Columnist Susan Snyder: A day for modern pioneers

Tuesday, Oct. 9, 2001 | 8:17 a.m.

Never had the slightest idea what he meant. It typically prefaced some kind of misery, such as being cold, wet or cooped up in a tent-camper with my brother for a whole weekend.

There will be no such nonsense Saturday during Spring Mountain Ranch State Park's annual Pioneer Living Day. But pioneer stock will abound.

Volunteers from local community groups and the state park's docent staff will provide visitors with a full day of 19th century activity. You can sample Dutch oven cooking, listen to mountain men's tales, watch a blacksmith in action and see school how it used to be -- hickory switch and all.

We now interrupt this regularly scheduled column to bring you full disclosure. I am a docent at Spring Mountain Ranch.

"Docent" is a fancy word that refers to the volunteer tour guides who answer questions and escort visitors through the historic area and ranch house. We attended 13 weeks of classes, including one session where we "got to" touch lizards and snakes.

(For the record, I do not care for classroom materials that arrive by pillow case.)

I am revealing my connection so you'll know I am biased when I say Spring Mountain Ranch is a swell place to spend a day, especially in autumn. I felt that way before I became a docent, but now you know and my editors will not fire me.

We now return to your regularly scheduled column.

Pioneer Living Day is one of 11 living history programs offered from September through November. Karen Rennick, the park's interpretive ranger, started it nine years ago with a couple of demonstrations.

Now she has visitors panning for gold, learning to cook on a chuckwagon and hearing first-person impressions by ranch historic figures such as Chet Lauck, who built the ranch house-turned visitors' center in 1948, and Old Bill Williams, a mountain man who lived there in the 1840s.

"I wanted to do something to get people out here to see this resource. Not enough people know about it," Rennick said. "These are the only intact buildings of the pioneer era (in the valley)."

The activity begins at 10 a.m. and runs until 4 p.m. The park's entrance is on the north side of State Route 159, one mile east of Blue Diamond. Admission is $5 per vehicle. For more information call the park office at 875-4141.

There will be plenty of hands-on fun Saturday, including a square dance and a chance to see how tough it was just to get the wash done. Nothing says "pioneer stock" like lifting a sopping quilt from a tub full of water and trying to wring it by hand.

" 'Wash on Monday; iron on Tuesday' wasn't just a saying. It literally took all day," Rennick said.

Other demonstrations will include soap-making, candle-dipping, making thread on a spinning wheel and weaving cloth on a loom.

I suppose I also should mention I will be there dressed as a Laura Ingalls Wilder nightmare and helping children try their hands at needlepoint.

Go ahead and laugh.

Just remember I'll be the one with needles.

Pioneer stock indeed.