards, this place was plush. It not only had flush toilets, but it had free showers with HOT water. We had a great Friday night - nice warm weather, a cloudless sky, and gobs of stars to gaze upon. Saturday night was another story. Shortly after we bedded down, it commenced to rain. That's rain with a capital "R" - 4 whole inches worth by sunrise. Our campsite was transformed into a lake with a small island that held our collapsed dining canopy. Sadly, this wasn't the worst of it. Our new tent, the one we had painstakingly sealed, leaked. I had been treated to a steady drip, drip, drip on my pillow all (drip) night (drip) long.

In contrast, our next trip was marred by a significant lack of water. We were in Big Trees. Tom and Suzie got there before us and had secured a splendid campsite. We set up our resealed tent and prepared for a weekend of rest. That night, we were treated to a spectacular lightning storm. Unfortunately, dry lightning in the dry mountain highlands is a bad combination. It came as no surprise that the lightning had started a small forest fire. Sure, it started out small enough. But, soon, we could smell the smoke. A little while later, the sky darkened as the smoke blotted out the sun. By afternoon, ashes fell like gray snowflakes from the sky. The rangers told us that we could stay for the time being, but we had to be ready to leave on an hour's notice. While other campers streamed from the park, we stuck it out. I'm glad we stayed because, by the next day, the fire was fully contained. We could still smell the smoke, but, at least, the "snow" had stopped. And, we had the park pretty much to ourselves.

For our last trip, Mother Nature found us in Yosemite. We'd caught up with Tom and Suzie and a couple of other couples. We planned to spend the afternoon taking a lazy little horse ride up to Nevada Falls. Well, the "horses" were mules, the path was narrow with steep drop-offs, and Tom's horse had a slight digestive problem. Though "jet-propelled", we kept him to the back of the pack because no one wanted to be behind him. The trip up was great. However, about half-way back, we were hit by a rare late summer squall and were drenched by the time we got down. You'd think at that point, Mother Nature would be finished with us. But, wait, about 3 a.m., we were jolted awake by an earthquake.

Don't get me wrong. We had some good trips. And, no matter what, we ate well.

Dinner, Breakfast, and Lunch of Marinated Pork Chops with Potatoes, Carrots, and Onions

boneless pork loin chops -- 2 to 3 per person
ginger garlic marinade (see below)
red potatoes -- 2 medium/person
red onions -- 1/2 medium/person
carrots -- 1 per person
olive oil
seasoned salt

Chops: Place chops into a zip-lock bag. Add marinade and seal. Freeze and use to help keep other foods cool in the ice chest. In the afternoon of the day you plan to prepare the chops, check to see if they have defrosted. If they are still frozen, take them out until they have defrosted and then return them to the ice chest. When you are ready to cook, pour the marinade into a bowl. Grill over charcoal, gas grill, or camp fire. Baste with marinade frequently. Cooking time will depend upon the thickness of the chops and the heat of the grill.

Dinner - serve 1 to 1 1/2 chops/ person. Place remaining chops in a container and store in the ice chest.

Breakfast - cut 1/2 chop/person into 1/2 inch pieces. Either cook them with the potatoes and onions or scramble them into a couple of eggs to serve with the potatoes.

Lunch - thinly slice 1 chop/person and serve on a hard roll with swiss cheese, tomatoes, lettuce, onion slices, etc.

Potatoes, onions, and carrots: Wash potatoes. Slice into 1/2 inch slices. Peel onions and cut into quarters. Scrub carrots and cut into 3 pieces. Cut 3 lengths of heavy duty foil that are 4 inches longer than your grill. Place foil pieces one on top of another. Place cut vegetables on top of top layer of foil. Drizzle about 1 teaspoons of olive oil per person over vegetables. Sprinkle with seasoned salt. Seal foil by bringing the 2 long sides of the top piece of foil together and folding over 2 to 3 times to make a tube. Seal each open end by folding over 2 to 3 times. Invert closed top layer of foil on second layer and repeat closure procedure. Invert second layer of foil on third and repeat closure procedure. If you are making this for more than 3 people divide into units of 2 or 3 servings per unit. To cook, place on grill over hot "coals". This could be a charcoal grill, propane grill, or the coals of a camp fire. Turn every 10 to 15 minutes. This usually takes about 45 minutes to 1 hour to fully cook.

Dinner - serve 1 to 1 1/2 potatoes, a little less than 1/4 to 1/2 onion, and 1 carrot per person. Place remaining potatoes and onions into a tight sealing container for breakfast storing them in the ice chest.

Breakfast - In a skillet, place a small amount of butter or olive oil. Heat on camping stove and add left over potatoes and onions. Cook over medium high heat. Stir occasionally. When done, the potatoes will be nicely browned and the onions will have started to carmelize.

Ginger Garlic Marinade

6 whole green onions -- cut to 6 " lengths
1 1/2 tablespoons fresh ginger root -- sliced
2 cloves garlic -- crushed
1 teaspoon red pepper flakes -- soaked in oil
1 1/2 teaspoons sugar
1 whole lemon -- juiced
2 tablespoons rice wine vinegar
1 cup soy sauce

In a food processor or blender, finely chop green onions, ginger root and garlic. Add remaining ingredients and process briefly.