Wiring all completed in shop a few weeks ago. The garden fence is coming along, all the posts in the ground - just need to do the other hard part of getting the wire fencing strung. Did part of the foundation of the house in front - replaced three wood footings, and placed them on concrete pads, that had rotted out and shimmed up other footings etc. Last big job on house is shoring up the foundation in the living room corner - completely rotted out. Will have to rent some jacks etc to hold up the corner of the house while replacing some floor joints and foundation. I'm preserving the wood myself, getting top grade Douglas fir and treating it with boiled linseed oil and mineral spirits (blend of 50% each). Much pressure-treated wood is hemlock - which I detest for use in a home.

The lighting in my shop is awesome, like daylight flooding down and no shadows or dim corners. With the shop now clean and organized and well lighted, I can get down to doing things and using the space for projects. Feels good.

always block things while under it as if the jacks slip you turn into a pancake.

got to keep that wood out of the dirt for sure. or it will rot quickly. fir rots quickly. cedar not so much. if near dirt pressure treated is really best.

hey how do you get rid of the ivy. i cant easily get back to its source.

I have cleaned out all the dirt near foundation beams/joists, and will replace it with small gravel to facilitate drainage. That was why the wood rotted out - though it took a long time to do so. With air space and the gravel for drainage I feel confident the fir will work fine and I'm giving it a very thorough soaking with preservatives over a number of days.

The Ivy is just a pain in the ass. I can never really get rid of it completely but can control it by just clearing it out by hand pulling and cutting and then keep on top of it. I've been able to control the Ivy from encroaching on my cleared land area and on the edge of the forested part. Deeper in the woods I just let it go mostly, aside from cutting out the vines/roots that climb the trees. The stuff never dies and no spray I've found even slows the stuff down.


Completed the garden fence and the gate - pain to get it done and more work than anticipated. My Neighbor came over and said nice fence but it won't keep the Elk out. Elk seldom rampage through my property so that's really not a problem. And at 8 ft high the fence will deter just about all animals, except perhaps a big bear. Have to live with that, I'm not going to build a steel structure. Anyway, now I will finally have some tomatoes, the damn deer kept eating all the tender flowering parts. They also decimated my strawberries but the plants survived and will regrow. The beets, carrots and onions are doing ok and so are the potatoes - but the deer also chew on those, and on the blueberries and raspberries plants. They are quite the nuisance.

So today early in the morning, to avoid much wind, I went to a friend’s house near a lake and fell a dead fir tree for him. The fir was about 100 ft high and more than 2 ft on the stump. So a good safety tip to know is that before you fall a dead tree or one that has many dead branches is to always give the tree a good whack with a heavy sledge or single bit axe. Make sure to have a clear path away from the tree before doing so. Have a partner, if available, have an eye on the tree. Giving a big whack to the tree is for dislodging any dead branches or rotten material (including tree bark) and have it fall. You must do this before starting to cut into the tree. The vibration from a chainsaw can easily dislodge dead branches etc, that can fall on you and you will not hear them coming down while running the chainsaw and making your facecut. A lookout can warn you of a widow maker - A reason that timber fallers work in pairs to help out for safety reasons. But the test bump on the tree trunk is a wise and useful safety precaution.

The tree, although complete dead, was still very sound wood. I felled the tree directly down slope and it landed as predicted (that is where the owners wanted it). The bottom half of the tree would make excellent firewood (or a nice saw log) but heavy equipment would be needed to yard it up the slope – something unavailable to us. The top portion of the tree broke all apart which is quite common. Many of the trees along the coast have ragged branches and tops, as the winds bust up many trees through the years and they grow twisty branches and top portions.

All-in-all a fun project for me and my brother, who helped. Our fee is that our friend's invited us over for dinner sometime. Since they live right on that nice lake a free dinner with a view will be our reward.

*******************

Foundation work is progressing - prep work should be finished today, and tomorrow early I rent the jacks we need and the serious part of the work will begin.

Fixing a house foundation is not a fun job, but the major worked is finished and I learned a thing or two. My brother helping me worked out great. Just have to reinstalling some siding we had to remove. Also upgraded part of the carport/woodshed to better protect my vehicle from the wind and rain.

Now have to rearrange the living room - already removed some ugly furnishing's. Plan on making my on built-in bookcase/TV storage and shelving along one whole wall. Will make it out of nice Oregon Red Maple if I can get it - or some other nice looking hardwood and have a natural finish. Tung oil probably.

The mouth of the Rouge was just jammed with boats yesterday. Fish not moving up I hear, just hanging about the mouth. Almost all the boats where below the bridge. Didn't fish myself as crowds bother me. I was down in Brookings - listening to music and drinking some great local made craft beer.

My brother hooked me into a helping him on a "small job" - helping replace a roof. I thought I was retired but apparently that really never happens.

built in tv cabinet works fine until you get a bigger one.

fish are coming in. better get out there or you will be salmon less this winter. although down by you i thought they closed salmon for the season.

and crabbing is good now.

My sister purchased a house so now I'm caught in the mess of helping her move. What a pain and right when fishing is ramping up. That's life. She needs moved soon because of end of the month and she just closed on the house and got the keys today.

Anyway, moved some of her wood today; some great hard wood, madrone. It burns well and provides excellent heat in a wood stove. Pain to move but at least the wood is worth it. The Added bonus is that my sister's place also has a large shop - one bay door but the building is large and with benches and a loft for added storage space.

The coast is packed with tourists this week, more than usual because of the solar eclipse. Loads of idiots on the road. Go home you California parasites and Washington state liberals. And don't come back.

isnt it nice since you retired you have all the time to do the fun things. you are so lucky.

I need a job so I can relax. A government job would be perfect.

Well, I'm also planning my trip to Europe and will do a 5-6 day hike on the Pacific Crest Trail in September up in Washington, with a old friend. So there is that.

Finally finished moving my sister to her new house. Man is moving a pain and especially doing so for family. Five straight days of moving, but to keep going and get it down is the best way. Now I can relax. Going to visit friends over the next few days.

My hiking trip will depend on my friends schedule and weather. But it should be happening in the next 2 weeks I think.

Very bad smoke in my area from the Chetco Bar Fire. The burned area is up to ~ 108,000 acres. The next fews days will be as bad as today by all reports.

best to get away from it. its not so good for you if you dont know that. worse than smoking one of stinking stogies.

Hike synopsis that I did just finished in the Washington Cascades:

The seven-day hike was wonderful that I did with an old college buddy. We only had one day of marginally bad weather; clinging fog followed by some clouds and some rain for the evening and part of one night. There was also a morning where we had some residual smoke from all the forest fires that were (and still are) burning along the Cascade Range in Washington and Oregon. Aside from that, the weather and conditions were about as good as you can get - Little to no bugs, much sunshine and clear skies and warm temperatures and beautiful scenery to enjoy.

We camped at lakes mostly, (tarn lakes; look it up) that really added to the pleasantness of the experience. The hike took us through the Alpine Lakes Wilderness which is well named as lakes abound. The terrain is rough and craggy peaks, spires and arêtes, and sharp ridges the norm, with many cirques and steep walls of rock. In addition many meadows and forested areas with streams, and open country abound. Most of the wildflowers were done, but there were blueberries everywhere and they were in their prime - Delicious free food that added a nice capper to our meals.

We averaged about 10 miles a day with ~ 50lb packs each, which is not bad for two old retired geezers in their 60’s. There were substantial uphill and downhill elevation changes each day.

Saw the usual animals; many rock squirrels, a marmot, a muskrat, some mule deer, mountain grouse, and heard some Elk bugle but did not see them. There are mountain goats in the area and we constantly scanned for them but didn’t spot any.

We meet many “through hikers” that is, people that were doing the entire Pacific Crest Trail (PCT) from the Mexican Border to the Canadian Border - Mostly as couples or sometimes singularly. About half were from Europe and all were in their 20’s or 30’s and well fit. The hiking gear has changed much over the years and many younger people opt for super light gear and footwear. They par down everything they can to lighten the load. Many hiked in soft, almost running style shoes. Also saw people that had small solar panels to charge their iphones. My buddy had an app on his phone so we could track where we were etc., and see distances to established camp sites. We also had standard paper maps and profiles of the trail to help us. Many hikers now days also have trekking poles. My buddy had some. I pass on these as mostly frivolous instruments but many like them.

All in all it was a marvelous adventure and one of the longest hikes I have done. My friend is putting together a photo album and I may share a few photos. The scenery was truly special and spectacular.

50 pound packs.. thats like carrying a sack of concrete all day on your back.
you know you can leave some things at home.

great hike look forward to pics of you trudging along.

Friend send me some photos of our hiking adventure and I will post a few when the spirit moves me to do so.

Was lucky and an up river friend gave me some hardwood that he cut from his property. All of it is myrtle except one tree of tanoak. Most is already in rounds but some in lengths. Anyway got 4 full pick up loads full of hardwood for free that would have cost me at least $400. Just need to cut some and split it all. Also I cut a hemlock and an alder and one small myrtle from my own property. So next year's wood will be split and stacked and seasoned well. May rent a splitter as the myrtle is very twisty grained and very hard to split by hand, even though green. Don't wish to bust myself up using wedges and splitting mauls till my hands and arms ache. Too old for that stuff anymore.

Getting ready for my trip to France and will leave Oct 2 and return on Nov 2. One month away from the good old USA. I'll be living like a Feudal Lord at my friends castle/home in Southeastern France. Will make an excursion to Barcelona and London and to different places in France itself. Plan to do some day hikes also. And visit other places and eat good food and drink good wine and generally make a nuisance of myself to the drab Froggies.

My brother leaves tomorrow for Arizona, he spent the summer helping me do oodles of work about my place and for my sister also. His home is Arizona for most of the year. Land of eternal sunshine.

myrtle wood is very valuable for making bowls and small wood utensils. maybe check before you burn what you have. oui oui

Composite view from a trail pass:





Surprise Lake with Mt. Baker in the far distance, left side of photo, between tree branches (Mt Baker is an active volcano, 10,781′ in elevation):






My old college buddy that I did the hike with







Spectacle Lake:





Composite view from another trail pass:

I'm in France for a month. Will post pics when and if I can and my internet service works.

Or will wait until I get back. Will also visit Barcelona in Spain and join the revolution.

Weather is nice out so I must go for a swim in my friends pool.

Made it back alive from France about one week ago. Will post a trip report in Lounge and here when I find the time.

Burned a huge pile of limbs, wood trash, etc as the fire restriction was lifted when I returned. Cut an ugly shore pine from my front lawn by the drive way. Will get some firewood from it as it was about 80 ft tall. The rest will be burned so I have another huge pile to burn. Shore pines have very brushy tops with lots of limbs. My neighbor helped drag the bigger log sections using his small backhoe. Also skidded all the brushy tops and limbs up to the fire. Needed to get this done as the rains are supposed to start tomorrow.

Finally a nice day on the coast. Elk River almost fishable with flies and will try this afternoon. Sixes is still dirty brown. Went to Langolis this morning and got some good Christmas presents for friends and family.

Will continue with the tree trimming and cutting about the place. Cleaned and tilled the garden and will till in some activator stuff to help my soil, and let it sit all winter. My garden will be awesome next year and I will have a full growing season - The deer fence was finished in July which cut short my growing season too much this year. Still I got some potatoes and carrots and onions and beets and a few tomatoes.

Wow great pics from your hike especially the composite ones makes this Floridian yearn to head west! Did you bring a stove on your trip, I've used an MSR whisperlite for years and really like it although it is hard to simmer with all the heat it throws off.

Yep, have a MSR whisperlite. They are great. And since all I did was boil water for coffee or for Freeze Dried Dinners it is perfect or to sterilize drinking water. All I need. Also like the fact it burns a lot of different fuels. You have to change out the nozzle for some put that is no big deal. Also you can just buy the canisters if want and use those. Very versatile.

i got one of them, the dragonfly i think. used to use it in the backcountry in the winter till i totaled my plane so all that came to an end.

watching the deer, coyotes, small birds, turkeys and a squirrel all at the same time out my windows in montana. life is good till its cold next week.

Saw some will Turkeys cross the road near Langlois the other day. Rented the wood splitter again and split up the pine and apple tree I cut down about 2 weeks ago. Waited until I had a good day without rain to do this job. Had to sacrifice a possible good day of fishing, but the river was still a bit high for fly-fishing so not too bothersome. Anyway, I have all my wood for next year. Of course today it is raining cats and dogs.

Have plans for doing inside work on my home and shop during these dreary winter months of fog, mist, rain, wind, and general gloom with barely 8 hours of daylight.

I've been stripping the dark stain from all the kitchen cabinets and will just go with a light clear gloss - it will brighten up the kitchen a lot. After 40 years of handling and grease buildup it is time to get them clean and bright again. Then I will work on constructing a builtin bookshelf/audio system in my living room. A furniture maker/woodworker I now will help me design and built it. Will probable use Baltic Birch Plywood for the main structure material with possibly some nice front pieces (Oregon red maple) for accent.

And then all the normal maintenance and odd fixit jobs that go with owning a house.