Day after day alone on a hill

With the exception of Thursday, I have been the only one on the site this week and I have felt a bit like Paul McCartney's fool on a hill, silently watching the world go round from my cocooned home in the wilderness. Half the team were away this week for the funeral of Kevin's step daughter, the weather on Monday and Tuesday was atrocious and we were without sealant until Wednesday evening. Nevertheless there were things that I was able to do by myself and on Thursday Mark, Dexter and I finished off laying the logs for the main level in the cabin and we cleared the decks ready for putting up the posts and beams for the top floor next week.

Snow came and went twice but you wouldn't have thought it would have had the time to do so twice but the temperature changed so quickly. The dirt road on the hill out of Wardner has been the only really tricky stretch to contend with and I have been thankful for the Jeep's four wheel drive and excellent heater. For a single skinned vehicle it is remarkably warm.  I now have my full arctic survival pack in the back of it along with enough rations for a week.  I think I've now worn some of my army kit more here than I did when I was serving - crazy. My cold weather flying jacket in particular has been fantastic being perfect for working in these temperatures and my arctic hat, which I wouldn't be seen dead in twenty years ago, never leaves my head.

Kevin, Kyle and Matt should be back Wednesday or Thursday but we won't necessarily have to wait for them before we start the next stage. There are tongue and groove floor boards for the top floor to make and if the weather permits early during the week we may make a start on the beam work under Owen's direction. We will need to get the next floor level on the main cabin and the garage before we can take the logs any further on the gable ends or the dormers. In case you were wondering, we have used just over half the logs and there are about 160 left for the remainder of the log work. I am hoping that there will be a few left over as I have a couple of ideas that could usefully employ any.

This is how it looks now from the road (track).....

... and from the back of the cabin (lake side).

Inside, things are looking a bit cleaner.  Here I'm standing where I will probably put a dining table looking over to the living area in the centre, the galley on the left and study on the right, not quite all in the picture.

From the living area looking towards the garage. There will eventually be two walls between here and the garage, both on the other side of those beams you can see on the floor. The outer wall is the barrier between house and garage (planning requirement) and the space between the walls will house a walk-in pantry, laundry, utility/mud room and downstairs loo, which will have the window you can just see on the left behind the tarp. 

From the galley looking towards the front door (behind the tarp), the dining area (when not eating at the breakfast bar in the galley) and the study/home office area on the left of the picture, again not quite seen.

Centre of the cabin looking directly out through the great room/living area.

The front of the cabin. You can just make out the covers hiding the deck foundations and you have a better view of the loo window and side door into the garage.

I have been busy in the evenings going over my thoughts for the kitchen. I can only really visualise the main floor at the moment because I am not sure of all the detail of how the roof lines are going to affect the rooms on the top floor. I shall have to wait until the beams and rafters are in therefore before I can really start planning the bedrooms and bathrooms. I am probably going to have an island in the galley with enough space for the hob and seating for five/six people. This will be the main everyday eating area and the dining table will only be used for special occasions, the rest of the time it will be an extension to the study.

The cold weather has frozen the lake a couple of times and I have seen coyotes on the ice hunting for duck and geese. Tracks in the snow have been revealing and besides the usual deer and elk I have been visited by a medium size feline predator as well as the feral cat. A redheaded woodpecker has also been a frequent visitor despite the fact that I stupidly cut down their favourite dead tree. A pair of bald eagles, with their one offspring for this year, have been around occasionally although their normal hunting area is about 20km south of here.

I also need to get out and zero my new rifle and to check the sighting on my .22. I think there is an area near the cabin that people use. Owen will know. Might be a good job for this weekend.