Tales of our Food
He Was A Good Pig
The deed is done. Our pigs have been slaughtered, skinned, hung, and butchered. In their five month reign in the lowlands below the house, they fattened themselves on the pastures and literally tons of fruit from the orchards where I work. Their flavor is the flavor...
Mushrooms Among Us
A heavy rain falls. I worry about the roof leaking. I worry about the weight of the water in the trees near our home and limbs falling. I worry about the mud in our pastures and the moisture in our basement. It is fall in the Pacific Northwest. It is a time of the...
Escape From The Chopping Block
We were down to just two ducks in the flock after the raccoons and the eagles got done helping themselves. And of course, as luck would have it, they left us with two hens that hadn't laid a single egg in the past four months. And in creep those pesky moral decisions...
From The Sky To The Table
From a putrefying swamp to a slobbering dog's mouth to the dinner table of some of our best friends, those three mallards hold a special place in my heart. Yes, I will remember them, at least for the next year, as the fruits of Wylie's labors on the best day...
Aw Man, Octopus Agaaaiin!
A cold rain falls in early May in Homer, Alaska. We were enjoying all the stunning ocean scenery and the educational workshops at the Shorebird Festival, but we were beginning to get a bit cold and damp after four days of camping amidst the rain and snow down on the...
Provisioning a Sailboat in Mexico: A Lesson in Patience
We’re out in the wilderness for weeks if not months at a time, so by the time we cross a town or marina, we usually take the opportunity to top off the water, diesel and groceries. Some places are easier to do this than others. Our most recent pit stop...
Hydration, Or The Lack Thereof
When we started the refit on Selkie, we decided to remove a 15 gallon diesel tank in order to store more fresh water. We figured we would be water limited more than anything else in planning our time away from civilization. As it turns out, we’ve yet to come close to...
An Ode To The Triggerfish
For months now, every beach we’ve walked upon that has shown any trace of human existence has been littered with the filleted remains of the triggerfish (Balistes polylepis). With so many fisherman obviously eating this little creature, we have assumed that it was...
Fish and Chipotle Alfredo Over Mole Verde Rice
As promised a few days ago, here’s a good recipe using nothing that requires refrigeration. This of course assumes that you are in a place where you can catch a fresh fish, but I suppose canned sardines or herring would do well also. First, you must row out into the...
We Drag Anchor and Lose Bojangles
The next island on the route was Isla Partida, shown in the guidebook to have two anchorages, one with protection from northerlies and one with protection from southerlies. The forecast called for moderate northwest wind, and it looked like we’d have decent...
Tianguis: A Farmer’s Market Mexican Style
The smoke of pork fat and adobado dripping on mesquite coals greets us as we enter the market place of Empalme. The ice mongers yell over the roar of the cutters that turn block into cubes, and beneath that, the chatter of barter consumes all else. Tianguis is what...