camp chef Eddie, moderator and friend ouchie, and the "Georgia Boys" maglight and gun slinger converse as we wait for others to arrive.

our esteemed campsite dutch oven expert Elizabeth, her girls, and our daughter cut up produce and do prep work for the meals to come.

ouchie and Ghostwolf, sharing a cup and a conversation... this was to set the tone for the whole gathering.

livesalone, dissimulator, and livealone's son have made their way into the main campsite.

From the beginning, the Hoodlum young were usually to be found in the trees.

The Ballards enoy some pre-dinner papaya salsa

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camp chef Eddie, moderator and friend ouchie, and the "Georgia Boys" maglight and gun slinger converse as we wait for others to arrive.

     Friday Dinner

Dinners (and breakfasts) at our gathering were prepared by our friends Eddie and Elizabeth, known as E&E, with a little help from attending Hoodlums.  E&E's outdoor cooking skills and menus are incredible, as anyone who has had the pleasure of eating with them can attest to.  We are fortunate to have them both as friends and as volunteers to cook for this crew.  Meal time is always a favorite part of the gatherings that they cook at.  The after dinner festivities broke up early when a thunderstorm came through.

maglight builds a fire in the firebox for cooking coals

gunslinger shows off his cooking skills as he helps with dinner preparations

maglight and gunslinger season the chicken quarters on a table they let us use for the purpose

transferring chicken from the seasoning table to the grill

swede joins in the chicken transfer

rcwalla's daughter helps with dinner too... she is stirring the bacon that went into the dutch oven bacon potatoes

Georgia gentleman maglight puts down coals for Elizabeth so she can put dutch oven dishes on to cook

out of one of the dutch ovens comes delicious pineapple upside down cake

looks like the chicken is about ready to serve

swede and Scrap Iron, following the request that everyone bring their own mess kits, have their "plates" ready.

Scrap Iron has settled for a more modest plate, but still managed to get his food first.

Dissimulator has gotten his dinner and retires to a quiet chair to enjoy it.

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maglight builds a fire in the firebox for cooking coals

Saturday Morning

It is Saturday morning and Hoodlums are sharing coffee and conspiring.

Oh No! Call the park ranger... it's crazy hoodlums weilding machetes!...

No, it's just tepe and almark... almark has a new toy and tepe is working on a walking stick.

bq is just wanting to take a picture of E&E's camp dog, Jack... but he is way to close to Jack's tortilla

"my tortilla"

T R Zimmerman is ready to take us on a much anticipated Plant ID hike.

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It is Saturday morning and Hoodlums are sharing coffee and conspiring.

Plant Identification Hike with Ethnobotanist T.R. Zimmerman

Mr. Zimmerman once again honored us with his presence at our gathering and took us on a hike to identify plants and their usefulness.  We discussed local Juniper, thistles, oak, mesquite, and other plants he identified along the way.   It is always a pleasure to learn from Mr. Zimmerman.  Please visit Texas Wilderness  Resource Awareness Project at www.tx-wrap.com for more information on classes and information guides by Mr. Zimmerman.  We offer our thanks to Mr. Zimmerman and his assistant Kevin Rambo for attending our gathering, and extend thanks to Mr. Ballard for making the arrangements.

Mr. Zimmerman discusses the identification and uses of local juniper.

discussing the suprisingly edible mesquite tree

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Mr. Zimmerman discusses the identification and uses of local juniper.

Saturday Afternoon

Back at the campsites Saturday afternoon, there was much going on.  Some were carving walking sticks, some were carving rabbit sticks.  Livesalone brought gourds and showed us how to make gourd containers.  A few industrious fellows took off to enjoy the falls... without me :( .  Leathernut and his awesome wife, also known as Dwayne and Stacy of Armoralleather, assisted with cooking and activities throughout the weekend.  Stacy, who mostly evaded the camera, was right hand to both myself and Elizabeth.  Dwayne, unable to completely take off work for the gathering, was working on the sheaths he is famous for when not assisting us with something.  Our thanks to both of them.  Of course, amid all this fun were conversations informative and/or hilarious. 

Rabbit Sticks and Walking Sticks
The rabbit stick contest, scheduled for Sunday morning, was rained out.

Ghostwolf shows the rabbit sticks he and our pup carved at home last year to give an example of a carved rabbit stick compared to a raw one.

Dissimulator begins work on a rabbit stick.

It is not long before he has stripped the bark off the wood and carved a smooth surface. Here he saws the raw edge off with his new SAK saw blade.

Livesalone has the rabbit stick fever as well and borrows Ghostwolf's Fehrman to work on her stick.

Ghostwolf is working on a cedar walking stick with his Cold Steel Kukri LTC.

The kukri has a good edge on it. Just a little bump brings blood.

eagle gets in on the rabbit sticks as well... wisely using a safety glove on one hand.

leathernut takes a break from his leather work to sharpen a blade or two for others

maglight begins work on his rabbit stick.

maglight improvises a workbench to continue the crafting of his rabbit stick.

the Hoodlum young participate in the stick carving as well while enjoying conversation in the space they appropriated for their own use.

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Ghostwolf shows the rabbit sticks he and our pup carved at home last year to give an example of a carved rabbit stick compared to a raw one.

 

Gourds

Livesalone brought gourds for everyone to work on and showed us how to prepare them for bowls and water containers

Livesalone shows me the technique for weaving tops onto gourd bowls

swede with his gourd

eagle talks with one of his sons while working on his gourd

maglight has decided to macrame a holder for his gourd water carrier... dissimulator assists him.

maglight finishing the strap

the finished product

maglight sports his new water bottle

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Livesalone brought gourds for everyone to work on and showed us how to prepare them for bowls and water containers

 

Other Goings-on

Leathernut works on sheaths

hmmmm... Elizabeth is cooking something that smells good

it is cracklins... tastes like pork rinds... yummy

Ghostwolf and rcwalla guard the coolers and enjoy a conversation

these adventureous Hoodlums took off to see the falls... without me.

bq, who flew in to join us, is contemplating the beautiful water and scenery

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Leathernut works on sheaths

 

 

Saturday Dinner

At some point during all the outdoor crafts, E&E have begun making dinner.

Eddie is once again tending the grill

gunslinger is making more meat sop

the pork roasts are done

we also have pork ribs to enjoy!

Elizabeth and Stacy have prepared some amazing dishes. Top row is peach cobbler and mashed potatoes. Bottom row is cornbread and black-eyed peas.

we also enjoyed pinto beans and corn.

yes, that is swede WASHING DISHES. Are you seeing this mrs. swede?

looks like more of the men chipped into help under the supervision of Stacy

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Eddie is once again tending the grill

 

 

After Dinner

After dinner we all enjoyed wonderful conversation and fellowship as our full stomachs settled.  One of the things discussed was the expectation of more rain and thunderstorms during the night.

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Sunday Morning

The expected storms arrived early Sunday morning.  Many of us got the opportunity to learn that our tents and shelters leaked when faced with a severe downpour.    We still enjoyed an awesome breakfast that E&E managed to produce during the rain, as well as coffee and good company.  But it was only after the rain let up that my camera came out.

the sun actually began to peak out after the torrential rain stopped. bq, GW, mrs. Swede, and swede enjoy the waterless air.

stew's dog was admired by all for her beauty, temperment and good manners... here our own pup enjoys her company.

we managed a modest but enjoyable trade table. The young ones got involved too and were very proud of the treasures they took away

me still in my rain poncho bidding farewell to Mr. Zimmerman

Elizabeth's cooking has earned her a new admirer in Mr. Zimmerman

Brumbie finally rolled in with his dad while we were preparing to go... it was no hardship to delay leaving to catch up with this old friend

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the sun actually began to peak out after the torrential rain stopped. bq, GW, mrs. Swede, and swede enjoy the waterless air.

 

 

For more pictures from Spring Thing, visit:   Bill Quall's Wilderness Survival Page

 

Thank you to everyone who joined us for Spring Thing.
Thank you to Eddie and Elizabeth for your hard work cooking for us once again.
Also thanks to Ron and Karen Hood of Hoods Woods for providing the forum community that brings us all together. 

See you in the fall!!!