Progress through December 2015



In August, Penny, Rich, Casey, Amber and the kids came for a visit.  We all had a lot of fun and they were able to catch some fish and shrimp.

 

 

In November, Penny and Rich came for a visit again and were able to spend Thanksgiving with us.  This was the moon setting a couple days before Thanksgiving.

 

Jennifer made Thanksgiving a little fancier this year.  You would never know that this is our work table from outside.

 



 We bought a cell booster and Jennifer is able to work from the cabin.  Here is her temporary office.  The cell booster is somewhat intermittent, but it is getting better. 

 

Greg made some progress on the kitchen.  We still need a couple of shelves, the drawer fronts, doors, and a rolling cart, but it is coming along nicely.  Greg did a really good job building the drawers.

We picked up a coal box from Jennifer's parents house that came all the way from Scotland.  It fits in nicely!

Progress Through July 2015

A few of our toys on the beach in front of the cabin on a warm, sunny day.

Although most of the summer has been consumed by fishing, working on the big boat and family visiting, we were able to get some small projects done here and there.  Bob and Kathy sent us their old fireplace, so we built a new hearth, inspired by Ed and Sharon (good friends of Jennifer's parents).  It provides for some firewood storage and makes it so you don't have to bend over to check on the fire.  Plus, it provides a nice place to sit on a cold winter day.

We were going to wait until Casey and Amber arrived to put the fireplace on the hearth, but we were impatient, so we found a way to do it ourselves.  No, we're not really that strong.

We used the tractor to get it onto the deck, and then lifted it into the cabin.  The hand-truck came in handy to get it from the door to the hearth, and then we used blocks to raise it up to the hearth level.  Greg would lift one side while Jennifer put a block under that side.  Once we got it to the right height, we used some boards to slide it onto the hearth.  Greg likes to say he lifted it all by himself, which is kind of true I suppose.

 

 

We also cut some firewood and started working on the bulkhead.

Then one day, Greg decided to make some oars.  We need some new ones, and I think he was kind of bored, so he just grabbed a re-saw board from the sawmill and made some oars out of it.  No big deal.

 

Progress Through March 2015

A view of the cabin with the new generator shed.  Greg basically built it himself over the past couple of months.  It makes running the generator a lot quieter and provides storage for all of the tools that were in the kitchen area.

 

Getting all of the tools out of the cabin meant that we could start on the kitchen.  Greg moved the refrigerator, painted the wall and put up boards on the other walls and ceiling.

Then, Greg built the pantry, and Jennifer organized it.  We also built a beverage station at the outside of the pantry.

 

 

 

We also started on the countertop and plumbed the kitchen sink.

 

 

 

Jennifer likes the new shelves that hold the dishes and the toaster oven.

 



 

We also finished the trim in the bathroom.

 

 

Greg also built a bed under the stairs for company.  It folds up under the stairs so that it's out of the way when not needed.

 

He also built a stand for the plaster cast of a bear print that Jennifer's parents gave us.

 

 

We also built a tractor and boat shed.  Some neighbors gave us the metal roofing, and we used the tractor to build it.  Greg would get in the bucket and hold on while Jennifer lifted him up. 

 

 

We had a variety of weather this winter.  Sunshine as well as snow, sometimes all in the same day.

 

Progress Through December 2014

We've made a lot of progress on the inside of the cabin over the last couple of months. Here's a nice panorama of what we have accomplished.

We started by covering the walls with some nice hemlock boards.  Most of them came from the tree that blew down near Penny and Rich's cabin.

Then, we added some shelves, curtains, and of course, a gun rack.

Jennifer painted the one wall that is plywood.  It turned out pretty nice, except the picture is a bit blurry, oh well...

Greg made this nice clock.  Fits in better with the decor than the plastic clock we used to have.

The coat rack was a combination of ideas.  Jennifer wanted to use a tree trunk for the rack, and Greg incorporated it into the shelves.

And, here is our Christmas present to each other, a new range!!!  It is propane, and the electronic spark works off of a 9V battery, so no electricity is required.  You might think that this is more of a gift for Jennifer, but Greg has probably used it more often.

Not all of the work has been inside.  Some friends gave us a stainless steel pipe that we installed as a new stove pipe.  This will make our warm, cozy nights a lot safer.

We also started building a shed for the tractor and Klamath boat.  We are also planning to put the bandsaw mill under here.  We just need to mill some rafters and build the roof, no big deal...

And finally, Greg started building the generator shed.  Again, just a bit of milling involved to get the walls and roof up!

Progress through September 2014

Finally, we were able to finish our siding!  Well, almost...  We still need to put up trim and battens, but the Tyvek isn't showing anymore!  We have to admit that the unevenness in the coloring of the wood, with a mixture of red and yellow cedar, looks a bit odd in this picture, but once we stain it, that will all go away.

We should have enough wood milled for the trim, but we will definitely need some more battens.

Most of this summer was spent on other projects and fishing, but we did get lucky and find some wood over the past couple of weeks.  The last part of the siding boards came from a log that was floating about a mile from the cabin that we just had to tow back to the beach, and another log that was just laying on the beach in our cove.  We had been searching for red and yellow cedar for months, and the sea just happened to bring it to us when we needed it the most.

Right around the time of our last update, we were able to put up some more interior boards around the wood stove.

We also milled about half of the big hemlock that fell down near Penny's and Rich's cabin.  We still have three more sections to mill, and assuming those logs have sound wood, we should have enough boards to finish the walls on the inside of the cabin.  Much of that wood is stacked and drying at the moment, but we still have three more sections to mill.

Greg had a good fishing season.  With the new configuration of the boat and a full year experience, it was a much more productive season.  Check out the Hunting & Fishing tab to see more fishing pictures.

When Jennifer wasn't helping Greg fish on the weekends, or when there was any chance of sunshine, she worked on the big boat.  Scraping, sanding, and painting.  Greg helped replace the decking and the hatch area on the bow, so now there are no leaks in the stateroom.  The pilot house and bow are completely finished, and most of the hull on the starboard side is finished, but the port size still needs work.  That will have to wait until next summer though.

Shrimp season opens October 1, so we will be busy shrimping for the next couple of weeks, and then we will focus on hunting for awhile.  Given that we were able to find some wood lately, we should be able to make some progress on the inside of the cabin this winter.