The 2009 grape harvest is finished for most growers. The overall quality of this year's fruit was outstanding.

Marketing fruit not under contract was challenging, a sign of a slow economy. Lower-priced grapes should mean lower-priced wine - great for consumers but not so great for producers.

It looks like fall is finally here, with daytime temperatures falling to near average for this time of year. Evening temperatures dropped enough that I thought we might see some frost on the pumpkins near our house.

We had the first fire of the year in our fireplace last week. It felt good after the prolonged Indian summer. It has been so warm, I have not cut any wood for this winter. I have about a half-cord of oak from last year; hopefully that will get us by until the new batch of wood dries out enough to burn.

We have a few limbs that fell off the oak trees during the summer, just waiting for my wood-cutting crew - Karen, Kathleen and Clayton - to help me cut and split so we can all enjoy a cozy fire on a cold evening.

I was watching TV the other night when I noticed a commercial with a man polishing a green 1956 Ford pickup. It reminded me of the time Herb Swanson, who lived in Ballard with his wife, Dorothy, directed both the Lompoc and Ballard Drum and Bugle Corps and served as a trustee for the Ballard School, drove a black 1956 Ford pickup.

It was about the time my dad bought a used Homelite chainsaw from Ernie Mendez in Buellton. Dad and Herb served together on the Ballard School board, along with Olin Paul and Tom Petersen.

It must have been about this time of year, as the subject of cutting wood for the winter came up. Herb put together a wood-cutting expedition up to Figueroa Mountain.

I can't remember everyone who was included, but I do remember my brother, Dana, and I went with Dad in our 1957 Ford station wagon, along with Ernie Norfleet, who had a 2-ton, orange Dodge truck, as I recall. Herb had his 1956 Ford pickup. Greg Duer and his dad might have been along as well.

It was quite an adventure. We folded the backseat down in our station wagon to make room for the chainsaw, gas can, a couple of malls and a few wedges.

Herb led the way up the mountain to the designated spot. The trucks and cars parked off the road, and we began to unload our equipment.

Herb had a big, two-man saw he was quite proud of and was sure it was going to do most of the work that day. Herb and the dads in the group came up with a plan of attack, and soon Dana and I were helping our dad carry the saw and other equipment to our designated area.

It was one of the few times the Homelite saw Dad bought actually ran well. Herb was having trouble with his prized saw. It was just one of those days when the saw was just not going to run well.

After quite a few choice words of encouragement from Herb, he put the big saw back into his truck. The rest of the crew continued on, and we were beginning to get quite a bit done.

About that time, a ranger pulled up to our site and asked to see our wood-cutting permit. Herb, not in great humor, told the ranger he had been up many times before to cut wood and never had a permit.

Well, the ranger informed Herb we needed a permit now and would have to stop cutting until we had one.

"No problem. Can we get the permit from you?" inquired Herb.

"Oh no," replied the ranger in a

sarcastic voice, "you have to go to Santa Maria to our main office. I suppose I can let you keep cutting if you go down and bring back the permit today."

The ranger was just not a very friendly fellow. Maybe he was having a bad day.

So, because Herb's saw was not working, he said he would drive down to Santa Maria and get the permit, while the rest of the crew stayed and finished cutting wood.

I remember riding down Figueroa Mountain with three other kids in Herb's 1956 Ford pickup. Herb loved kids, and I remember us all talking about different topics.

I clearly recall one of the older boys pointing out that we had four people in the front seat of the pickup, and that was against the law. Herb said, "That's OK. We'll just get ol' Kev to slip down onto the floor if we see a cop."

Well, we got the permit and headed back up the mountain, where we found the crew just finishing loading Ernie's truck. Dad and Dana had our Ford wagon full of wood.

After loading Herb's truck with wood, we headed back down the mountain, where we saw the ranger's truck pulled off to the side of the road. As we passed by, we noticed the unfriendly ranger changing a flat tire. Needless to say, we did not stop to help him.

We can all look forward to spending some time in front of a warm fire, as our beautiful fall weather begins to arrive along the Central Coast.

Kevin Merrill is a vineyard manager for Mesa Vineyard Management in Santa Maria and president of the Santa Barbara County Farm Bureau. He can be reached at kmerrill@mesavineyard.com.