Equine visitors

Rio and Dancer dropped by with Nikki and Kyla (left to right) to check on our progress.   Naturally this is a time for a cookie break...

Ready for the woodstove

Pictured here is the big pile of wood that Bob has prepared and stacked ready for winter.  Also shown is the tractor that we purchased with the proceeds from the sale of the backhoe.    It is a Case International, complete with a good heavy snow blower and large bale hay fork.

Opening to the basement

This was a big step!  Bob ground off the beam that protruded at the stairwell and we opened it up so that we could walk directly downstairs to get tools and supplies, plus use the washroom.   The only trouble is that we are so used to walking around, that we continue to do that because we forget that the opening is there now.   Hopefully we will remember not to take such luxuries for granted going forward.   Those simple things like running water, electricity and indoor stairs are SO EASILY taken for granted.

Up four lifts

Chris and Catherine work at four lifts of scaffold to get to the peak of the main roof in the vaulted section of the house.   Bob is way too quick and efficient at keeping us supplied with materials.....  Thanks to Chris for his help and for being so confident at this height.  On the other hand he was pretty happy to be finished.

Fall colours

Now we are in mid October and the fall colours are beautiful.   This time of year the forest smells lovely, my favorite time of the year.   The only trouble this year is the work left to winterize........insulation work continues.  

Bear is back

We continue to see bears and evidence of nocturnal visits, here is a comparison of the size of the bear's feet to Catherine's ladies North American size 8.

Visitors to the putting green

These white tailed deer seem more interested in the putting green that Bob has created instead of playing golf.  There were two fawns and a doe who grazed for a while and then left.  With all the rain this year, there is lots of good eating for the deer.  

Taking a break

Bob is shown taking a break on the back porch.  The leaves are starting to turn, the pressure is on to complete more winterizing.

Insulation progress

Work in progress on the main roof insulation of the loft side of the house. Note the woven fabric webbing straps that we used to hold the R40 insulation batts into place.  They are about 12 inches thick and so heavy to hold in place with just the friction between the joists, so the stapling the straps at intervals to hold them worked really well.  Thanks to Maurice for the idea and lending us the reel of strapping.  We used regular Dow Corning pink fiberglass insulation for the walls, it is not as nice to work with.

Visitor at the front door

Early fall is an active time for the black bears in this area.....here is the calling card left by one that put his paws on the front door.   There was some sawdust on the porch, so this is why he left such a clear print.   No damage except a little tear to one window screen.   I guess we just were not too interesting.

Insulation for winter

Bob's son Todd is shown up three lifts of scaffolding in the loft, insulating the gable end wall and main roof ceiling.  We're going with R40 Johns Manville batts in  the ceiling.  Nice stuff to work with, no formaldehyde smell and wool-like (not so "picky" and does not release so much airborne fibre).

Interior log sanding

Having burned out the other two random orbital sanders, Catherine shows the new Rockwell model.   It is TERRIFIC, very low vibration so that you can use it all day without your hands and arms going numb.   Highly recommended from here!

Cutting mode

A little out of order, Catherine is cutting the last of the pine boards for the loft.

Celebrate the loft!

Bob rides "cowboy" on the king truss to celebrate moving to the next step, insulating the main roof ceiling.

Finished loft ceiling

Looking up at the finished loft ceiling, we maintained square to within 1/8 inch using a board and hydraulic jack. Finding a true line on a log house requires careful thought!  So we draw September to a close.  This was a bigger job than we expected.

Staining the pine ceiling boards

Bunny drops by to see her brother Lorne in action and is recruited to help with pre-staining the pine boards.

Loft ceiling

Lorne helps Bob with the start of the 2 inch thick tongue-in-groove pine which will show as the ceiling for the main floor and will act as the base for the loft flooring.  There will be subfloor and hardwood for the actual loft floor, but we need the pine base so that we can set up the scaffolding to insulate the main roof.  Lorne Dufour is visiting from B.C., taking time out from horse logging and writing.  Check out his new book, "Joseph's Prayer", available through Chapters.   It is a story of life lost and lived, with some of Lorne's poetry to punctuate each chapter of prose.  

Log style butt handling

We install a log house style cigarette butt collector, made by local folks.   Bob prepares for smoking on the porch in winter.....