Groundhog day again

Well, for the second week in succession there is nothing tangible to show you from the site. I have spent another week planning future work, rubbing down beams and joists and visiting the mill where my roof framing is being cut. The weather has been mixed with some good days and some not so good. When the weather has been good I have cleared the snow and sanded the beams supporting the top floor. When the weather has been bad I have stayed at the cabin where I am sleeping and done some design work.

The sanding is now more than half way complete but it is a real test of strength and stamina to hold the belt sander up at chest level, or higher, rocking it to and fro for hours on end trying to keep enough pressure on the wood to allow the sand belt to bite the wood. Within seconds of starting I am totally covered in a fine coat of red fir saw dust that, like the infamous bull dust in the Pilbara in Western Australia, just gets into every orifice and onto every surface within yards. I've been wearing eye protection, hearing protection and a mouth filter mask but it only slows the penetration process down. One of my eyes is blood red from rubbing it and my hair, ears, nose, mouth and lungs are full of the wretched stuff, even after a long and thorough shower to try to get it all off me. My shoulders, elbows and wrists are also suffering repetitive stress injuries that are keeping me awake at night but the work has to be done and there is more to do. Best get it done now before everything is enclosed and even more difficult to get at.

I have received two of the three quotes have I asked for the kitchen and they are both ridiculously high and I expect the third to be even higher. I am therefore left with two alternative options; source the materials in the USA, or; design and build it myself. I shall look carefully at the cost of sourcing in the USA but, I am slowly coming to the conclusion that the only realistic option is to do it myself, with the exception of the hard counter tops. I have done it before and I will have the benefit of drawing on that experience to improve on previous work and this time I have better tools, much better tools, including a bench saw, a chop saw, a router, a large planer capable of handling wood twelve inches wide by 6 inches thick and some good smaller tools as well. I have also found a good source for the materials. There is a timber yard in Cranbrook that specialises in cabinetry and has not only some of the wood that I will need but all the fixtures and fittings as well.

My main source of wood, however, will be the mill on the Indian Reserve down near the US Border. I visited it on Friday, principally to see how they were getting on with cutting my roof timbers, and I discovered that they can provide me with any locally grown wood at very competitive prices. I will have to cut and plane it but I now have all the tools I need to do just that. I believe I shall be able to build the kitchen for less than half the price it would cost me to buy it and there is no reason why I should not be able to build Shaker style doors for the cabinets and do the whole thing in solid wood.

I hitched a ride with Kevin to visit the saw mill and on the way we went into Indian Country to see the work that the boys had been doing for one of the local Bands.  (Kevin drove the horses and I rode shotgun). The boys have been renovating and extending two old cabins that the Indians rent out to hunters etc, mostly in the summer. I was very glad I took the time out to visit these projects because I was able to see first hand how the roof SIPs are put on and finished. It served to boost my confidence in both the system and the workmanship.

Contrary to appearances, the extension on this cabin is not made of logs. The corners make it seem that it is a log cabin but in reality only the corners are made of logs, the rest is timber frame with cladding that matches the log corners. This is how the dormers will look on my cabin. To the casual eye, you would not know that this is not solid logs.

From there we went on down to the mill - still in Injun Country. Again I was very pleasantly surprised at the professional and efficient team there, who were cutting my roof timbers when we arrived.

Here you can see the saw coming back on the return cut on one of my timbers

Once cut, it was then manhandled onto a couple of carriages on the rails running parallel to the saw line.

From here it was run out of the saw hut and taken and stacked in piles ready to be collected.

Here you can see one of the three piles of my roof timbers ...

... and this one (above) being the third. This time note the large timber in the foreground - 28ft long, the longest timber in the whole construction.

These piles will be moved up to the site early next week - starting Monday hopefully. It will probably take a couple of days to get it loaded, transported and unloaded. We then have to cut the timbers to fit where they need to go and get the sub-flooring on the top floor before we can start putting them in place, for which we will need a crane. The weather forecast is encouraging but, knowing weather forecasts as I do, I am not banking on it.

The windows and doors are ready to be collected from the supplier in the USA and so there should be no delays in installing them once the roof is on. I will go down with Owen when he goes down to collect them and I will check out the cost of bathroom cabinets and appliances while I am there. In the meantime I will continue to plan the stud-walling that will need to be framed in before wiring and plumbing can be installed.

I am resigned to living out of a suitcase for another few months and my stuff staying in storage - I just hope that the damp weather hasn't affected the stuff in storage too much. I hope to have more to show you next weekend.

One sorry eye.

The Snow Has Returned

The snow and cold temperatures, as predicted, have come back with a vengeance and consequently no visible progress was made on the cabin this week. Altogether, we have had about a foot of snow, which doesn't sound much but it is a significant amount to clear off the floor spaces of the cabin by hand. In the local ski resorts they have had about 5ft of snow and they, at least, are smiling. However, the real enemy this week has been the temperatures and on two days Owen's work teams were unable to work on any of his projects. The ambient temperatures have dipped to below -20C but the wind chill has brought this down significantly and on a couple of occasions I have even resorted to wearing two pairs of gloves. The snow compacts and shrinks quite quickly, even in these very cold temperatures, and a foot of snow one day is usually only about five or six inches the next. It is important to clear it off the decks while it is still light and fluffy as it settles into heavy solid blocks in only a couple of days, which makes it much more difficult to push with the snow shovel.

The roof framing beams, posts and trusses have not yet been finished because the weather even interrupted work at the mill, where they are being produced and, where the low temperatures caused one of the saw blades to brake. That said, the framing is almost ready, there being only one (of four) large 28ft x 16" x 8" beams still to cut. I hope that it will all be moved to the site during next week where final trimming will be needed before this heavy wood work can be lifted up on to the top floor and put in place, for which we will need a crane.

I have taken the opportunity to confirm with designers the layout of the kitchen and I have received two out of the three quotes that I have asked for. I will fit the kitchen myself, with the possible exception of the counter tops. If these are hard surfaces, which I would prefer, they will be bespokely made and fitted by the professionals. So far the quotes have been excessively high and I may be forced to source the cabinets, if not the counter tops, from over the border in the States. I have designed and will make the kitchen island myself. This will be crescent shaped with a breakfast bar on the outside and the cooking hob on the inside. I will tile the kitchen floor and probably install electric underfloor heating to make it more comfortable underfoot in the winter.

I also took the opportunity, while there is plenty of snow cover, to burn some of the brush wood I collected in the summer and fall.

I burnt the first pile in place and ...

... as the fire was still smouldering on the following day, I decided to use the same fire to burn the larger brush pile, that you can see here to the left of the brown box.

Within three hours there was nothing left of it and, as it vanished rather quicker than it took to collect and stack it all, its sudden absence left an emptiness within me that was both satisfying and a little sad at the same time.

Now all that remains is wood that I want to use as fire wood or for decoration and making stuff with (the stumps).

On Friday, 'Tex' (my new next door neighbour at the cabins where I am staying) and I went ice fishing on Tie Lake, which is close to the cabins. I haven't done any of this sort of thing since Norway in the early 80s and so it was fun re-learning the techniques and skills.

Using Tex's power screw we quickly drilled half a dozen or more holes in the ice, which was 12 inches thick and crystal clear, and we got to work.

Tex the fisherman. He really knew what he was doing and soon we were both pulling fish out of the holes almost as fast as we could bate the hooks.

It was snowing most of the time but we didn't seem to notice. Here is yours truly at the same hole. In all we caught over 30 fish in about two hours fishing but we only brought 21 home as some were really too small. We shared the honours equally although, I think Tex threw back one or two more than me. The catch included perch, bass and sun fish. I took some (9) of the perch and fried them in butter and seasoning for my supper. Quite delicious they were too. 

Scarce has been the day, summer, fall or winter, when I haven't seen our wild cousins with whom we share this wonderful wilderness. This lot are so familiar to me now I am even starting to give them names. The one on the left is 'Dakota' and the big one leading the herd is 'Sacagawea' - look it up.

The slow pace this week has also given me a bit of time for reading and thought. I have recently read a couple of really interesting books about life in the Canadian wilderness and they have served to wet my appetite for exploring not only my local area but also some of the more remote corners of this huge and wonderful country. I am currently reading 'Three Against the Wilderness' a Canadian classic about life in British Columbia in the 1930s, when squatters could still claim Crown Land without fee or deed.

We have also had another tragic death. This time one of the prominent local citizens who owned one of the best eating and watering holes in the area. He died suddenly of a heart attack at the relatively young age of 63 and he will be sadly missed. It has reminded me that

Tis all a chequer-board of nights and days,

Where destiny with men for pieces plays;

Hither and thither moves, and mates, and slays

And one by one back in the closet lays.

so

Make the most of what we yet may spend,

Before we too into the dust descend:

Dust into dust and under dust, to lie,

Sans wine, sans song, sans singer and - sans end!

Log Work Finished

With the continuing good weather last week we were able, so to speak, to make hay while the sun shone and by Thursday evening we had the end gables of the garage and the main cabin up and we topped off the last of the dormers. Essentially, this is the end of the log work and, although some log panelling is still required on the sides of the dormer windows and kitchen gable, full logs will not be required and hence will not have to be manhandled up onto the top floor - hurray!

As if to emphasise that a land mark has been passed in the building process, the weather has also decided to change and it looks like we are now in for a wintery period that could last a couple of weeks or more. It has started gently enough with only a couple of centimetres of snow last night but it is now (Saturday morning) snowing hard and we are expecting a foot or more over the next week. How this will affect the roof framing, which is our next task, I am not sure. The first work involves cutting the beams and trusses etc, which can be done under the cover of the garage but, I doubt that we will be able to assemble anything until we have some finer weather to work in. The Structural Insulated Panels (SIPs) for the roof itself have to be ordered for which the roofing model was made, which I have remembered to photograph and include in this blog.

All the logs for the final gable end had to be manhandled up on to the top floor. I had the easy job at the bottom of tying them on so the others could haul them up. In the end they lifted 23 logs up and we brought one down.

Dexter (left in black) and Kyle putting the finishing touches to the garage gable.

When they had finished it all looked pretty impressive, as did ...

...  the other end of the cabin, by end of play Thursday.

From the outside it looked a long way up - 37 logs on the garage gable end ...

... and 36 logs on the cabin end.

As you can see in the foreground - not much waste, although to be fair that was only one day's work so multiply that by four. However, you can see that the cast offs are all small.

Plan view of the roofing model. The model was built for two reasons. First, to give us an idea how the interface between the garage and the main cabin is going to look and secondly, to use as a template for ordering the roof SIPs. Therefore there is one roof feature that is not shown and that is the dormer that will be above the front porch, which will go in the vacant area on the front side. It is not shown because the porch dormer will not be made using SIP panels, which follow the roof line underneath it, in order to keep the insulating layer as close to the living space as possible.

The gap in the middle is where the porch dormer will go.  It will be flatter and wider than the other dormers and link into the cover over the deck that will go around the cabin - not shown.

This shot shows the quite tricky interface between the garage roof and the main cabin on the lake side and it was worth building the model just to show us how this areas is going to work out.

I thought you might like to see what a SIP looks like. Some houses in Canada are made almost entirely of these panels.

With the weather so bad today it was luck rather than judgement that I took the opportunity yesterday to do most of my weekly admin. All I have to avoid today is staying in all day and not getting any exercise, so snow or not I shall go out for a walk this afternoon.

Short week - short blog

Despite being short (only four working days and the first day getting back into the swing of things) last week was quite productive. This was mainly thanks to unusually mild weather and having a full team on the site, including Kevin.  We have now almost finished all the dormer window gables and will start work on the garage and main cabin end gables this week.

We are therefore getting pretty close to being ready to put up the framing for the roof and towards that end I have completed the roofing model for Owen but, forgot to photograph it for you.  I will try to remember to include it in the blog next weekend.  Every week now we seem to be able to get a better impression of what the end product will look like and there is more and more interest in the project being shown by my neighbours and friends in Wardner. The interest extends to the performance of the builders in terms of cost, reliability and quality of work and I have been happy to commend Owen, Kevin and their team on the work they have done so far but, as I often say, the final judgement will all be in the finishing.

Thought I would get the car in at least one photo to give everyone something to measure the scale against. With the roof on, the cabin won't look nearly as large as some people are imagining.

The nearest dormer is where the master bedroom will be, with the second bedroom on the other side of the prow. Both will have small balconies hanging over the main deck.

The shed dormer on the lake side of the garage is also complete and the room above the garage now actually feels quite large and I think it will be a very popular room.

As you can see, not much snow around at the moment but more forecast for tomorrow.

We have heard from the window manufacturers and they have confirmed the windows are now ready to be collected. This is good news because it means there will be no delays on that front.  We could put some of the downstairs windows in but the priority for work at the moment is to get the roof on as quickly as we can in order to protect what we have done so far. The windows shouldn't really go in anyway until the roof is on or else the inside window framing could get damaged by the elements.

I went to check on John the homeless man and I am happy to report he is alive and well. Someone has given him a small camper and so he is much more comfortable than he was living in his tiny tent, which is now his store. He also now has a dog and a cat to keep him company and his morale is consequently pretty high at the moment so, I am less concerned about his health and safety.  He is still in the same place close to the highway, which suits him well.

After being spoilt by Jeanette and Elizabeth over Christmas and the New Year, it is back to the harsh realities of peanuts, snicker bars and sardines. So - on, on, Tally ho.

And when the night is cloudy ...

Well it is amazing what a few days rest, some wholesome food and good company can achieve. The shadows have gone from underneath my eyes, the aches and pains that were keeping me awake at night have disappeared and I feel refreshed and ready to face the task ahead.

The only real disaster was my hair. I hadn't had it cut since my arrival in July and on Tuesday, while I was waiting for the girls who were doing some post Christmas Sales shopping, I happened to notice an empty barber shop was open. On the spur of the moment I thought it would be a good idea to nip in and get a quick tidy up to make myself a little more presentable for the ladies, whom I am sure were embarrassed by my general appearance. Big mistake, as most impulsive decisions are. I should have read the signals. One, on possibly the busiest day of the year there was no-one in the shop waiting to have their hair cut. Two, the barber was wearing a Turban and so I could not see his hair. Three, when I told him I only wanted a trim I didn't double check that he could speak English and had understood me. I only discovered his poor command of the English language when he tried to make conversation while butchering my locks, by which time it was far too late.  So it is no surprise that I came out with nearly all my hair cut off on one side of my head while the other side and the top seemed hardly touched. I was livid and for only the second time in my life didn't tip the barber.

I wasn't sure at first how long I should stay in Calgary with Jeanette and Elizabeth but, I was so well received that it seemed silly not to stay for both Christmas and New Year. Jeanette's hospitality was boundless and she made strenuous efforts to make both Elizabeth (from Vancouver Island) and me feel at home and she showered us with presents on Christmas day. We all mucked in with the chores but special credit most also go to Elizabeth who produced some exemplary meals and the baked oysters, amongst other sumptuous dishes, will remain a fond memory for a long time.

I tried to make myself useful and found a couple of little jobs around the house to do but my main contribution must have been as chauffeur to the ladies for their post Christmas Sales shopping and tours around the countryside (a good book comes in handy on these occasions if not a trip to the barber). Jeanette worked out a very efficient programme to show Elizabeth and me the sights around Calgary, which we both enjoyed.

An added benefit for me was the use of a decent washing machine, after the laundromat machines I have been used to in Cranbrook. My bath robe has returned to being white after many months of tawny brown.

Mid week we took a trip to Kananaskis, in the Rockies, to visit friends of Jeanette, who had rented a lodge for a family reunion over the festive season. On our way back we spotted this delightful picnic spot and decided to stop.

As we had brought a picnic it would have been silly not to take advantage of the opportunity to eat it - we didn't take long.

To celebrate the New Year we went to the local golf club (I gate crashed it - unnoticed fortunately, which sort of made up for the hair cut) for which the girls dressed up in their party best. The food was outstanding and we even managed a little dancing - after a bit of encouragement.

On the way home I drove due south on Highway 2, with the Rockies off to West on my right hand side and...

 ... the prairies off to the East on my left hand side.

 I diverted off the main highway to go through the foothills, which I always enjoy. I happened upon this Alpaca that I decided to photograph for Matt Sample who, I know, especially appreciates them.

A typical ranch entrance in the foothills, which are essentially cattle and horse country. If you enlarge the photo you may just be able to make out the cow scull in the centre of the cross bar. 

 I also chanced upon this quaint log cabin looking out to the Rockies. I am sorry that I couldn't get closer to it for a better picture because this cabin was beautiful and sits in a delightful spot - really.

The foothills really are perfect cattle and horse country and last year I was tempted to buy here.

 The only draw back is that the affordable ranches tend to be a long way from anywhere and hence are a bit isolated. That's fine for us men but most ladies find the isolation a bit difficult to deal with, even those that profess to be 'rocks'. 

I am sure that, if not the man from Snowy River then certainly, Clancy of the Overflow would have felt comfortable here.

On returning to British Columbia there is now the prospect of the days getting longer, if not warmer for some time yet. The first week will be a short one as the team doesn't reassemble until Tuesday but, on Monday, I will go out to the site and prepare it for work and will report again next weekend.

It was sad not to be with my own family for most of this year and particularly over the winter festivities. I especially felt it on Christmas Day and New Year's Eve but, I did manage to speak to most of them on Christmas Day. And, if the moments of sadness seem to be when the night is cloudy, then talking with them is certainly when, there is still a light that shines on me.