Cold and dreary, but still a great time. Two days of clearing and burning. Family up for lunch on Easter. Exploring to collect pinecones, found an abandoned quarry. Campfires late into the night, hot tea and Chocolate chip cookies right out of the portable oven/stove and fried potatoes in the early morning. In my book, it does not get much better than this!
two nights ago I drove up to my little (unheated) cabin, spent the night alone, in a thunderstorm so that I could wake up and hike and photograph after a rain. Everything was drenched, the colors were vibrant and saturated, it was more quiet and peaceful than I could have imagined and not a mosquito in site.
Last Saturday we knew a storm was coming our way so we headed up to do a full day of burning, painting inside the cabin and getting to work on Ed's place. He says it's for a "tool shed" but my guess is that it will become more of his own little place. Today, 8 days and 20 inches of snow later..... we drove up to check it out. News stories told of many downed trees and there were many, luckily none on our site. Thanks to my brother Larry for the loan of his 4wd truck, and to Uncle Ed for maneuvering the already narrow road. We had to stop 3 times and drive in reverse when we met oncoming traffic on the road. fun!
Peterson Road- narrow, windy, slippery, cliffy, pretty and scary.
Learned today that the original road was only wide enough to accommodate the width of a horse and buggy going each direction. (the residents wanted it that way) It makes the road quaint and very special in THE SPRING, in winter just plain scary!!!
Yesterday I was near Shaver Lake for a family photo shoot at their cabin, where there was 10 feet of snow on the ground. More images from that session soon. Here are a couple shots out the window of the moving car.
When it's not raining or snowing there is still work to be done. Our focus now is cleaning bricks. Later this month we will build a patio and walkway. Next project - build a porch.
Christmas gift from my Uncle Ed. My very own ax.
Yesterday was Veterans Day. My Uncle Dan (a vet) and Aunt Connie came up to visit with their granddaughter Sydney. She is six and more than a little tomboy. I love it when kids visit, gives me an excuse to go exploring with them.
After lunch I put her to work painting stain over the screws I had filled with wood putty. Everyone who knows me knows that I can be a little nutty about everything being just perfect, so handing a paintbrush to a six year old was good work for me. Letting go of my control issues feels good. No worries with her, she did a fabulous job.
Sydney and I are heading off to see the big tree and big rocks.
A long time ago my son named these rocks "The Twins" they are so majestic and beautiful. Winter brings a thick layer of green moss.
The TREE. too amazing for words..... You can see it from the cabin but have no idea of it's true magnificence until you stand beneath it.
My first go at installing insulation, easy to put in the walls, ceiling a little more challenging. Goggles and mask are a must as these little glass fibers are everywhere. I coughed for 2 days even will all my protection. Cabin will be cozy and warm though with insulation packed in and a layer of foam on ceiling. Next step - sheet rock.
we have a porch light! powered by a generator for now but eventually by solar.
Driving home after a long day. Often times we leave sunshine and blue skies as we descend into a murky smoggy place we call home. (Fresno). I so seriously can see myself eventually living full-time in the mountains.
this means:
There are days when the novelty seems to have worn off and the cold and hard work are just that... cold and hard work. But....most of the time I find myself content and peaceful as I sand, stain and hammer my way through this project. I especially love the days (4 so far) when the same family of 3 deer hang out on the mountain and graze, staying for as long as two hours just 20 feet away from where we work.
here are some photos from last week:
building a mini shed behind the main shed.
Starting to look really nice now that Ed is putting some finishing touches on the outside.
The deer come closer each time they visit.
We drive past Don Fernandos each day and finally stopped on Friday for coffee and corn chowder. Both were good and we plan to stop and have dinner on another day. The place has been here for over 120 years, was called Marshall Station and used to be a post office and possibly a rail station? need to do some research to be sure.
Speaking of food, we are getting a little tired of sandwiches so I'm switching it up a bit, trying to prepare stuff I know my uncle likes. We have hooked up an electric skillet to the generator and had hamburgers, grilled shrimp and this week hot dogs. Since he is a meat and potatoes guy and I am a vegetarian, we don't often eat the same thing. On hot dog day, I brought some frozen vegan pig in a blankets from Whole Foods. They were actually pretty good. I gave one to Ed, anxious for his reaction I said "what do you think?" He replied "I think I'm glad I"m not a vegetarian".
Sunday. Saw three deer.
The amazingly huge oak tree that requires a bit of effort to hike to. After Shed is finished, we will build a trail with steps to the tree.
Monday. Super Cold and Mom and Larry help.
Friday. It rained 6.5 inches on Wednesday. There was some moisture inside, but not too bad. So today we put up the outside walls on one side. Very exciting.
Forgot to bring up cat food today, so shared our lunch with stray cat that has moved in. Uncle Ed mentioned today that we have put over 1000 miles on his truck.
Discovered we bought a commercial front door and a residential door knob. So they don't fit, but we will figure it out. One of the drawbacks to buying used stuff is that sometimes it requires more effort.
I totally love that when Ed makes a mistake, (does not happen often) like measuring something wrong, or notching something upside down or backwards. he just laughs, shakes his head and starts over. Me I would be cussing and stressing, so this is a good lesson for me to not take things quite so seriously.
My only regret is that the windows look to new/modern. They were used, cheap and dual pane so I'll get over it.
See the branch behind us circled in white? well about 30 seconds after this photo was taken, we hear what sounds like a gunshot. It is the sound of this massive branch snapping. Its about 15 feet behind us, about 60 feet long and up really high. It was a little spooky, but fun to witness nature happening right before our eyes. The smell of this freshly cracked open oak tree was super strong. It was like this amazing blast of aromatherapy. Last year a pine tree fell and crushed our gate during a storm. I thought then... wow that would be cool to see one of those babies fall. So I got my wish. but it was a little too close for comfort.
It began on my birthday. I picked Blackberries, made a pie, had dessert with family. Uncle Ed was there. He said "when are we ever going to build that cabin of yours?" I said can you start next week? and so three weeks ago he, retired truck driver aged 68 and me, 51 yr old photographer with zero carpentry experience began this project. My original intention was to keep a weekly running blog, tracking time and expenses and showing photos throughout the build. Truth is each day I come home so exhausted that I take a shower, do my real job for a few hours then collapse.
some basic info:
day one - clear the weeds.
corner stone of foundation.
We have a level foundation.
the crew.
This cat showed up on day one and is there each time we come up.We bring cat food from the dollar store. Although I did not want one, I think I have a cat now. Suggested names so far, moochie, smokey, uncle eddie.
savoring that pepsi.
three walls and some extra help. yeah!
Shopping for a used door at Restore the Habitat for Humanity store. We found one for $45. A comparable new one was $375.
Ed's grandson, Evan visits. He and I make a teter-totter out of scrap wood while others work.
Although the shed will be about 80% recycled, we did have to get some supplies at Home Depot.
Reclaimed 2x4s
Reclaimed wood to be used for siding. After 2 years wrapped in tarp sitting on the property, termites moved in. So each piece is sanded, treated for the termites with a green stain called copperbrite, then stained, quite a process. My Mom and Brother have been helping me with this part.
Ed's breakfast at J and A cafe in Prather. Each morning I have 2 eggs, potatoes and a biscuit. I'm not much of a breakfast person but I like the routine of a quiet start to our work day and need the fuel for what is usually a 10-12 hour work day. This includes the 1 hr commute each way and the loading and unloading of all tools including a very heavy generator.
I'll miss the view through the roof, but anxious to get it covered. It rained and hailed a bit this week. We went from 100+ temperatures to low 40's in one week.
Max working on the roof. He has done 2 work days with us. Ed is a patient teacher and I'm glad my son has the opportunity to learn some of these skills.
OK, so here we are at 3 weeks. I really cracked up when I saw this photo. It looks sooooo small. 8x14 with a door and 4 windows. I bought the windows at the Restore store a year ago and paid less than $100 for all of them! I have not tallied my spending yet but seriously think I will spend more on gas and food than building materials.
The sense of accomplishment is profound.
I wholeheartedly recommend building something yourself, but if you don't have an Uncle Ed, maybe start with a potting bench.
