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February 2008 Newsletter
Howdy folks, Happy (late) Leap Year and welcome to another month gone by with the Texas Camel Corps. An extra special "Howdy" to new recipients, too. Having recently switched computers, it required that I juggle around the list of recipients. I hope not to have lost anyone and, in recovering the list, I may have inadvertently added some addresses of folks who don’t want to be on here. I’m sure I’ll here from you if you’re among this group. Go easy on me, but please avail yourself of the easy-to-follow instructions at the bottom of this email to be removed from future mailings.
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On the 7th and 8th, camels Richard and Gobi and I headed south. Waaaaay south, to Kingsville, Texas. Texas A&M University there has its annual Ranching Heritage Festival and we were proud to be a part of it for two days, visiting with South Texas schoolchildren and even a few snowbirds (Canadians who winter in those parts). Temps, by the way, were in the mid-80’s during our visit; I can see why the folks from north of the border flock this way!
While camels don’t strictly tie into ranching in an historical context in Texas, my educational presentations centering on the historic U.S. Army Camel Corps do touch on the role camels played in settling parts of the West, making it safe for further expansion in the 19th century.
The great thing about presenting programs in some parts of Texas is the questions kids ask come straight off the ranch. "Do you ride a camel with a bit?" "Can you use regular latigoes, cinches and off-billets with a camel?" These aren’t the kinds of questions kids in downtown Houston ask, that’s for sure! So many children in South and West Texas still have livestock and live in rural settings, so it’s always a pleasure to spend time in these areas.
Big thanks to Hal Ham and the folks at TAMU, Kingsville.
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On February 18/19 it was my great honor, and indeed pleasure, to be asked to share some images and anecdotes from my recent Egypt/Sinai trips with students at Baylor University. Professor William Baker, Arabic and Middle East Studies, is someone I’ve known now for a few years, having taken some continuing education courses from him in the past.
Getting the opportunity to spend time with Professor Baker is always a treat for me and presents one of the only opportunities to speak Arabic (if you can imagine that) in the Waco area. I have to admit to being a bit nervous: this is the man who first taught me to read/write Arabic (inasmuch is possible in a 6-week CE course!). Still, the students responded enthusiastically and, little did I know, much of what I shared with the classes supported perfectly what Professor Baker had planned for his curriculum. It almost looked like we’d planned it all!
Shukran jazeelan, Nabeel! It’s always my honor to spend time with you.
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On the evening of the 19th, old friend Jamie Clarke (www.jamieclarke.com) of Canada spent the night at the farm. Some of you may know Jamie’s name as one of three Canadians I helped train for a 900-mile camel trek across Arabia’s Empty Quarter in 1998.
Jamie, among many other adventures, has summited Mt. Everest and is a highly sought after convention/banquet speaker. That evening, he was addressing the Greater Waco Chamber of Commerce. My oldest daughter Vanessa and I went to enjoy the presentation and were delighted to hear Jamie speak and relate his climbing achievements to the chamber’s own business goals.
After the event, Jamie drove to the farm with us and he, my wife Trish and I stayed up too late, laughing and getting caught up. It’d been 10 years since we’d seen one another. In fact, we’d only spend two long weekends together back in the summer of ’98 during training for what would be the second time in history a Westerner would traverse the barren landscape known as Rub al-Khali.
Jamie, his brother Leigh and friend Bruce Kirkby made up a dynamic team and Jamie and Bruce each chronicled their expeditions in very captivating books, "From Everest to Arabia" and "Sand Dance", respectively. Though it’d been 10 years since we’d seen one another, we’ve often emailed and once Jamie was in our home we fell right back in step.
The next morning, after the kids left for school and Trish had headed to work, Jamie and I went out to the barn to feed the camels. I asked him, "How long’s it been since you were on a camel?" "It’s been a while," he said. I pulled long-legged Richard over to the fence, Jamie climbed on and there we conversed for a good half-hour- he perched bareback on the camel, me on the fence.
Do take the time to visit Jamie’s website and pick up his book. In it, he’s far too generous to me in his description of our training, for which I’m forever grateful. Our time together so long ago very definitely influenced my own travel pursuits and I’ve used his desert journey as inspiration for some of my own sojourns.
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Wednesday, February 27th, stalwart, A-team members Richard and Gobi and I drove west to Ft. Lancaster State Historic Site. This 19th century frontier fort played host to all 130-plus students from nearby Sanderson, Texas for the day and we were asked to represent the U.S. Army Camel Corps that passed through the remote outpost at least three times from 1857-1860.
Now, if I thought the kids in South Texas were bright, the kids from Sanderson really impressed me! Those kids knew the names of the compartments of a ruminant’s stomach (rumen, reticulum, omasum and abomasum) as well as a variety of plants that grow in this region, known as the Trans-Pecos. Presenting programs to such a well-heeled group of kids was fun!
My hat’s off to all the parents, teachers and students in Sanderson. Big thanks also to Kim and Ted D. of nearby Sheffield for the camel motel and human accommodations. Final thanks go to Site Manager Chris Elliott for his undying enthusiasm for the camels and the unique role they played in Texas’ past.
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From the classified section: Camel(s) for sale. The VisionQuest camel herd I manage in Arizona is downsizing and there are a few available. Give me a call or email if you’d like more info.
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In March, look for the camels and me at Ft. Clark, in Brackettville, Texas this weekend, the 7th and 8th, for a Living History event.
On the 13th Richard and Ibrahim (Richard’s understudy) have a commercial TV shoot in Dallas.
Ft. McKavett, near Menard, Texas has its annual Living History event on March 28/29. Look for us there as well. It’s been a long time since we were able to make this event and this fort is one of the best preserved in the State. Hope to see you at one of these events.
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Finally, looking ahead a bit to April, wedding bells will be ringing in Cairo, Egypt for Sayed, oldest son of the family with whom we stay in Egypt. The wedding will take place over two days, the 23rd and 24th, and YOU are invited. You’ve not lived until you’ve been to an Egyptian wedding! Bring your dancing shoes and your earplugs.
I’m ironing my best gallabiya (local Egyptian men’s clothing) and would be happy to bring you along. We’ll include the wedding in the itinerary, but will make sure and see all the sites you’d expect: Pyramids of Giza, Egyptian Museum and my favorite, a camel trek among the Bedouin of the Sinai. All of this will be included as part of a roughly 10-day itinerary.
In the past these trips have been as much as $1950 (air not included), but due to this short notice and at the time of this writing lower air fares, I may be able to discount it a bit. Call or email for details. For those of you who’ve been wanting to take one of my Egypt/Sinai trips, this may be the best opportunity to do so. For trip alumni, you can imagine how welcome your presence at Sayed’s wedding would be!
Thanks as always for your interest in my camels.
Doug
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