Imagine a place where cell phones don't work, cows outnumber people, and time is measured by the sun in the sky. We were transported to such a place when we turned onto a dirt road that is quite literally off-the-map; GPS couldn't locate it, even if it tried! We knew we were in for a rare treat the moment our Xterra's wheels began kicking up dust on the gravel road, and our cell phones suddenly read, "No Service."
I say "rare treat" because I don't recall the last time that life forced me away from the electronic leash of the digital world of Facebook and my iPhone. We didn't realize our phones would get zero service out there, and we both welcomed the "off-switch" with a sense of relief! You could almost feel the swarm of electric nonsense start to turn off in our minds. As the GPS powered off, we found ourselves relying on instinct and we had to dust off that old-fashioned thing they call, "sense of direction."
Creekwalk Farm is owned by Alison and Caleb, who Ty considers family since they spent summers as camp councilors for years at Camp Jack Hazard. We were greeted by the sweetest smiling faces of Alison, Caleb, and their two young boys, Huxley and Roland. It was a sticky-hot day in the Midwest, so Ty immediately became a self-proclaimed farmhand by climbing into the pigpen and spraying the oinking hogs with water. After many months of stressful jobs and hustling through the day to day of our everyday lives, Ty and I were a bit shell-shocked when we first arrived on the farm. I think we looked like silly city-folk at first as we stepped carefully through the long grasses in our Rainbow flip-flops, and snapped pictures of the pigs, roosters, cows and barns as if we were cheesy tourists! I suppose we are, in a way, but it was only a matter of hours before the magic of the farm began to seep into the depths of our soul, and we left our typical life and expectations, behind. We got a tour of the farm, and I was impressed with how much Alison and Caleb had created! They pretty much live completely sustainably, raising their own roosters and hens for poultry, livestock for milk and meat, and growing every type of vegetable imaginable! They also compost everything, so their farm produces almost no waste. My mind has been buzzing with how we would describe our experiences on Creekwalk Farm, and I decided to focus most on the food, because it's purity fed our bodies and souls with energy that you just don't get from the typical American diet. We spent two days on the farm, and during that time, we knew exactly where every ingredient on our plate came from. I've never experienced that before, and it got me thinking of how neglected my tastebuds and body have been. So many of us really are disconnected from the foods we fuel our bodies with, and I often find myself chewing without really paying attention to the taste and textures of my meal. For dinner that evening, Alison cooked rooster meat from a rooster that they had just slaughtered, and a salad of ripe tomatoes, cold cucumber, and creamy cheese that was fresh from neighboring farms. Alison and Caleb seemed to have a great network of farming neighbors who all shared and swapped their goods with each other. During our short stay, there were many neighbors who knocked on the door to get a fresh Mason Jar of cow's milk from the cow that Alison milked each morning. As we all sat comfortably talking after dinner, Alison began cutting up locally grown peaches for the peach cobbler that would soon fill the wooden home with a warm and sweet smell of summer fruit in the oven. Their neighbor Roger dropped by to pick up a fresh pint of milk from the cow, and he offered to give us a ride in the old Model T Ford that he had restored! We all climbed into the historical car that seemed to be right out of an antique roadshow, and we drove down the quiet dirt road with nothing but the star-filled sky and natural songs of nature to guide our way.
As the sun began to set, we were warned about the poisonous snakes that are out and about. Now if they mentioned spiders, I may have hopped in the car and headed for the nearest hotel, but snakes I can handle. The best part about nightfall was the sounds. They were all natural, no annoying horn-honking that was so prevalent in New Haven. The moon and the stars were all the light we needed, and the bugs created an orchestra of music for us.
Cicada bugs were unlike any bug we'd ever seen before. They crawl out of the ground at dusk and begin to emerge out of their shells. It's crazy because it's a huge bug, then it's back splits open and an even huger bug with long wings climbs out! Yes, we encountered some interesting creatures on the farm.
More about the Farm to Table dining we did at every meal on the next post.