When friends and family would visit from the East, Peter Hurd would often demonstrate the difference in value of irrigated land and dry land by standing astride one of the acequias on the Ranch.  One foot was on irrigable land that was, at that time, worth up to $1,000 per acre.  The other foot rested on dry land for which he had paid only $3.00 per acre.

"Ven Lluvia bendita, Ven a acariciar la Tierra Sedienta"

("Come blessed rainfall, come and caress the dry earth.)

  It's a Turkey-Safe-Zone here at Sentinel Ranch...regardless of the season.

The Hurd-La Rinconada Gallery was fortunate to acquire a limited number of now rare "Peter Hurd The Lithographs" books.  Each copy is unopened  and in the original box.  A great Christmas gift for the Peter Hurd fan on your list! 

Call the Gallery to order.

Cooking Spray (optional)

*2 acorn squash

*1/2 stick (4 Tbsp.) unsalted butter

*1/4 cup brown sugar

*2 Tbsp. pure maple syrup

*1/4 cup chopped pecans

 

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.  Coat a 9" x 13" baking pan with cooking spray or line with aluminum foil.

    Cut the squash in half lengthwise and remove the seeds.  Cut the halves crosswise into slices about 1" thick.  Arrange the slices in the prepared pan and cover with foil.  Roast for about 30 minutes.

    In a small suacepan over medium heat, melt the butter.  Add the brown sugar, maple syrup and pecans.  Cook, stirring often, until the sugar melts.

   Remove pan from the oven and uncover.  Spoon sauce over the squash and return to oven, uncovered.  Bake for 10-15 min. until the squash is tender, basting occasionally with the sauce.

 

 

 

Price:  On Request

Medium:  watercolor

Size:  21 1/2" x 30"

 

 

 

     Efforts to preserve the Ranch have assured that the land Peter loved remains the same today as it did

when he first immortalized it in his painting.

 

     Like all children who grew up on the ranches and farms of the west, Peter Hurd and his brother Bill, (depicted famously in Peter's painting "The Oasis") knew the divine salvation of slipping into the cool waters of the stock tank in the summertime.  Frequently, the lure of the shaded water proved too strong for the boys to resist and they would forego their assigned chores for a refreshing dip in the tank.  On the Hurd farm, the added blessing of two enormous weeping willows provided an extra advantage for two scandalous boys neglecting their duties.  By tying a hollowed-out bamboo stick to the willow where the drooping branches met the water, they were able to avoid detection with their improvised scuba gear.  With a clothespin on the nose and the  bamboo stick emerging just above the surface of the water, the boys could sit on the bottom of the tank and stay hidden as long as necessary.  The creaking corral gate served as an alarm to let them know when Andreas, the farm hand, was in the area and it was time to submerge.

    One afternoon, while deeply engrossed in water games with some of the other neighborhood boys, they heard the gate slam and immediately scrambled for their "breathing tubes."  Instead of Andreas, it was the family cook, a dignified and elderly Mexican woman who first glimpsed a small, naked boy disappearing into the water, then spotted a pile of abandoned clothing.  She waited for some time for the boys to emerge planning to give them a stern lecture.  But after more and more time elapsed without anyone coming to the surface, Dona Abrana became alarmed and scrambled, fully clothed, over the side of the tank to perform a water rescue.  The poor woman stumbled and flounced around  frantically until she eventually tripped over one of the boys.  Realizing the jig was up, the boys arose, embarrassed, from their watery grave, while poor Dona Abrana, with her clothing and white hair dripping in mud and water summed up her relief and frustration yelling "pendejitos!"  From that day on, the boys decided to complete their chores first so that they could spare themselves the fear and punishment of getting caught off guard in their desert oasis.

Hwy 70, Mile Marker 281 (Approx. 20 Miles East of Ruidoso, 50 Miles West of Roswell)

PO Box 100

105 La Rinconada Ln.

San Patricio, NM  88348

1-575-653-4331

1-800-658-6912

 

Michael Hurd, Owner

Tiffanie Owen, Director

Judy Petersen, Gallery Assistant

Albert Chavez, Ranch Foreman

Gerardo Medina & Julian Marques, Hard-Workin' Ranch Dudes

Maria Guillen, Head Housekeeper