Good times at the River Ranch
“Scotty's Landing to close” got my attention. John Scott, the current owner of the restaurant and bar, was just a youngster when we were kids. I wonder if he remembers us.
In the mid-afternoon, two of us, or at least some of the five “Brumbaugh” kids, would ask for the same things at the Scotty's Boat Landing counter: 16-ounce RC colas and Big Hunk candy bars. Enough for everyone working, some of us kids and Dad, depending on the job at hand.
We were working in our orchard — hoeing, moving pipe, spraying weeds or whatever — which was down the road from Scotty's a bit. It was mid-afternoon when whoever went after the treat got back. We would all sit against the tree trunks and savor our treats. The RC's deliciousness and the Big Hunk's tastiness made the chore seem worth it.
I remember how the cola refreshed my whistle on hot summer days. The crunchy candy awakened the stomach with just the right punch. Without fail, our father made the workday a little bit better every time we went to work at the River Ranch.
Our family managed the property through many seasons, including the flood seasons, when the water covered the tree trunks. Back then, the river flowed right next to Scotty's, and it was scary when it overflowed. You couldn't drive the road during the flooding. It was flooded out. The water flowed down the rows into an unmanaged creek.
That property had a sense of the unexpected. My brother spent a great deal of time climbing the frazzled branches and stuff found in the cattywampus creek. He always was an adventurer. We worked the property through many seasons, from childhood till we were in college. I remember when my college friends helped with a pipe move. When we were youngsters, I remember playing “truck and cars” next to the ditch where the irrigation water flowed as it started its way around the property.
That ditch, made with a ditch-digger tool, made a ditch for the water to course, laid down in lines, and siphoned out of siphon pipes placed over the ditch bank. The water ran down the rows, and some water even made it to the slough. We'd make elaborate homes. The Johnsongrass heads made lovely trees for our play!
And then there was the moving of equipment. Some things don't seem that remarkable until much later. My dad, for instance, was a master at moving equipment. You see, we didn't live on the property, and Dad had the homeplace also to farm, which meant he would often have to move his equipment on the equipment-carrier from one place to the other.
Sometimes, he needed a tractor. He'd go to the northwest end of the property and load the tractor using his makeshift loading dock. He used an incline that was there. Dad drove the tractor up and parked it on the truck with only about an inch to spare on each side. Then, he would chain it down and put wood blocks to hold the tractor in place. At times, he used planks to drive the equipment up on the truck.
Seeing the article about Scotty's made me think of our many memories. Mary, the mom, would wait on us. She was fun and always took time for us. We'd talk a bit before we left. Then we walked to the property, where we would eat our candy bars and drink the RCs. That's a positive, happy, and refreshing memory. Scotty's Landing, though we never lived next to it, the feelings flooded all around me.