Category: General (Page 31 of 64)

This week has been quiet. After our long trip to the Midwest this is probably a good thing. Next week will be a bit more active; Felicity will be in Colorado, Halloween happens, dogs go in for grooming. Until then, here is a brief recap of this week’s activities.

Leaf season is underway. We did the first major raking/mulching session of the year. In addition to doing our yard we take care of our neighbor’s yard across the road from our place.

Pam concentrated on the raking part while I got the mulcher started. (After sitting for a year, getting the machine started is always a task.) Mulched leaves (and brush and twigs) were loaded into the truck for transport to our town’s “organic materials” dumping spot. Between our lawn and neighbor Jim’s lawn, this job took most of Saturday morning.

During the week Pam added a few items to the Mary Lynn Memorial garden in keeping with the autumnal season. She picked up a few pumpkins to add color to the corner:

Pumpkins in the Mary Lynn Memorial Garden

Pam also spent some time going through her closets and making up packages of clothing to donate to LiftUp, a local organization similar to Goodwill.

My week was routine although I have kicked off a project to upgrade our network; I am planning to increase our network speeds from 1gb to 10gb. The first phase will increase the speed between my servers, storage units, and core switches. Upgrading  remote switches and individual workstations will come later.  Purchases and upgrades I’v done over the last few years have had this goal in mind; now is the time to begin implementation. I hope it goes smoothly.

We read a short book I had requested from the library: “Notes from a Public Typewriter.” Written by a bookstore owner, the book features notes left by customers, typed out on a manual typewriter the owner left on a table for that purpose. While there are several notable quotes in the book, one that resonated with both Pam and me was: “Typewriters remind us that words are sound — they make noise like the striking of keys, the scratch of pen on paper. What have we lost now that words are silent?” Another favorite: “A bookstore is larger than the universe. After all, the universe only contains what IS.” If you are in the mood  to read a new book, this short one is highly recommended.

That’s it for now. Thanks for looking in!

Pam’s Penny:

It felt excellent to recycle work clothes from my previous life.  My current wardrobe must meet a different standard — clothes as comfortable as pajamas, shoes as comfortable as slippers.

Happy Trails.

On Saturday, October 13, Pam, JoJo and I began our trip to Iowa and Wisconsin. The goal was to visit family and check out a few houses in Iowa that Pam had seen online. I’ll begin with the house hunt.

Let me start by observing realtor property descriptions are helpful but frequently incomplete. In fact, these descriptions omit crucial information that one can only confirm with a site visit.

A case in point was this ‘painted lady’ in Lake Mills; it looked good in photos but we found the window sills were rotten and the foundation had settled, leaving cracks between the foundation and the sill plate. A fixer is one thing, this was another.

Lake Mills house

Another house was advertised ‘river front property’ — but — the river was across the road and you would have had to jump over a guard rail to get to it. Some descriptions take a lot of liberty; here is a ‘walk out basement”  (for a very short person) noted in one of the ads:

Walk out basement? For a gnome?

We also learned to ask if the house had been a rental unit; those properties we viewed that had been rentals were in pretty rough shape inside and out. Most renters just don’t take care of a property the way a resident owner would.

There were some nicer elements. One house in rural Elkader, Iowa had some of the historic woodwork we’re looking for:

Stairway in Fawn Hollow Road house

A place in nearby Volga, Iowa was tidy and updated, but small, with a very large tree-lined lot that was already partially fenced for dogs:

Part of the Volga lot. Plenty of trees!

Generally we were disappointed with what we saw. This may be due to the price range we are looking in; pretty much low end of the scale (the Volga house was priced at $51,500.00). Even the higher-priced places ($125k to 150k) did not offer that much more in housing. Some of the lots were huge, 6 acres or more. We don’t need that much land, we need more house.

The most useful outcome was our personal contact with two realtor agents, Penni and Kenny, a married couple. We hope this contact will result in locating a place more suited to our wishes. We also identified a specific geographic area in which to house hunt in the future — generally within 30 miles of the Mississippi River in two northeastern Iowa counties, as farther west Iowa flattens out and interesting vistas disappear. One town in particular caught our attention; Elkader is the county seat for Clayton County and is a charming place. The search continues, but with new direction.

The other goal of the trip was to hook up with relatives and catch up on family news and events. We met with my sister Carol and her friend Matt, Pam’s brother Craig and his wife Dianne, and Pam’s sister Becky, and I went see my mother. An added, and unplanned, visit with my Aunt Gina Buhr (my father’s sister) rounded out this aspect of the trip.

My sister Carol and her friend Matt (whom we met for the first time) rendezvoused with us at our base of house hunting operations in the river town of Guttenberg, Iowa. It had been awhile since I’d seen Carol, and Matt proved to be an interesting guy. There was lively conversation over dinner — and again the following morning at breakfast — before we headed north and Carol and Matt headed home to the Chicago area.

Carole and Matt at a Mississippi River overlook. (Photo by a passerby.)

Our next meeting was with Pam’s brother Craig and his wife Dianne. It was Dianne’s birthday and Pam and I has shopped at an antique store in Elkader to find her a small gift. However, on the way to their lake house in mid-central Wisconsin, we received a call from Becky informing us that Dianne’s dog, Sophie, had just passed away on Dianne’s lap on the way to the vet. Dianne was understandably very upset, as Sophie has been a part of their family 14 years plus had been a gift from Dianne’s late mother.

This complicated matters a bit as I had planned to stay with Craig and Dianne that night. On to Plan B.

Craig and Dianne live in Bloomer, Wisconsin, about an hour or so away from my mother’s place in Greenwood. I drove to see my mother while Pam (and Becky, who had driven down from Rice Lake) went with Craig to meet Pam’s nephew’s wife Ellie (whom neither of us had met). Nephew Josh and Ellie have two children that Pam also wanted to see. Here is photo of Ellie with Marcie, their dog:

Ellie and Marcie, the dog. (Photo by Pam.)

Grady is the oldest child:

Grady. (Photo by Pam.)

Daughter Addy is the second child, here with Grandpa Craig:

Craig with granddaughter Addy. (Photo by Pam.)

Pam’s visit was brief and full of very active little kiddos. Pam felt it was valuable to connect personalities to Ellie’s Facebook posts.

My visit with my mother was mainly uneventful, a necessary health check. From my mother I learned that my Aunt Gina had moved into a residence home in Chippewa Falls. Plan B involved both Pam and I (and the dog) staying with Becky that night in Rice Lake.  As we would have to go through Chippewa Falls to pick up our link to the interstate to head home the following day, we decided to visit Aunt Gina then.

Becky is still settling into her new trailer and we appreciated her willingness to put us up for the night. An added bonus was that Becky had prepared a hearty roast for dinner and it was waiting for me when I arrived in Rice Lake. The food was excellent and it was a thoughtful gesture on Becky’s part, one that I appreciated.

Now it was October 18th and time for us to head home. We found Aunt Gina’s residence and had a short visit with her. I am glad to say her mind is as sharp as ever and she had a few great stories about family life and growing up in central Wisconsin.

Then it was on the road for the long haul back to Colorado. We spent the night in York, Nebraska, and made it home to De Beque early Friday evening. The trip encompassed a bit over 3,300 miles.

York water tower

Along the way there were a few funny moments. We passed one restaurant sign that caught our fancy: “Ole’s Restaurant. Cold Beer. Greasy Food.” Truth in advertising? We also saw this slogan on the side of a semi-truck stopped in a rest area:

Only in the Midwest

Another sign + photo op was in Cylinder, Iowa. Pam though it was appropriate for me:

Sign for Cylinder, Iowa

In summary, the trip had high and low points. We had hoped one of the houses would be suitable for us into retirement, but such was not the case. We did connect with several family members, a good thing, and I hope we made Aunt Gina’s day a little brighter. We saw a lot of rolling farm country around the Mississippi River and a lot of forgettable land across Nebraska and western Iowa. Now we’ll have to settle back into our ‘normal’ routine and hope the contacts made with Iowa realtors (and Pam’s internet efforts) pay off in finding a suitable place for us to retire to.

That’s it for now. Thanks for looking  in!

Pam’s Five Cents Worth:

Nebraska’s 2019 tourist slogan will be: “Nebraska.  Honestly, It’s Not For Everyone.” Now there is truth in advertising.  As Stephen Colbert noted on his late-night talk show, “Nebraska, are you OK? Do you need a vacation, someplace that is not-Nebraska?” Crossing that state seems endless, and on the way to the Midwest we traveled through snow flurries in Nebraska. Nasty.

Lots of miles traveled, and only five house visits scheduled.  Two additional houses I was trying to schedule already had solid offers on them, and one property was eliminated prior to our departure (house empty for three years, furnace froze up, well abandoned). Property listings that sat all summer are now starting to receive offers (Murphy’s Law, I guess).

As Fields noted above, some general progress was made, however.  We identified and connected with the realtor team at Ole’s 5 Star Realty in Elkader, we spent about an hour and a half in downtown Elkader.  We drove along many charming and familiar types of little country roads, saw the harvest in action, I recited the poem “When the Frost is on the Punkin” for Fields’ edification. I bonded with the Mississippi River again. We narrowed down the geographical parameters of the future search.

Shocks of corn in eastern Iowa

When the frost is on the punkin and the fodder’s in the shock
And you hear the kyouck and gobble of the struttin’ turkey cock
And the clackin’ of the guineys, and the cluckin’ of the hens
And the rooster’s hallylooyer as he tiptoes on the fence
O, it’s then’s the times a feller is a-feelin’ at his best
With the risin’ sun to greet him from a night of peaceful rest
As he leaves the house, bareheaded, and goes out to feed the stock
When the frost is on the punkin and the fodder’s in the shock

“When The Frost Is On The Punkin” by James Whitcomb Riley

Family visits proved to include sorrow as well as new (to me) faces.  Aunt Gina, possibly one of my favorite relatives on Fields’ side of the family, is 97 and as amazing as ever. So glad we made the time to briefly visit her.

The adventure continues.

Happy Trails.

This past weekend, October 6th and 7th, I went to The Lot for the last working weekend of the year. I had much to do, including spreading the last pile of chips and winterizing The Box. I had taken the truck and trailer, as some of the tasks for this trip included bringing home the ATV, generator, various hand tools, and the chain saw.

While the peak of the fall color season has passed, I was surprised at the amount of  ‘color’ still in the high country. Individual trees, groves, and the valley cottonwoods are still very colorful. I enjoyed the drive through the mountains up to The Lot.

Once I arrived the first job was to spread the last pile of wood chips. There were 16 loads in all and I spread the chips on the path, hoping they will settle in over the winter and make a good base to walk on come spring.

Loading chips

Hauling chips

Chips spread on this year’s path

With the chips spread, it was time to move on to the weekend’s next task. Last year we had quite a bit of gravel wash in from the neighbor’s driveway, coming over the edge at one of their switchbacks. To help counter this I built a small log wall over the path where the water naturally descends. My hope is this wall will slow the water enough so the gravel settles out on their property and doesn’t get carried down to our property.

My “dam” to help prevent gravel washing down to our property

The final job on Saturday was to load the last of the burn pit wood into the back of the truck; this clears out all I had stacked for disposal.

Sunday’s tasks were routine end-of-season jobs. I drained the fresh water tank and water heater, then emptied all three holding tanks. I loaded the ATV and generator into the trailer along with my tools. All food items and the rest of the linens were packed into the truck. Finally, I removed the propane tanks and put them in the shed, then pulled the RV batteries out and loaded them in the truck.

The 2018 Sanderling work season is over.

Heading home – end of 2018 season

By the time I was ready to leave The Lot the sun had broken through and the day was so beautiful, I tell you, it was tough to head out. However, with the snow in the air Saturday evening and frost on the windows Sunday morning…definitely time to shut down The Box for the year.  Weather for the next week shows night temperatures dropping into the teens:

10 day forecast for Como

I am pleased by the area cleaned up this year. Not only did we get many piles of brush chipped and the chips spread, I also salvaged around 4 cords of wood…a typical year is around 3 cords.

It’s just very pleasant to walk this part of Sanderling without having to detour around, or trip over, downed logs and brush. It gives me a feeling of satisfaction to have this area cleaned.

Aspen grove as seen from driveway

What’s next? We still have some work on the east side of the path, far side as seen in the above photo, to finish cleaning up to our property line. A few piles of brush remain to be chipped, some from last year and a few from this year, that I didn’t get to. Next year I hope to finish the Grassy Ridge area all the way up to our northeast corner post. Think big!

That’s it for now. Thanks for looking in!

Pam’s Penny:

Six months of unemployment-to-retirement has passed; I am grateful every single day I don’t have to haul my butt across two counties to sit in a cubicle.

Happy Trails.

I have much to cover in this post from my 3-day weekend trip to The Lot, September 22, 23, and 24.

In my last post I’d mentioned I would be doing some maintenance chores on The Box; replacing damaged vent covers was one of these tasks. I did get all 3 covers replaced. The new lids are substantially thicker than the original units. This is a mixed blessing; they should stand up to weather (including hail) better than the originals but they do not let in as much light.

Another maintenance chore was to make sure the bottom-of-the-trailer sheets, which look sort of like cardboard but are made out of heavier plastic, were in good shape and would not allow rodents to enter the trailer over the winter. Basically I added fender washers (larger than standard) under the heads of the screws that hold these sheets in place. This prevents the sheets from sagging and opening gaps where mice could enter.

Although I was not planning this last item — emptying the holding tanks — I really had no choice as the kitchen grey water tank was full and the sink would not drain. I got out the ‘honey wagon’ gear and emptied both grey water tanks and the black water tank.

Given that my fresh water level was low I also had to make a ‘water run’ to get some water for showers and cleaning. I didn’t pump a full load, just enough (around 15 gallons) to get through the weekend’s demand for showers and general cleaning up. (We use bottled water for drinking and most cooking.)

Then it was on to other tasks.

Last time out I had trouble with the chipper; it would not start due to carburetor flooding. I had brought along my tools and a few spare parts, hoping I could repair the carb on-site and finish chipping some piles of brush.

I removed the carb, repaired the float holder (a screw had come loose, causing the flooding) and reinstalled the carb on the chipper. The engine started right up and I was back in business.

I chipped no fewer than 6 piles of brush, one Saturday evening and the others Sunday morning. While I was one tired guy, I am very pleased to get the Aspen Grove brush chipped. (Spreading the chips will be the main task for the next visit.) Photos below document the before-and-after appearance of this area.

Before chipping

After chipping

The activity resulted in a large pile of chips to be spread on a future trip:

Chip pile along the path

From last week: chips spread on path up to Grassy Ridge:

Chips spread on walking path

Here is an over-all shot of part of the area that was cleaned this year:

Cleaned Aspen Grove

Here is a “work in progress” shot of the same area taken earlier this year:

Brush and log piles in the Aspen Grove

Skipping ahead a bit: Monday morning I loaded the truck with another load of ‘burn pit’ wood and prepared the chipper to tow it home. I had to wait out a couple of rain showers while doing this but the moisture is welcome.

Chipper heading home from The Lot

After all the work was done I planned to treat myself to an ATV ride in the general area of Sanderling, either at Hall Valley or Webster Pass. Both are in the same neighborhood on the east (Denver) side of Kenosha Pass, which is itself several miles east of Como. I have ridden this area before and knew the Webster Pass route generally had good fall color views. I loaded the ATV in the back of the truck and left The Lot.

Traffic was fierce on Highway 285 heading to Kenosha Pass. In fact, it was stop and go traffic many miles away from my turn off. Since it was already afternoon (and I didn’t think I had the time or patience to wait in traffic) I changed plans. I turned around and headed to Fairplay, then turned north to Mosquito Pass. Mosquito Pass is another area I have ridden before, but at least there was no traffic.

This ride was disappointing as it appears the Mosquito Pass mining area is under new ownership. Routes to the historic buildings and mine sites of North London Mill and South London Mill are now blocked off. Without these routes there is not a lot of reason to ride there. I’m glad I was able to visit these sites in the past and get some photos, although my visit to the South London Mill took place on a rainy and dreary day; I had hoped to get a better set of photos this time around.

I did see something I rarely see in the high country on this trip, though. Pussy willows!

Pussy willows in the mountains – a rare sight

At the top of the pass is this marker:

Father Dyer memorial stone on Mosquito Pass

Heading home after my ride I found traffic on Highway 285, which I needed to take to get back to Elkhorn Ranch Road and The Lot, had gotten worse! Traffic was backed up to the east foot of Red Hill Pass, several miles from Elkhorn Ranch Road, and traffic was virtually at a standstill. Accident, leaf-peepers, campers…I still don’t know the reason why the traffic was so heavy but I was determined not to stay in it.

So…I made a U-turn and headed back to Fairplay, then took Highway 9 south to Highway 24, turned east on 24 to intersect with the lower end of Elkhorn Ranch Road, then north up to The Lot. At least I made it back in reasonable time.

Now this tale gets even stranger. Just after I had parked on the Sanderling driveway and unloaded the ATV, I received a visit from a Sheriff’s Deputy. He was asking questions about Greg, our new neighbor, who has not been sighted for several weeks (although his tent is still in place.)

It appears Greg is an alias and not his real name, and the officer found “drug paraphernalia” in his tent. Given that marijuana is legal in Colorado this may not be a crime, but if it involves other drugs then “Greg” could get busted for drug abuse.

I gave the officer what information I had (make, model, color of car, description of Greg and his dogs) and kept the officer’s card. I promised to notify him if I saw Greg again. The officer thanked me and left.

It was a strange afternoon all around.

What lies ahead? This coming weekend I have a wedding reception to attend on Sunday so will not be back to The Lot. I hope to make it back to Sanderling the weekend after next and it will be a busy visit as I will have to bring home the ATV, generator, and chain saw as well as the rest of the food and linens plus drain the holding tanks one last time. RV anti-freeze must be put in all the water lines. There is still much to do to shut down The Box and get it winterized. (Forecast low for Tuesday, September 25th, is 34 degrees up in the high country.) And I hope to get the large pile of chips spread on the path. (This would be optional, depending on how long it takes me to get the other chores done.)

There have been a couple of very busy weekends, with at least one more to go, before the RV is “shut down” for the winter. Two things that are final; no more wood cutting or chipping this year! Our friend Kathy picked up the bulk of the cut firewood on Saturday that was stacked along our driveway here at home. She’ll stop by for the remaining wood this coming Saturday, so that’s the end of the wood. The chipper is home from The Lot and waiting for me to do routine maintenance over the winter, so it will be ready to go next spring.

That’s it for now. Thanks for looking in!

Pam’s Two Cents Worth:

Lovely, crisp nights and warm days have begun.  One of my favorite times of year.

(Internet graphic.)

Happy Trails.

Pam and I spent a long weekend at The Lot —  September 15, 16, and 17. There was one problem (the chipper, more on that later), but it was a great autumnal weekend.

Fall colors are nearing their peak. The trip to and from The Lot is a drive through some stunning color areas (Vail, Breckenridge, Fairplay among them). A percentage of trees are still green, a few have lost their leaves already, and the colors between ran the gamut from gold (most predominant) to patches of red and orange mixed in. The contrast between the colors, set off by blue skies with a few white clouds, was striking.

Fall colors at The Lot – 2018

The aspen at The Lot were not quite at full peak color but the Aspen Grove was awash with a fall-yellow light that made walking in the cleaned-up areas a real delight. Sunday evening, just before sunset, we hiked up to Pavilion Point and watched the sunset side-lighting the trees. With a light breeze blowing and an almost ideal temperature in the upper-60’s, the weather and view was as good as it gets.

2018 fall colors from Pavilion Point

Then, just after we were back at The Box and with dusk settling in, a young buck walked through the nook, grabbing a few mouthfuls of grass as he went. I was within 20 feet of him, Pam a bit further away. He had two and possibly three points on each antler and seemed quite unconcerned about us watching him. In the evening light and with the fall colors the effect was almost magical. (Wouldn’t you know I had stopped to put the camera back on the table and did not have it on me!)

Work was actually accomplished; Pam and I spread the two piles of chips that had been generated over previous work sessions. We started with the large pile of chips along the path near the chipper and ended with the pile of chips up on Homestead Acre. I lost track of the number of 2-wheel cart loads this took, but it was around 20. The process: I loaded our 2-wheel cart (pulled by the ATV) with chips using a snow shovel, then drove to the part of the footpath where Pam was waiting to spread the chips. Dumped the cart, leaving a large pile of chips, then moved it ahead a few feet to empty the rest of the cart. I returned for the next load while Pam raked the chips, spreading them evenly, and covering the width of the path. This process guaranteed that both of us would get a lot of exercise, but it’s good to know the job is done for the year and the paths look tidy and fresh with their new coating.

Jerry loading chips

Pam unloading and spreading chips

Next job up was to chip the last two piles of brush along the west side of the path. Didn’t happen. The chipper would not start; the engine kept flooding. I took off the top of the carburetor and found a problem with the floats but did not have the tools on hand to fix it. No chipping this day. I was bummed out.

That pretty well ends chipping for the year; I will tow the chipper home and work on it so it’s ready to go next year. I need to check the “blades” or “knives” and get them sharpened over the off-season as well. I did not do this before using the chipper this year, and I really don’t know what condition they’re in. A new set costs about $125.00 but I hope the current knives can be sharpened and re-used. There is a professional sharpening service near my work place and I’ll see if they can sharpen these blades.

So – – on to Plan B. (There is always a Plan B.) Plan B was brush clearing on the east side of the current work path, a non-cleared area. We produced several more piles of brush and added more to the ‘burn pit’ wood pile. By the time we were done the brush piles were fairly large, we had more firewood logs piled up, and that side of the path – up to our property line – was looking much better. I still have some chainsaw work to do to finish gathering the salvageable wood, but a few hours of work will about finish that task. It will be my staring point for next year’s work.

With the chipper out of commission and the chips spread, we left The Lot for the return trip a bit earlier on Monday than planned, but enjoyed the trip home, taking in the fall colors and basking in the beautiful weather.

By the way, the dogs could have cared less about being in the high country. JoJo likes to get out and run (she’s part Greyhound) but the other two (Beagle mixes) are pretty ho-hum about going to The Lot.

Bru (Left) JoJo (Center) and Blondie (Right) nap in The Box

All-in-all, it was a very good weekend!

My next trip to Sanderling, scheduled for this weekend, will include maintenance items. There must have been a hail storm at The Lot this summer, as all three of the RV roof vent covers have holes in them. I have replacements that I need to install which will take a couple of hours. Then I’ll check underneath The Box to make sure there are no places for rodents to enter; this may entail adding washers to some of the screws that hold the cover sheets in place. (Since we plan to leave The Box at The Lot this winter, rodent-proofing is a high priority.)

Pam wants me to start bringing home some of the linens and clothing items that will not over-winter in The Box, so I will take a few empty containers to fill and bring home. While I plan a few more trips before finally closing down for the winter, the end of the work season is not far away; normally we are done by early October but it depends on night time temperatures. Right now overnights are in the low 40 degree range, OK at the moment, but getting closer to freezing.

There is some family news to report; daughter Felicity is in England and attended a Jane Austin Festival in Bath. She sent us a a photo of her posing in the ensemble Pam had prepared and I mailed (Pam sewed the clothing and found the bonnet and shoes in the costume box). Here are a couple photos of the event from Felicity:

Felicity (right) in Regency costume

Men in 1800s costume at the festival

That’s it for now. Thanks for looking in!

Pam’s Two Cents Worth:

I’m always somewhat sad to leave Sanderling after my final work weekend in the fall.  It is absolutely lovely up there — particularly spectacular in the Aspen Grove.  We started our clearing process six years ago in the Aspen Grove.  It’s a delight to walk through that area now, moving quite easily, without stepping over downed trees and piles of brush.  We met a goal by paying off the loan on the Sanderling property in late August.  It is now Fields land, debt free.

Tomorrow is the Autumnal Equinox. Perhaps I am the first to wish you felicitations of the fall season?

Happy Trails.

I made an overnight stay at The Lot this past weekend, September 8 – 9. There was quite a bit to do for such as short stay and all I set out to do, I am glad to say, was accomplished.

I started by moving the chipper. It had been sitting in the middle of the path and pointing uphill but needed to be backed off the path and positioned so that I could get to it with the ATV  in preparation for the next move.

Chipper in old location on the path

Chipper moved and large pile of chips to be spread on walkways

The move was interesting as I had to use the ATV’s winch, some chain, some wheel blocks, and my manual puller to get this job done.

Basically I had to un-block the wheels and let the chipper roll backwards using the winch line to control the descent. (A wider area in the path, big enough to turn and park the chipper, was behind and downhill of the current location.) Now and then I had to use a wheel block to get the unit to move a bit left or right. Pivoting on one wheel, I used the manual puller and chain to winch the chipper off the path until I could get past it with the ATV and trailer. (Should have taken photos of this process but did not.) Got the job done! Wheels are chocked so the chipper won’t ‘escape’ it’s current location.

Moving the chipper closer to the remaining brush piles is on the agenda for the next trip along with more chipping. I will be able to move the chipper using the ATV since the slope is downhill, no more using the winch. I hope.

Last 2 piles of brush to chip on west side of path

Other jobs finished included loading up the last load of firewood and putting a load of ‘burn pit’ wood in the bed of the truck. The Aspen Grove is really starting to look good; chipping the last brush piles will finish it off.

Current view of west side of path

Previous wood and brush on west side of path

Note the pine stump in the foreground in both above photos, a before-and-after comparison.

Here is a shot of the trailer and ATV on the path after I moved the chipper out of the way. I was loading up some burn pit wood to put in the back of the truck for disposal. Logs stacked to the left of the path (east side) became part of the last load of firewood.

ATV + trailer + firewood+ burn pit wood + chipper + chips all in one photo

Last load of firewood plus junk wood in bed of truck

I did some work on the east side of the path as well. This resulted in more stacks of chipper wood which we may or may not get to on our next trip.

Brush piles on east side of the path

Finishing the east side will be my starting task for next year. There is some firewood to salvage and a few standing dead trees to take down but the final push should not take more than a day or two.

There was more color in the aspen this last trip; next weekend (up on Saturday, home on Monday) will be a good weekend to be in the high country – colors should be getting close to peak intensity. Chipping and spreading chips will be the primary jobs activities but we will take some time just to enjoy the fall colors and cooler temperatures this time of year offers.

Fall colors beginning to appear at The Lot

That’s it for now. Thanks for looking in!

Pam’s Two Cents Worth:

This coming weekend will be my last at Sanderling for the season.  I’m hoping there will be full fall color to enjoy, in addition to hauling and spreading wood chips.

Back in the high desert, I’ve been working on a retirement house mortgage pre-approval process. It will soon be time to register for Social Security.  All paperwork to process my pension, due to begin in November, has been submitted. Time to renew my CO driver’s license too – I may try their on-line process this year.

Felicity plans to attend the Jane Austen Festival in Bath, England this weekend.  Her costume made the trip from Colorado to the UK in plenty of time.  We anticipate some interesting photos forthwith.

Happy Trails.

Two weekends ago we spent an overnighter at The Lot and could not help but notice the aspen are beginning to turn into their fall colors. It seems early for that to happen, but then again it always seems to be “too early.”

Fall marks the end of our work season in the high country, as the temperatures drop along with the leaves. Our remaining work days are limited and we won’t be at The Lot every weekend; time to start thinking about wrapping up for the year.

A few things remain to be done to meet my goal of cleaning up the Aspen Grove. We chipped several piles of brush last week but have a few more left; I cut more logs to be brought home to cut into firewood, and there is a large pile of chips to be spread on footpaths and trails. Pam suggested I load the truck with some of the “burn pit” quality wood at Sanderling and bring it home with the firewood and chipper, then drop it here in town at the local “organic materials” site where we take our grass clippings. (There is a spot reserved for trees, limbs, and other larger chunks of wood.) Good idea! I won’t be able to bring home all that has been accumulating but I might manage to get the stuff out of the Aspen Grove. Photos will follow after our next trip.

Closer to home, we stayed put for  the Labor Day weekend — just too much traffic to fight and I needed a weekend at home to relax. This doesn’t mean we weren’t busy; far from it. Pam is putting another coat of waterproof sealer on the front privacy fence and I had several projects (mowing lawn, weed-wacking, maintenance jobs) to attend to.

One of these projects was to install a backup camera in the F-150. The truck is so large that backing up to either of the utility trailers or The Box can get to be a chore so I decided to try the high-tech approach.

The backup camera is located above the rear license plate:

Backup camera mounts above rear license plate

The 4.3 inch monitor is mounted on the dash:

Backup camera monitor on dash

Biggest problem was stringing the wire from the camera to the monitor and connecting the system to power. Per recommendation, the system is powered from the backup light circuit and only comes on when the truck is in reverse. It took me a while to run the wire from the camera into the cab; I finally located a place near the parking brake cable to make the transition from under the truck into the truck. I’ll have to see how well this system works. The camera arm is metal and can be adjusted a bit up or down so I should be able to set it so I can see the trailer’s hitch while I am backing up.

Another job was replacing the tail lights on the utility trailer. I had dropped a log on one and cracked the housing quite badly. The light still worked with it’s cracked  lens but I wanted to get the fix in place before the next trip. A replacement set of LED tail lights was purchased from Amazon and installed. This took longer than it should have as the lights came with no wiring instructions and I had to figure out which wire did what. (3 wires: Ground, turn, tail /running lights.) I did get the replacements in place and wired up; they sure are bright compared to the original lights.

Still another job was done; the water hoses going to the clothes washer were replaced with stainless-steel braided lines. I had noticed the hot water hose was bulging and looked to be ready to fail. I have no idea how old those hoses were but it was obviously time for a new set. As part of the project we labeled the water faucets for future reference. The new hoses are supposed to flow more water as well, leading to faster fill times and shorter wash cycles. I don’t know about that but having the new hoses in place gives us some peace of mind; we won’t have to deal with a burst hose flooding the laundry room!

Pam has been keeping up our corner (location of the Mary Lynn Memorial Garden); morning glories have started blooming there late this summer, and everything looks good.

Corner garden looking good

Here are a couple more morning glory pictures:

Morning glories in 2018

Morning glories on fence line

Next week will be busy with a trip to The Lot and more clean up work.

That’s it for now. Thanks for looking in!

Pam’s Two Cents Worth:

The best thing about summer ending is the temperatures are coming down to something resembling normal.  The bad part about this time of year is the continuing loss of daylight in the evenings.

Happy Trails.

The last couple of weeks have been fairly routine- for the summertime: “Went to the lot, cut firewood, chipped brush, etc…” Here are a few updates and photos taken along the way.

Chipper:
I moved the chipper over to our new path through the Aspen Grove and chipped some brush. No easy task, as the chipper weighs 1700 pounds and is not very “nimble.” There is  plenty of brush to work through; the chipper will be in its current location for several weekends worth of work.

Chipper in new location on the path.

Firewood:

Here is a photo of a typical load of wood after it has been cut and is waiting along our driveway for our friend Kathy to pick up. This pile is about 2/3 of a cord:

Typical load of firewood

The above load has since been picked up, but another load waits in my utility trailer.

Load of uncut firewood

The load is shown here with the tie-down straps removed; for transport I use no fewer than 4 separate straps to keep everything from falling off. (Pam says the outside cats consider the cut and uncut wood”Wood Disneyland.”)

The Lot:

Because of the South Park view from Pavilion Point, we get a number of people trespassing on the Sanderling acreage – they usually come in from the ridge above. Pam thought these signs would help cut down the traffic over the upcoming Labor Day weekend:

Pam’s custom Keep Out sign: Don’t disturb the SNAKES

We’ve never actually seen any snakes in the rock outcroppings (under this sign).  If there were any, they would be rattlers, but I don’t think they live at 9,000 feet elevation. Pam figures people who would walk on private property will not pay any attention to a “Keep Out” sign but they might pay attention if they thought they would suffer a snake bite for their trespass.

Around the house:

Foster cat Sollette is getting pretty comfortable in the house. She now mingles freely with our other inside animals, both feline and canine.

Sollette relaxing on a pet bed. (Photo by Pam)

That’s it for now. Thanks for looking in!

Pam’s Two Cents Worth:

We drove over Boreas Pass this weekend and I communed with Mom. It has been almost three decades since her ashes were dispersed up there, and Boreas Pass has seen some changes in the interim.  Considerable conservation activities have occurred at the boarding house and log cabin, plus railroad signage now describes the historic activities that took place at this location. Mom is always with me, but particularly on Boreas.

Happy Trails.

I had taken Monday and Tuesday (August 6 and 7) as vacation days to be able to spend some time working at The Lot. The path I previously cut through the side of the Aspen Grove opened a lot of area to work in.

Since I had stockpiled quite a bit of salvageable wood to convert into firewood already, this weekend was not about new cutting. Instead I concentrated on clearing and stacking brush  along the path. (You can see  some of my brush piles in the photos.) I did bring home another trailer full of wood and plan one more load before the end of the season. That will give our friend Kathy the quantity she needs to get through the upcoming winter.

Salvage wood, foreground, and burn pit wood, center back. Other brush further down the path.

Wood and brush to right of path

Pam had driven up with the dogs on Sunday and stayed over to Monday; this gave us a chance to chip some of the brush and bring home a couple of bins filled with chips. (Pam plans to use the chips around the house.)

The chipper is still up on Homestead Acre, quite a distance from the current work area. I hauled some brush to the chipper location, but I’m planning to move the chipper operation closer to the path where I’m currently working so I don’t have to handle stuff twice. We’ll have to see if this works out! It will require some judicious maneuvering with the Ford F-150, as the path for the new chipper location is not very wide and has a few bends in it. Plus it will mean backing the chipper up a slope. Should be interesting.

Back home in De Beque we had a bit of an event; our irrigation pipe broke at the connection location near our driveway. The four inch pipe sent quite a bit of water out over our lawn and up and under the driveway itself. In fact, the driveway cement slab tilted down just a bit and is no longer level with the sidewalk. That will make shoveling snow interesting.

Drive and sidewalk now off by about 1/2 inch

The town did a pretty good job of repairing the break and had the neighborhood irrigation water back within two days. (The incident occurred Saturday and the pump was shut off; the town completed the repair on Monday.)

Town guys working on the irrigation line in our yard

Otherwise, it has been h-o-t. The local record for the most consecutive days with temperatures over 90 degrees was 63 — we have blown by that mark and look to have at least another week of 90+ temperatures. This summer will go down as one of  the hottest on record. We are also in an extreme drought zone this year.

Our friend Kathy picked up another load of wood from our driveway, and I am about half-way though cutting the last load I brought home. I think there will be one more load after this for Kathy to retrieve. Then I will concentrate on the chipping  that needs to be done up at Sanderling. I would like to get those piles of brush chipped this year, and work on spreading the chips on the Sanderling footpaths.

Kiddo Update:  Daughter Felicity just arrived in England for an extended house sit. While there, Felicity hopes to take part in a Jane Austin Festival in Bath (in September). Pam sewed up a Regency-era costume and I mailed it off to Felicity this week. We’ll have to wait on photos to see how well the costume fits and looks on her. Back in the USA, Toby is working on a plan to purchase the house he has been renting in South Bend, Indiana. Now there’s an example of “adulting.”

There were two anniversaries last week; I celebrated my 66th birthday and Pam and I celebrated our 44th wedding anniversary. Yes, I know…we are getting older than dirt!

That’s it for now. Thanks for looking in!

Pam’s Two Cents Worth:

What a nasty summer from hell this has been — good thing I’ve been at home to keep the cooling equipment going!  The absolute best purchase this year was the multi-room air conditioner.  Without it, I know the animals and I wouldn’t have been nearly as comfortable indoors.  The evaporative (“swamp”) cooler we used in previous years wouldn’t have been able to keep us cool during these 100 degree days.

Occasionally a reference to a famous relative of mine shows up in one of the local newspapers (this time, the Aspen Daily News).  Although only distantly related to Harriet Quimby on my mother’s side, I find it so cool to say I can claim kinship (in any way) to this aviation pioneer.

This Day In History – August 1, 2018

Happy Trails.

It has been a couple of weeks since I last posted; very busy weeks they were for me! I attended a motorcycle rally and spent some time at The Lot. Here are some of the details.

This years’s motorcycle rally was held in Gunnison, Colorado, only about 158 miles from home. I arrived Thursday with my camping gear and a few other attendees were already there, including the rally organizer.

The itinerary called for rides on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, then return home on Monday. This worked out pretty well, with rides over many of Colorado’s high passes and a stretch along the Black Canyon of the Gunnison. On Monday a friend and I headed off to the Great Sand Dunes National Park before heading home (my companion was heading to Grand Junction for the night).

About a dozen guys showed up for some or all of the rally. Here is a photo of the Friday group at the top of Monarch Pass:

XS 11 Friday ride group.(Photo by a passerby.)

The rally organizer is at the left side of this photo, Howard Bonser. Harry and Joe are in the foreground, I am at the top off the sign, and Russ and Jeff are at the right.

Here is a group photo from the Saturday ride which included a stop at the top of Independence Pass:

XS11 members at Independence Pass, July 14, 2018 (Photo by Jeff H.)

I did not take a lot of photos this time but did manage a selfie at Great Sand Dunes National Park:

Selfie at Sand Dunes Park.

I arrived home Monday night, then it was back to work on Tuesday. The rally – almost 1,400 miles total – was a great success and I enjoyed the rides and the company.

This past weekend I spent at The Lot, going up for an overnighter on Saturday. I finished cutting a path through the woods near the east side of the lot, opening it up for clean-up. While I don’t like cutting live trees, the only way we would be able to access this part of The Lot and be able to clean it up was to have access for the ATV and trailer, so a path was needed. I tried to put it where the fewest trees would have to be removed.

Path through the aspen grove on The Lot

After completing the path, I loaded up another trailer-full of logs to bring home (and eventually to cut into firewood). I also did a little chipping; Pam wanted a few more chips to use around the yard at home. My work time was interupted by a two-hour shower, very welcome in this dry summer!

The next couple of weeks should be routine (work + maintenance chores), then I do have a long work weekend planned for the first week of August, taking off  August 6 and 7.

That’s it for now. Thanks for looking in!

Pam’s Two Cents Worth:

Global warming deniers should be living on the Western Slope of Colorado this summer.  Normally, at this point in the year, the high desert around us experiences an average of 4 days with temps over 100 degrees.  Counting today, we are at 13 days of over 100 degrees (not consecutive) and tomorrow is predicted to be #14.

Our Arizona friend Hank realizes what kind of heat this is.  Dry heat, right? Dry heat it may be, hot-hot-hot it is.  When the wind blows, the hot moving air almost takes your breath away. Ugh.

The irrigation water for outside watering is still coming through the yard faucet (apparently the ditch that supplies the town hasn’t dried up yet).  So I continue to water the grass (every other day) and the flowers (pretty much every day). I promised myself I would try to keep the Mary Lynn Memorial Garden going through the worst of the high summer.  So far, so good.

Outdoor cat Uno enjoys a warm evening by sitting on the OC-3. (Photo by Pam.)

Happy Trails.