Behold the Beauty of Iowa

Kayaks staged in front of Jane and Ken's place - ready to party! 

The Mississippi River is not the Rhone River in France - where I expected to travel to this summer with my three sisters. Like everyone, the whole world and along with it our plans changed when the pandemic hit. Since March Paul and I have laid pretty low. For excitement and enjoyment, I mostly sit on the deck and watch bikes, people, and dogs passing by. I take walks in the neighborhood and drive to trails around DSM, where I walk whilst listening to books. 

Once the shutdown eased up Paul and I traveled to Colorado over Memorial Weekend - slipping in a visit to Amy and Corey and sister Cindo. A couple of weeks ago we finally made it to Saint Louis to see Jud and Kara before Baby Girl G makes her arrival in September. Both of those trips were so wonderful and reassuring. We didn't do anything exciting, go out or try new restaurants. We were just with each other. The best!

When we made both of those trips, we kinda felt like we were kids who "snuck out" at night while our parents were sleeping, with quick stops only for gas along the way. Those family visits lifted and reassured us. Everyone needs something to look forward to.

Paul and I decided much earlier this year that it was time to see our friends Jane Ertl Root and Ken Root who make their summer home Esmann Island near Guttenberg on the Mississippi in NE Iowa. When the shutdown happened, we still had that date out there in July and put that "depending on the state of things" disclaimer on there, not knowing if they would even want visitors. Lucky for us when the selected weekend came up, it was all systems go in their part of the world. 

Clayton County, Iowa, despite being a summer home location, has only had 82 total Covid cases. Guttenberg is a riverfront city with Lock and Dam number 10 on the Mississippi. The population is just under 2,000, but it seems bigger due to the summer residents - people with second homes there to take advantage of the beautiful perch on the big water. 

Last Friday was our day to "sneak out" once again! We are still trying to keep exposure low - from us and to us. So we decided on a one night trip and are thankful for gracious hosts who accommodated our schedule and welcomed us into their home. One of the hardest things about seeing friends now is hugging. Do it? Don't? I've done both. 😕 I can't wait for hugging to be cool again! 

Farmstead NE of Cedar Rapids

After being sequestered at home - and perhaps because of my advancing age, now more than ever I enjoy seeing the passing beauty as we drive. We took Highway 330, the diagonal from I-80 up to Highway 30, ending on Highway 136, a road from there to Guttenberg. From majestic barns to the beauty of a lone tree, perfectly shaped in the middle of nowhere, I took it all in. Of course, Paul scopes out all of the wildlife. 

We drove through Paul's hometown, Earlville on our journey. Paul's folks and sister Connie are buried there. It's a pretty little town not far from Dubuque. We were a bit taken aback by the confederate flag hanging on the porch of one of the first homes we saw entering the town. Huh? Paul's folks' former home looks well-kept. George and Laura moved there from the farm when Paul as a senior in high school. It was the only house I knew them to live in, though his brother Larry and wife Regina and their five boys lived at the home place - a farm southeast of town. 

As I said, starting at Dyersville, where Paul attended high school at Beckman Catholic School and met Jane Ertl, we drove on Highway 136. It's a scenic road that winds through small fairly well-kept towns and beautiful churches. Side-note, I first met Jane during my sophomore year at ISU when my roomie Vic and I pulled a tab off of a sign in our dorm elevator looking for girls to go on a spring break ski trip. Jane was part of that group of seven. So I met her before I met Paul. Later it turned out she dated one of his good friends - but that's a whole 'nother story! 

Sign photo - courtesy Jane Ertl Root

Back to the drive - I wish I would have taken time to snap a picture of a sign outside of a little market store in Luxemburg - it claimed wares: "peaches, melons, acid, pencils". What else could one need? The terrain gets quite hilly along the Mississippi in that area. We pulled over at a scenic overlook along a 10% grade. No doubt it's gorgeous there in the fall as from that location, with the vista across the Mississippi to Wisconsin. 

I can see Wisconsin from here

Guttenberg is the home of Lock and Dam 10. Boats and barges pass through - a step to climb or descend as they travel north or south. The town is not as busy in the winter because warmer months bring lots of water people from all over the midwest. Jane's folks have property on Abel/Esmann Island that is connected to Guttenberg. 

Our first visit to the area was in 1982 when Jane invited college friends to her parents' place there. It was an idyllic summer day when a bunch of us piled into the Ertl's big yellow boat. We water skied and found a sandbar with a tree and a rope to swing out over the water. Plus beer! Jane even took the Catholics to an outdoor mass on the Wisconsin side of the river. We were likely a bit buzzed, were dressed in swimwear, and the entire mass lasted about 15 minutes. Maybe all churches should go to that model!

The island has become much fancier since the early 1980s. There are still a few tiny shacks (we even saw one with a sign that said "Love Shack" - it had a tin roof), but now there are homes worth many $$. Jane's folks, Joe and Helen, have a home right on the water and Jane and Ken live across the street. When we arrived we got the tour in their fancy golf cart. Everyone has one of those or a 4 wheeler. On island, there seems to be no rules, anyone can drive a cart and you look weird if you don't have a beverage. Paradise. There is a pond with a beach that looked to be quite popular. After the tour, we sat in their screened-in porch just enjoying the view and conversation with our hosts. That would be easy to get used to! 

Jane thinks of everything! 

Friday night we took Jane and Ken's pontoon out for a ride on a beautiful summer night on the water. We saw people camping on beaches along the river and others hanging out on sandbars. The water is perfect, though muddy. Later we dined with Jane's son Michael back on the porch. Delish smoked meats and sweet corn. Have I mentioned Ken is a media professional? And since I'm a blogger, we're peers. haha. I don't really wish to compare my few years of writing a newspaper column at the Creston News Advertiser and this blog with his decades of media work. But it's my blog and I just did! Ken is now mostly retired and loving it. I do want to share his latest piece on sweet corn - pasted below as I can't figure out how to link the audio file. It's delicious! And since I failed at taking a photo of our hosts, I stole this one off of their Facebook page - from last week after they scaled Iowa's Pike's Peak on their bikes. Impressive! 

Jane Ertl Root and Ken Root

Saturday morning broke sunny and hot - a great day for kayaking! Ken decided to stay home and be the chef ready with breakfast when we arrived back. Ken dropped us and our kayaks off at a place in the backwater that Jane likes. Lily pads are gorgeous right now, with flowers blooming. Again - I have a new appreciation for the beauty all around me. We mostly paddled in backwater areas, but we did cross the main channel two times with a breeze in our faces. Two barges went by so we timed our crossings to avoid them, but they really don't put out much of a wake. Speed boats are worse. 

Leslie, Jane and Paul paddle the Mississippi and backwater

The whole trip took about 2 hours to paddle back to the beach of a couple properties they own on the island. Then we drove the staged golf cart back to their place and came back with the truck to get our kayaks. It was our boats' first river trip and they did great! And Chef Ken's breakfast hit the spot after our paddle. Too soon, it was time to go. It would be nice just to hang out there for a week, or a summer. Still - to limit exposure, our plan was to keep it brief. 

With thanks to our hosts, we were off at mid-day to stop in Northwood, Iowa to visit Paul's sis Carol on our way home. Northwood is right off of I-35 close to the Minnesota border. Early in our marriage, when Amy was born, we lived near there in Osage, Iowa. So we always like to drive through that town when we're in the area. Our journey took us through Winneshiek County - by the landfill, which I always like to see. One I never got to visit during my DNR years. Yes, I still find landfills fascinating. 

When we arrived in Northwood, we had to call Carol. It seemed she was not in her own place but was a couple of doors down hanging with her homies. Carol has a posse of women who meet every afternoon around 3 PM, which is wonderful, especially now. We call Carol the Goldsmith family matriarch. She's 18 years older than he is - and left home right about the time he was born. Still, as adults, they (and I) have become close friends. I'm glad she has a group of friends to be with each day as she lives far from her family. It was nice to see her, meet her cat "Kitty", eat Casey's pizza, and some delicious brownies with ice cream. 

We arrived home at 9 PM Saturday. In Covid times we couldn't ask for a better 36 hours. In August we are looking forward to a visit from my sisters Cindy and Betsy. Fingers crossed that all systems remain go for that low key trip. I hope you, dear reader, have something in your future to look forward to!  

As promised - not quite as fresh as right from the field sweet corn:

Weekend Ag Matters - I wish you could hear it from him as we did because he's got a great radio voice, just like my pal Robyn. 

July 25,2020

Ken Root

Sweet Corn

We live in corn country here in Iowa.  The state grows thirteen million acres of it in a normal year and there are very few miles of roadway that are not flanked by the tall green stalks.

But, for me, the most important corn is sweet corn.

Grown on very limited acreage in gardens and highly cultivated fields, it is the ultimate fruit of summer.

My Facebook friends are posting photos of their children and grandchildren eating corn on the cob.  Everyone is smiling, the kid’s faces are smeared with butter and the moment lives on with all who love its flavor.

This summer is proving somewhat challenging to find the good stuff.  The farmer’s markets are closed due to CoVid 19.  Roadside stands are popping up and some of the creative marketers have “drive thru” sheds where they have the just picked ears ready for sale. 

For the few of you who are uninitiated to the ritual of finding, cooking and eating sweet corn, I’ll give you the basic technique and you may then modify to fit your own needs.

First, it has to be fresh.  I have heard of people starting the pot of water heating before they head to the patch to pick the peck that they bring in, shuck, silk and dunk. 

Second, assuming you are going to buy it, the ears need to be heavy with brown silk.  I like bi-color kernels (called peaches and cream) Some like yellow and others like white corn.  Some like it immature with small blister like kernels that pop in your mouth and others like it mature with large kernels which require chewing.

Third, don’t cook it too long.  If you boil it, put some salt in the water of a large pot and when it boils, dump in the ears, shut off the heat and put a lid on the pot.  In one to five minutes, it is ready.   The corn should be hot enough to melt butter which can be applied in approximately 100 ways.

Next, take control of the cob.  You can stick skewers in each end or just grab it (watch out for the heat). 

(You can microwave it by wrapping in wet paper towels or some neat little blankets.  Hit it at full power, for about one minute per ear.)

Some people like it naked, meaning no salt, butter or other adulterations.  Most like an oil oozing over the kernels. Some like special seasonings………whatever!

At this point, all you have to do is bite the kernels off the ear.  This is the point of MAXIMUM joy.  You may randomly bite and chew or you may use the Underwood Typewriter method, starting from left and moving right to the end and then going back to the left and starting again.

It is not sinful to cut the corn off the cob but it's about like eating ribs with a knife and fork.  If you have ill fitting dentures or some issue with corn sticking between your teeth, go ahead, just don’t call attention to yourself.

How much you eat is up to you.  Corn comes by the dozen.  I feel insulted if I don’t get at least 2 large ears.  I can eat six.

As you consume this delicacy, you should be approaching heaven.  The corn should pop with a sweet and starchy texture and the butter should carry it to the back of your mouth where you have the option of bringing it around one more time for an encore or just swallowing it and going for another bite.

There is no delicate way to eat sweet corn, so don’t try.

My rule: “Don’t start without a napkin and don’t finish without dental floss.”  Smearing the butter on your face as you chow down is totally acceptable but wipe your face and drink some iced tea between bites.

Disposing of the cob should be on your own plate but not back with the good corn that has yet to be eaten.

The season can be brief, just from the end of June to late August.  Some growers are crowding the earlier dates as the corn is worth as much as seven dollars a dozen in early season.  Right now, we are in prime time for quality and abundance.  Look for trailers with an honor box at strategic intersections.  Even though no one is there, your conscience should cause you to put your money in the slot.  Think of the young child, helping grandpa pick a few bushels and promised the proceeds of the sales.  There you go, guilt is an ugly thing.

Sometimes the simplest things are the best.  An ear of immature corn, bred for sweetness and texture, harvested in the midst of summer and boiled right out of the shuck. It just doesn’t get any better.

That's the way I see it. 

I'm Ken Root for Weekend Ag Matters