With the house fire and all the activities going on with the kids, we haven’t been able to make it up to the property as often as we would like. Another reason we don’t go is because it is so primitive right now. With no running water, and only a 100W solar panel to provide electricity, it is the true definition of roughing it. So, with that in mind we contacted some builders and got estimates on putting a 1,200 sq ft lodge/house on the cleared land at the top. With septic, well, electric, and other site prep, it came to $140,000. That’s more than we want to spend right now, but it does give us a ballpark for the future.
We made it up there one recent Saturday to ensure that everything was in order. The shed and tractor are in good shape. The makeshift outhouse we built is still standing. The clearing we’ve done is still cleared. Lianne noticed that the fruit trees we planted a couple of years ago suffered some bark damage from deer rubbing up against them. We put chicken wire around them and hopefully they will be OK. We’ll probably need a fence at some point.
I got to use my new chainsaw for the first time. I tackled the relatively small and invasive Tree of Heavens that are all over the place. Davin drilled holes in the stumps and put Epsom salt in them to try to kill them and make them decompose more quickly. We’ll need to re-apply, but hopefully it works. They spread really fast and they are tough to kill. I also want to cut these trees lower to the ground in the future so that we can bush hog over them and keep any new growth from coming up.
Lianne mowed the entire cleared area, and even knocked down some more of the ever present but diminishing blackberry brambles. We refreshed our “Posted” signage along the front, and sprayed neem oil in an attempt to hold back the ticks early in their lifecycle.
As usual, we headed home tired, but fulfilled from a hard day’s work in the great outdoors.