Nature

December 15, 2024December 14, 2024

High Desert Visit

Our week started out sunny, with last week’s snow finally melting away. However, while writing this post, I watch a light snow fall outside my window.

This is a cycle that will repeat itself many times in the coming months.

We plan our travels between the snow events. Roads are cleared quickly and our car is equipped for winter travel, so this is more for our convenience than anything else.

It had been a while since we’d been to Fort Rock, so that was at the top of our list. The trip is short, half an hour’s drive, and while not a major thoroughfare, Highway 31 gets good winter service.

The trip through pine forests onto a sage steppe presents a unique transition. Fort Rock is one of 40 tuff rings located in the Christmas Valley.

Waiting while they mess with that flying camera thing

A hundred thousand years ago it was nearly submerged in an ice age lake.

A mere 12,000 years ago, some poor soul left his shoes in a nearby cave.

The geology and archeology of the Great Basin are one more reason to explore this section of Oregon.

November 24, 2024November 23, 2024

It’s about weather . . . Again

Our week was a deluge of endless ‘black friday’ ads and rain. Not sure when this Black Friday exploded out of control, but it can stop any time, as can the rain.

There was also a winter storm advisory from the weather service. A ‘Snowmageddon’ was supposed to blanket the Pacific Northwest.

For us it was a no-show-mageddon, though some nasty weather hit coastal areas. By week’s end, rain had obliterated any snow accumulation and we were left with cold, wet and gray days.

That is not a complaint. Really.

While we didn’t get out much this week, we weren’t totally dormant.

This pre-winter weather is a perfect time to enjoy soup or stew. And really, what is the difference . . . tomayto, tomahto.

This week we ladled bowls full of steamy French Onion soup. A classic topped with slices of toasted baguette and melty Gruyere cheese. We’ll share the recipe. It’s not a quick cook, but well worth the extra steps.

A great soup cook book is invaluable, especially in winter months.

A couple of years ago JQ picked up a copy of Cook’s Illustrated “All Time Best Soups” and with that began Soup Sunday at the Schommer house.

In the process many of the book’s pages were stained and it’s margins filled with hand scribbled notes . . . signs of a good cook book.

Skies and the ground have cleared and the weatherman is calling for slightly warmer and much sunnier days ahead. So next week we’ll return to our favorite streams and backroads . . . though we are still braced for winter.

Print Recipe

French Onion Soup

Ingredients

SOUP

4 lbs onions sliced through root end into ¼ inch pieces
3 Tbsp unsalted butter cut into 3 pieces
salt and pepper
2 cups water plus extra for deglazing as needed
1/2 cup dry sherry
4 cups chicken broth
2 cups beef broth
6 sprigs fresh thyme tied with twine
1 bay leaf

CROUTONS & CHEESE

1 small baguette cut into ½ inch slices
8 oz Gruyere cheese shredded (2 cups)

Instructions

For the soup

Adjust oven rack to lower-middle position and heat oven to 400 degrees. Generously spray inside of Dutch oven with vegetable oil spray. Add onions, butter, and 1 tsp salt.
Cover and bake until onions wilt slightly and look moist, about 1 hour.
Stir onions thoroughly, scraping bottom and sides of pot. Partially cover pot and continue to cook in oven until onions are very soft and golden brown, 1 1/2 to 1 3/4 hours longer, stirring onions thoroughly after 1 hour.
Carefully remove pot from oven and place over medium-high heat. Using oven mitts to handle pot, continue to cook onions, stirring and scraping pot often, until liquid evaporates, onions brown, and bottom of pot is coated with dark crust, 20 to 25 minutes. If onions begin to brown too quickly, reduce heat to medium. Also, be sure to scrape any browned bits that collect on the spoon back into the onions.
Stir in 1/4 cup water, thoroughly scraping up browned crust. Continue to cook until water evaporates and pot bottom has formed another dark crust, 6-8 minutes. Repeat deglazing 2 or 3 more times, until onions are a very dark brown.
Stir in sherry and cook until evaporated, about 5 minutes. Stir in chicken broth, beef broth, 2 cups more water, thyme bundle, bay leaf, and 1/2 tsp salt, scraping up any remaining brown bits. Bring to simmer, cover, and cook for 30 minutes. Discard thyme bundle and bay leaf and season with salt and pepper to taste.
Soup can be refrigerated for up to 3 days, return to simmer before proceeding.

Croutons and soup prep

Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 400 degrees. Lay baguette slices on rimmed baking sheet and bake until dry, crisp, and lightly golden, about 10 minutes, flipping slices over halfway through baking.
Position oven rack 8 inches from broiler element and heat broiler. Set broiler-safe bowls on baking sheet and fill each with hot soup. Top each bowl with 1 to 2 baguette slices (do not overlap slices) and sprinkle evenly with grated Gruyère cheese.
Broil until cheese is melted and bubbly around the edges, 3-5 minutes. Sprinkle lightly with chopped parsley and serve.

November 17, 2024November 17, 2024

Gray Skies

Winter’s approach stripped the Aspen of leaves

The pall of rain moved in this week . . . literally. But then clear skies returned. That’s a given in Central Oregon.

For the most part, we kept busy this week with indoor activities.

We managed to make it to an interesting lecture on misinformation at the local library.

Plus, we spent a few hours walking around the High Desert Museum . . . both brightened the rainy days that made up most of the week.

We never get tired of watching the otters play.

There’s a space of time as we wait for winter to come on full snow . . . a seasonal shift.

This image is from a multi-media display on water . . . it was fascinating.

Sheltered under gray sky and surrounded by puddles, the period is brief but still dampens one’s spirit.

A water feature runs throughout the grounds surrounding the High Desert Museum.

Fall’s brilliant color displays are dulled with the arrival of winter’s rain.

The sky did clear, but only after depositing a layer of snow. Winter seems early this year, but as with any seasonal shift, we’ll adapt.

November 10, 2024November 9, 2024

Refocused

It doesn’t matter what you call it . . . there are times when it’s important to refocus energy.

This was one of those weeks, and time on a stream is our preferred method.

Looking for a place to start

It was a perfect fall day.

Sun generated enough heat to counter the chill, as long as you were layered up. The Crooked was fishing well, and wildlife was prolific.

Media, mainstream and social, has gotten in the way. The constant barrage of sales and holiday propaganda came to an end . . . severed and throttled, those sources of noise were quieted.

This blog is where we can be found.

It’s a calm niche, carved out of the madness that is swirling about us.

Don’t expect us to click ‘like buttons’ on popular social media sites. If you need to talk, you know how to find us . . .

. . . right here or on the river.

Find a spot of your own and refocus . . . the world is going to get messy.

November 3, 2024November 2, 2024

Seasonal Alignment

Woke to snow falling this morning. It would appear that winter is here. Not an issue, just a shift in travel strategies.

Looking ahead . . . the forecast shows rain, rain and even more rain.

Earlier in the week, we used a crisp, sunny day to take a tour up the Cascade Highway. In late summer the Upper Deschutes is a regular stop.

This year wildfires kept us away. The smoke is gone, but the breath of winter has been felt.

This section of the Deschutes River looks nothing like the lower run that holds big Rainbow and Steelhead.

Afternoon light on Upper Deschutes River

At the source, the Deschute’s crystalline water is rarely more than a couple of feet deep.

It’s home to Redband Trout that are rarely over ten inches. It is perfect for dog wading.

Past September 22, this stretch of water is closed to fishing however, Tip was interested in fetching.

He quickly procured a suitable stick. Well actually, what he showed up with had to be trimmed a bit to serve our needs.

The season of fall is over. There are patches of snow under the trees. A few leaves still cling to branches, but for the most part they carpet the understory.

The wind had a bite . . . so we didn’t linger.

Once Tip had chased a few tosses of stick in the river, he was ready to get back in the car. Afternoon sun can only offer so much warmth. It did make for a very pleasant drive.

There are plenty of sun drenched days ahead. The days may only warm to the high forties, but that just means gloves and sweaters.

Once the early winter rains pass we’ll embrace the snow and shift to a winter schedule . . . starting with installation of a set of snow tires. It’s just that period of adjustment between seasons that is a bit awkward.