Summer Survival Strategies

How to beat the heat on the ranch.

Summer has arrived and brought long days, water sports and ranch rodeos. It has also brought high temperatures, hot winds, greenhead flies and the ever-present question: What should we make for dinner when it’s too hot to eat but people are getting hangry?

I don’t have all the answers. I’m not sure I have any of the answers. Well, maybe like one answer if I think really hard. All I know for sure is that summer is not my favorite season. It’s too long and hot, but mostly, it’s too hot.

If you’re struggling in the heat and dreaming of crisp fall mornings with frost on the ground, here are a few tips. If you have any suggestions to add, please leave them in the comments. I’m always looking for more summer survival strategies. We can get through this if we stay together. Just not too close together. We want to share advice, not body heat.

Switch to straw

Years ago, an old-school buckaroo named Brian Morris pounded a lot of leather across the Great Basin and back again. He has since passed, but rumor has it that he once said, “I’ve done a lot of bad things in my life, but I’ve never worn a straw hat.” With the utmost respect to the late cowboy’s memory, please don’t be like Brian — set your felt hat aside until winter rolls around again and grab a straw hat. Felt hats are the traditional attire of working cowboys, but straw hats can prevent heatstroke. Plus, everyone’s wearing one these days, so this is a great chance to be both kinds of cool at the same time.

Dress like a fisherman

I wore long-sleeved, 100% cotton, button-up shirts for years. Then my husband started wearing polyester shirts with air vents in the back, the kind favored by professional fishermen. He suggested I give them a try. I said no because they didn’t look very cowboy. Also, I didn’t want to risk liking the new shirts, since my spouse suggested them.

But then I tried a fishing shirt and loved it. Now I have one for every day of the week. They look especially good with a straw hat.

Cook outside

It’s too late in the year to roast calf nuts on an open fire in the branding pen, unless you’re way up north or part of a procrastinating wagon crew. If you see the Spanish Ranch guys, tell them it’s not springtime anymore. But you probably won’t see them because they’re still out on the wagon.

So, what’s a person supposed to cook when it’s too hot to turn on the kitchen stove? My favorite strategy is to ask my husband to barbecue. For some reason, he seems to like working outside in the heat all day and then standing near an open flame to make dinner for his family.

This just in: He doesn’t really like that. Not every night, anyway. That’s when we go to hot dogs cooked over a fire in the backyard. These are always a hit at my house, mainly because my children get to use their pocketknives to cut sticks. The food is just a bonus.

Or you can try my kids’ favorite summertime cooking tip: Skip dinner and go straight for the root beer float. It’s a sweet, filling choice endorsed by this mom once in a while because nutritional guidelines don’t apply when the temperature reaches triple digits.