There have been extenuating circumstances, though, and matters way beyond my humble control. Well, some matters.
Last Saturday, I had just begun to gather my thoughts for posting tamale recipes when I smelled smoke. Pine smoke. Our mountain town, Flagstaff, sits in the middle of a beautiful, lush ponderosa pine forest - a recreational paradise laced with traces and trails, cinder hills and hidden washes. Wild forest lands interface throughout the city, and in many of our parks you'd never know you were still in town...Pine smoke during fire season is usually a bad sign. Stepping outside to investigate, this was on the southern horizon...
...the Hardy fire, burning hot and moving explosively inside the city
limits, fed by drought and 35 mph winds, headed in our general
direction. We packed a "bug-out" bag and waited by the radio for
information. Although several neighborhoods were evacuated, including
the Coconino Humane Association compound, we were not among the
evacuees, thank goodness. Several fire/air resources already working a
fire about 20 miles to the northwest were diverted to stomp on it...
As the wind subsided overnight, and evening temperatures moved in, the
fire began to lie down and be less aggressive. Firefighters worked
through the night, and although it's not yet fully contained, huge sigh of
relief was felt throughout Flagstaff. Until Sunday afternoon...
...when the Schultz fire exploded on the mountain to the northeast of
our home, and the mad scramble began anew. It spread rapidly through
the dry forest driven, again, by high winds. Prayers were said for the
safety of hikers, campers and cyclists who may have been trapped in one
of Flagstaff's most popular outdoor recreation areas (at the end of the
day, all were safely accounted for). Little information was available
for the next couple of hours, except evacuation orders, including Second Chance Center for Animals, the animal rescue organization where Humane Society animals had been sent by the Hardy fire the previous day.
With no information about this second fire available yet, Kris and I drove around a bit, trying to get a feel for where it was located, and which way it was headed...this was the view from Buffalo Park, just west of our neighborhood.
Going to Buffalo Park gave us a feel for the scope of the fire, but not
much information about its location, so we drove further, out to
Cosnino, toward the east. This was taken about two hours after the
start of the fire...
Somewhat reassured that our home was safe, and that we were well
removed from the need to evacuate, we drove home across Rt. 66. Air
resources were already deployed, trying to keep the fire out of
neighborhoods at the foot of the mountain. A helicopter is visible in
this photo, in the area where the mountain meets the trees in the
foreground...
Situated just across the highway from the fire, Second Chance Center
for Animals (along with Humane Society animals evacuated from the Hardy
fire) was ordered to evacuate to the county fairgrounds. I am SO
impressed at how efficiently the move went! Forty-five minutes from the
time the order went out, all the animals, their records, the mobile
clinic, and staff had been relocated! Incredible job.
When the call went out for supplies, blankets, and volunteers I couldn't stay put any longer, drove over to see how I might be of help, and wound up spending an intense week. Walking dogs, cleaning cages, doing laundry, feeding animals and humans (who, btw, LOVED the quinoa tabouli!), taking pictures and pitching in wherever until a couple of days ago, when the animals were allowed home.
This is a view of the fire Monday evening (day 2), taken on the way home from the fairgrounds.
My home is located at the base of the mountain to the right of the photo, near that first canyon.
The fairgrounds was a staging area for several of the hotshot crews, and directly on the helicopters' flight path from the lake to the fire...
The helicopters hover over a lake and suck water up through that dangly
hose-thingy, then fly over to the fire. Trapdoors in the bottom open to
drop the water on the fire. Way fracking cool!
Police officers found a billy-goat wandering loose in one of the evacuated neighborhoods and brought him to the fairgrounds in a patrol car. We aptly named him "Chagall," after the painter...
It was dirty, smelly, exhausting work, but so completely gratifying. I love how our mountain town pulls together in a crisis.
Finally, I want to talk about this guy. I don't know his name or where
he comes from, but he and about 800 of his co-workers have been doing
this, day-in and day-out, round the clock, in the woods near my home.
Nine days from the start, the fire has consumed 23 square miles and is at 65% containment, but with with no loss of life and no structural losses, largely due to the work these men and women do. Blessings on them all...we can't thank them enough.
(photo linked from MSNBC)
This has become a pretty long post, with lots of photos. There's more to say, and many more photos to share; if you'd like to see more pictures, I'll be posting them in a folder in the right sidebar in the next couple of days.
Now, since this is a food blog, I've got to put some sort of food thing in here, albeit at the end...
My cooking-challenged companion, Kris, back at home, still needed to eat while I was away. Here's one of the ways I kept her fed while I was out feeding the dogs. Made in a crock-pot slow cooker, the original recipe calls for 2 pounds of boneless pork butt. Being out of pork and with no time to shop, I substituted skinless chicken legs and thighs...Vegetarians, I wouldn't try this with tofu, but you might give tvp or tempeh a whirl. If you do, let me know how it comes out, okay?
Memphis Brewed Pulled BBQ Chicken
- 1 bottle of brown beer
- 1/4 cup Worcestershire sauce
- 1 tablespoon ground mustard powder
- 1 tablespoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- 1/4 cup brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon smoke flavoring
- sprinkle of dried crushed red chilies
- 3 or so pounds skinless chicken legs and thighs
- 1 medium onion, diced
It's been an intense hairy week. Thanks for hanging in here with me, checking to see if I've posted anything. Tamale recipes coming soon, I promise!
Glad to be back in Spike's Kitchen, and not in Hell's Kitchen up on the mountain! Come again soon.