Hills, Hollars and Polk Salad

This is why I love this place so much...

It's rugged but so beautiful at the same time...

It is an amazing view, and even though I've lived here all my life it doesn't stop me from appreciating the awesomeness that is the Ozarks!

The Ozark Mountains have been described as- it's not the height of the mountain, it's the depth of the valley. A lovely and true statement! The only thing is, we don't call them "valleys" here, we call them hollars (pronounced hall-ers) or some say hollow, holla and bottoms.

And while that stunning view of the hollar at our house looks inviting...If you DON'T like CLIMBING- don't hike down to the bottom cause even Jillian Michaels would be WHEEZING after the practically STRAIGHT UP-HILL CLIMB it takes to haul yer butt back outta there!!!

Even when my heath was perty good I still had to take breaks on the way out!

Nowadays I don't think they qualify as "breaks" but more of an "unlimited amount of re-booting the system pauses" :) Which sometimes may or may not lead to me say'n "Go Get The TRUCK!!!"....Hey, ya gotta know yer limits!

Still, I like torture(not really) and I have a short memory span(yes), which means ever-so-often I decide to venture down in the bottom. I LOVE being outside and I grew up play'n in the spring below our house so I just can't resist the temptation to go down to the springs below where I live now to check it out.

The plants, the wildlife, the water, and the rocks!....Oh yeah I am a ROCK HOUND! Everywhere I go I am checking out rocks. I have bags and buckets of them all over my house to prove it.

I look for arrowheads, fossils and just anything cool looking.

The Ozarks has lots of unique plants and Booger County actually has a large variety of plant species. Tons of flowers and herbs! 

Someone gave me a "Wildflowers of Missouri" book and now I'm always trying to identify what type of plant I'm looking at....usually failing miserably, but I try.....

The Old-Timers relied on native plants for food and medicine. These traditions are dying out as our family members age. Lord knows I wish I had asked more questions and learned more from my great-grandmother.

I have a comical old lady voice I like to use on my kids by repeating stuff grandma use to say- the boys love it! One of my favorites is "We need to put a poultice on that"- like if you have a wound or bite- apparently they were good fer all sorts of stuff! Poultice (pronounced, poll-tiss) by the way is leaves and stalks of plants or herbs smashed and beaten to smithereens then the conglommeration was slapped on yer ail'ns (whatever is hurting ya)

Well, one thing Grandma always did that I LOVED to help with was go'n to pick Polk! They say it tastes like Spinach....I didn't say I ate it!.... I said I liked to pick it!

She used it to make Polk Salad (pronounced, poke-salat) Sounds healthy??? IT'S NOT! It's boiled and drained then stir-fried with hot bacon grease poured over it :) Yum, yum right?

You uppity city fellers pay high dollar to get the "organic" and "free-range" foods. Like Water-Cress for instance. We just go down to the spring and pick some :) As for "free-range"??? that term reminds me of the hippie or old-timey people who let their animals run around their yard instead of keep'n them behind the fence- where they belong! Who wants to dodge cow-pies in yer front yard!??? That's just not civilized!!!

So...that's what thoughts I had as I sat here this beautiful evening. Grateful for such good memories. Blessed to live in such a wonderful place.

I love the Ozarks and I love Booger County!

SuzyQ

**Late Addition**

As "Murphy's Law" would have it....the next morning my husband got up and said "Lets all go for a walk in the woods!"....As much as my mind was like "YEAH"...my body was like "NOOOooooo"   But, I went because I love the woods and I love seeing my boys discover new things.

We didn't even go halfway down the hollar and when I made it back to the top- I said, (huffing and puffing)..."Go... get..... the truck!"
Anyway, here's the pic's I took on our morning hike. Enjoy :)

My crew minus Mr Thomas who was hunting that morning with his Grandpa.  We are headed to the woods on the other side of the hay field.

Mr Riley! Yes, he dressed himself...it was a little cool but it warmed up. That's his  BB gun- he thought we might need it...:)

A deer scrape Ty found at the edge of the field under an oak tree.

A buck rub that is almost as tall as Mr Riley....the guys were excited!  We seen several fresh ones that day.

Here's the path the deer were taking. After looking at the picture you can really see the path clearer than actually in person...neat!

One of the varmit holes I found. Looks like an old one.

Snake Root.
Used by settlers and native Indians for various illness.  This plant is poisonous in the right amounts and has been the culprit of "milk sickness" in cattle who have eaten it.

Mr Riley on the old rock pile.
These old rock piles are everywhere around here. They are from farmers clearing the fields for crops and animals and are found near the edge of fields, usually just inside the tree-line of the surrounding woods not suited for clearing due to the steep slopes.

We've actually had city folk swear there are people buried under the rock piles they find on their place...which, of course we find REALLY FUNNY!!! But...it is Booger County...so, ya know, once in a while...that may be true??? Who knows?...:)

I thought the roots of this little tree growing around this rock was pretty cool.
The hillbilly version of those "inspirational" posters that hang in offices- like the one with the little kitten that says "Hang in There!"

Mr Riley inside the hollow tree....notice the coat is now tied around his waist :)

For the lazy hunter....

This was automatically viewed as a challenge!

There he goes.....

Made it!......now, how to get down.......

Another varmit hole.

Mr Riley found a rock he thought I'd want. Pretty cool!

Our destination....a favorite hunting spot!

Ty giving My Riley hunt'n tips while my husband watches...I don't think he wanted to climb up there :)

View from below the rock.

My husband found a hole we never noticed before on the other side of the rock!

It looks pretty cool....there were rocks covering it to hide it.....hmmmmm????

Ringo (our Jack Russell puppy) was a chicken dog and would NOT go in....smelling was enough....

Headed back....this is half way up of our "halfway down" trip.....whew!...feel'n the burn! Actually, I'm on FIRE and having a "break"... :)
Someone go get the TRUCK!!!!