I am a little embarrassed that it has been so long since my last entry. Much has happened since then and I will try to recap it.
I will begin by trying to reconstruct a timeline. We have not done a lot of finish work on the cabin as I thought we would. We have almost completed the window trim. And, as I will talk about later, we have installed our propane fireplace. Most of the time spent at the cabin has been visiting with friends. We have cleaned up more of the wood piles left over from the construction and have filled our wood shed on a couple of occasions. We do tend to burn a lot of wood when we have people visit. As I have said before, we tend to spend quite a bit of time around the campfire. We are pretty much wood scavengers and when anyone asks us if we could use some wood, we always take advantage of it. This visit, my truck was filled with the remains of my laurel hedge in the city.
Even on beautiful and warm days, a fire is still a welcome site.
In the last entry, I had mentioned I had some of my co-workers up to the cabin in August. After that we had people up over the Labor Day weekend. It was a smaller group…only consisting of Rick and Skip, Steve and I. It had been some time since visiting these two and it is always a fun time catching up. We ventured out in the middle of the day to check on the progress of a new house being built by our friends, Scott and Kyle, further up Highway 2. They have a beautiful piece of property that looks right at Mt. Index. The land is filled with old stumps left over from the first time the trees in this area were cut…way back when. Our property had quite a few of those stumps also, but sadly, when the land was cleared to build the cabin, those stumps had to go. The house they are building is going to be quite spectacular…with views of Mt. Index from almost every room.
Scott and Kyle's home in the early stages.
The view of Mt. Index that will be visible from almost
every room in the house.
Steve inside the great room.
As we left there, we decided to check out the distillery that had opened up in the building that once housed the Mt. Index Café at the intersection of Highway 2 and the Index Galena Road. They had just recently opened up. At the time we were there, the only liquor they were producing was vodka. We did a little sip test, liked it, and ended up buying a bottle. The man that was behind the counter said they were planning to make gin and whiskey in the future. As we exited the building a man had set up a table along the highway and was selling various varieties of rock from around the area. Some of the specimens were very interesting. Both Steve and I bought a few samples for the cabin.
Sign for the distillery and the man out front selling rocks and gems.
View from the distillery with Mt. Index in the background.
The classic car was for sale alongside the table with rocks
and gems for sale.
We returned to the cabin for dinner and another night around the campfire. Bob and Doug came up the next day…just for the day. As usual, it was a pretty relaxful weekend.
Rick telling Steve a story under the gazebo after breakfast.
Skip sitting near the fire pit.
Bob and Doug playing a game of Lasso Golf.
As you can see, at present, the ground is a little uneven.
Steve and Bob went into the river for a refreshing swim.
Steve and I took off towards the end of September for the East Coast and a tour of the fall foliage. We flew into Boston, rented a car and headed for the White Mountains. We stayed our first night in Lincoln, N.H. We loved traveling in N.H. They advertised their liquor stores with state road signs showing their location; the liquor was very cheap…and to top it off, there was no sales tax. From there, we drove to Stowe, VT where we would spend the next week driving around the area visiting many of the highlights. Two of those highlights were a little disappointing…the Ben and Jerry’s and the Van Trapp Lodge, but everything else was well worth the visit. After our week there, we spent another 4 days driving through the Adirondack Mountains on our way to Niagara Falls, then the back roads back to Boston. The Falls were quite spectacular and well worth the visit. We donated $40.00 each in a matter of minutes when we visited a casino on our overnight stay on the U.S. side of the Falls. We could not have asked for better weather and the timing for the changing of the fall colors during our whole visit. Our last day we spent in Boston. I had hoped to see the JFK Library, but due to the government shutdown, that was not possible. Luckily we had not been affected by the shutdown elsewhere. So, instead of the Library we visited the wonderful Museum of Fine Art. If ever in Boston, this is a must see.
Some of the fall color of New England.
Looking over at part of the American side of Niagara Falls.
We did not visit the viewing platform or take one of the
boat rides under the falls as featured in this shot.
When we came back from our trip, we had people up to the cabin again over Columbus Day. When we were getting ready to leave we thought we should take the canvas top off of our gazebo, but then thought we would probably be coming up one more time and decided against it. Well, we did not make that last trip and before we made it back, we had a heavy, wet snow fall. When we did finally make it back up, the gazebo was pretty much collapsed from all the weight. We shook the snow off and removed the canvas to prevent further damage. Steve said he thought we could salvage the gazebo and he was right. He had a friend of his do some welding of the parts that were damaged and Steve sewed the portions of the canvas that had torn.
Since this is being written from memory, I can not remember all that has happened. When Spring came we started having people back up. The repaired gazebo was put back together and looked as good as new…good job Steve.
In April, Joe, along with Robert and Mike came up to spend a weekend. It was a little chilly, but with the fire, we were plenty warm.
This does not look like a very warm fire, but it was just
getting started. This was one of the first fires of the year and
we are burning up the fallen branches from around the property
and getting it cleaned up for the year.
Memorial Day weekend we had our friends, Bob and Doug, up for a visit. I usually go back to Montana to visit my family over this weekend, but this year, Memorial Day came quite early and I decided to stay around the area and leave for Montana on Tuesday. I had bought a un-assembled ping pong table, so we put it together outside and played a few games. It was a beautiful weekend and as usual, the four of us had a really good time.
At this time of year, the ferns and moss are quite beautiful together.
Doug relaxing by the fire with book in hand...
and of course, a drink close by.
Over the 4th of July, once again, we had our friends Bob and Doug up for a visit. It was another beautiful weekend with lots of sunshine. During the day we walked up to the old Triangle Campground. Bob had wanted to pick some huckleberries, so we took a couple of quart containers to fill. It took no time at all as the bushes were full of berries. We came back to the cabin and had dinner and sat around the campfire. Once nightfall came, the fireworks started. Some neighbors west of us were having a party and I swear everyone there must have brought fireworks as we were treated to a show that lasted for over a couple of hours. Bob and Doug had also stopped by a fireworks stand and bought a couple of the big boys…the ones that shoot multiple displays into the evening sky, one after the other. Between the neighbors and Bob and Doug’s purchases, we were definitely entertained.
Bob picking some huckleberries.
Doug found a good bush for the huckleberries.
Part of an old campsite left over from the wild days
of the Triangle Campground.
Looking down the Skykomish River from the campground.
Mt. Index is in the background...it is the most jagged peak.
Bob with the bounty. I can tell by his
expression, "Oh gawd, he wants me to pose
for another picture".
Doug and Bob planning their next moves in Mexican Train.
As you can see, we don't mess around with tiny cocktail glasses.
Another fisherman in front of the property. I have yet to see
anyone catch a fish, but the fishermen never seem to mind.
About mid-July, Steve and I once again headed to the East Coast. This time it was to spend a week in Provincetown, MA with our friends, Mike and Ronnie, from Sweden. We flew into Boston and spent one night at a nice hotel across the street from where we were to catch the ferry to P-Town. Steve and I arrived early in the day, so we walked around the city. It is really a beautiful place. Mike and Ronnie came in late that night and we got together for a short time before calling it a night. The week in P-Town was really a lot of fun. We were also joined by our friends, Jon and Ken, from Portland, OR. We had beautiful weather the whole week.
Steve and I had the bartender take our picture at the Cheers Pub
made famous by the television series.
Mike and Ronnie on the fast ferry to Provincetown.
Waiting for our pizza to arrive.
Mike, Ronnie, Jon, Ken, and Steve.
The view from our room.
Mike and Ronnie went on to Philadelphia to visit Mike’s son and daughter-in-law and the rest of us returned to our homes. After the visit to Philadelphia, Mike and Ronnie came to Seattle to visit. We planned a weekend at the cabin. It just so happened to be the weekend of the Index Arts Festival. We had ten people (which included Steve and I) at the cabin over the weekend. It was a very fun weekend spent with good friends,
Even in August, the moss on the trees can look beautiful.
Ronnie on the Index Bridge watching one of the many
trains throughout the day.
Mike standing in front of the kayaks at Outdoor Adventures in Index.
Steve getting a fly casting lesson.
Scott and Kyle's dog.
Good view of Mt. Index from Scott and Kyle's property.
Progress being made on Scott and Kyle's new home.
A tree on Scott and Kyle's property growing out of an old stump.
I have made various trips to the cabin by myself. I like to bring my paperwork and various projects that need to be completed with me. It is so nice to be away from many of the distractions of living in the city and to be in the peace and quiet of the mountains. On one of those trips I decided to get rid of the ping pong table. We had nowhere to store the table and it ended up being in my bedroom. It was fun for the few times we used it.
Over the Labor Day weekend, Rich, Jim, Nilo and Tim were up to share in fun. They all stayed at Jim’s cabin that is also in Skyko 1. Jim has a big loft above the garage on his property and Nilo and Tim and their three dogs stayed there, while Rich and Jim stayed in their main cabin. Another friend, Mike E., from South Africa, came up for the day on Saturday. We all congregated here and shared food and good times around the campfire.
A leaf from a Big Leaf Maple tree.
After Labor Day, my friend Colin was up for his first visit to The Drunken Bear. And, the week after that, I had three of my first cousins from Montana visit for a week. This would be the longest I have stayed at the cabin at one time. My cousins were very entertaining and prepared some great meals. We took a few side trips...once to Leavenworth, and the other, a trip into Seattle to see the play, A Chorus Line. The rest of the time was spent catching up on old times. Oh, and one day, at the encouragement of one of my cousins, we spent most of the day washing all the windows and screens...both inside and outside.
Colin relaxing near the gazebo.
My first cousins, all daughters of one of my Dad's brothers
- Cathy, Debbie and Linda. Picture taken along Highway 2.
We stopped at Deception Falls and had a little
hike through the woods. This was a nice bridge
that had been built in the area.
We stopped at one of the vendors selling products from the area
- consisting mainly of the fruit harvested in this area and
products made from that fruit.
The fifth person in this photo was a photo of a friend of theirs
who could not make the trip in person.
We took a little drive around the town of Index - the colors
were just starting to change and put on a show.
Conjoined stumps in the town of Index.
As stated earlier, we installed the propane fireplace. We had looked at various fireplace stores in the past, but had never decided on which one to buy. Steve was visiting one of the stores again and found a sales person who seemed to actually know what he was talking about. When Steve told him what we were interested in, he said he had a fireplace that had been used in the store for display and it sounded like what we were looking for. We got the fireplace for quite a bit less than what a new one would cost. The store had had the fireplace hooked up to natural gas, so we had to order a few parts to convert it to propane. As I have stated a few times before, I am very lucky to have Steve as a partner in this cabin. He took on the job of installing the fireplace. Together we had framed in the fireplace, but the actual installation and hook-up was done by Steve. He was having one heck of a time getting it to work and decided to take the conversion parts to the store to have them do the change. When he did that, he was told, oops, we gave you the wrong parts. The man who had sold us the fireplace apologized and said he would order the new parts and do the conversion for free. Once it was converted, Steve finished the installation. Steve had not wanted a chimney on the roof for the fireplace as he was thinking about snow sliding down the roof and taking the chimney out. He cut a hole in the side of the cabin and put the chimney there. The fireplace is a very welcome addition. We have convection heaters in the great room, each of the bedrooms and the bathroom, but when you have the heat set low (only warm enough so that the pipes do not freeze), it takes quite a while for the cabin to heat up. The fireplace heats the cabin up much quicker. It did not come with a blower, so we decided to add that to spread the heat more effectively. The blower was quite expensive, but we think it will be well worth the price.
Steve in the planning stages of framing in the fireplace.
Framing completed. Notice the chimney going out the side.
As the holidays and winter were setting in, trips to The Drunken Bear dropped off. I did make a few trips up by myself during this time however. It sure was nice to have that fireplace to heat up the cabin!
Over the Martin Luther King holiday we had friends (Robert, Mike and Joe) up for the first time to share the cabin during the winter. The fireplace really made it comfortable. The first night it was quite nice, so we spent the evening around the campfire. When we awoke Saturday, it was rainy and quite nasty outside, so the whole day was spent in the cabin. We all kind of did our own thing…working on a jigsaw puzzle (a very difficult one I might add), reading, sitting around talking, napping, and of course, eating and drinking. We called it a rather early evening and went to bed before midnight. A little after 2:00 a.m., the power went out. The rain had been coming down very hard most of the evening. You could hear it hitting the metal roof. Then, later in the evening the wind picked up and you could hear it swirling through the trees. It was very fierce. At a little after 5:00 a.m., we were all jolted out of bed when a tree fell, hitting the cabin. It was pitch black everywhere. We were all running around with flashlights making sure everyone was okay and then started looking for what had happened. We saw that a tree on the neighbor’s property had fallen and hit the edge of the cabin and was leaning against it, while the top had snapped off and fallen on the front porch taking out the railing and smashing the barbecue. Since it was so dark outside, there was nothing we could really do, so we decided to go back to bed until morning light came. The wind was still howling and you would here a branch hit the roof every once in a while. I do not think any of us ever got back to a deep sleep. Once light came we were up and looking around. The tree had luckily fallen on the strongest part of the roofline…on the corner where the walls meet. There was damage, but nothing like there could have been had it fallen anywhere else. And luckily, there was no damage to the inside of the cabin. We determined there was nothing we could do until we contacted our insurance company. Since there was still no electricity…omg, no morning coffee…we decided to head back home. Everyone packed up and left right away. Steve and I were still getting things cleaned up and getting ready to leave, when all of them returned. They were only able to go so far down the Index-Galena Road until they were greeted by two very large trees that had fallen across the highway. By this time the wind had subsided. We decided just to wait a few hours and hopefully the trees would be removed. Robert and Mike went into my bedroom and Joe went into Steve’s room and tried to get some sleep. I eventually went to check on the road and found that some wonderful responders had cut the trees and the road was now open. I came back and told the others and there was a mass exodus.
Our resident bald eagles across the river.
Inside, and out of the rain. Steve in the kitchen and
Joe and Robert at the table.
Robert and Mike's great little dog, a Rat Terrier, Luke.
What greeted us the following morning.
If the tree had fallen a little in either direction,
there would have been much more damage.
It caused the truss to pop up the roof on the other end of the house.
Another view of the damage.
Close-up of the damage.
Thanks to those responsible for clearing the road!
Since the insurance was under Steve’s name, he got in contact with the insurance company. We were told to go ahead and have the tree removed and proceed with the repairs. It was explained that everything would be covered after our $1000 deductible. We were asked to send pictures and after I sent them, we were told to wait to do the work until an adjuster could come up to look at the damage. It was determined that the damage was a little over $6000. Steve contacted the person he knew from the area that had graded the driveway and asked him about removing the tree. After the tree was removed, Steve covered the hole with a tarp and then contacted a few people to see if they would be able to do the repairs. The estimates really varied. He decided on another person he knows from the area, the man who had done our foundation.
As I am writing this, I am at the cabin and everything is pretty much back to normal. The repairs look great. We will have to stain the soffit that was damaged, as well as, rebuild the railing on the stairs. We also have a lot of clean-up to do. I would be doing that today, but the weather is not cooperating. Instead, I am sitting in this nice, warm cabin taking care of paperwork and getting caught up on a few things, including this blog.
I was watching this eagle.
And then, out of the corner of my eye, I saw some movement
and discovered this eagle at the water's edge.
Ummm...nothing like a dead and decaying salmon.
The eagle did not like being watched and took off.
The front of the cabin repaired (with the exception of the railing).
The new soffits are in and ready to be stained.
The back of the house looking good. The metal roofing
that needed replacing was much brighter than the roofing
we had on the house, so the contractor used some older
roofing he had available from another job. The only part
he did not have was the edging. You can see quite a bit
of difference in the color.
We have had a really mild winter this year. Snowfall is way below normal. We might be looking at a pretty rough summer as far as water goes. The rivers are really low, including the river running past our property, the North Fork of the Skykomish River. Here it is, almost mid-March, and the river looks like it does in mid-August…quite low. February was the warmest February ever recorded here. The powers that be, say that due to the rain we have had, the reservoirs are full however.
The river this year.
Gunns Peak this year.
The river about this time last year.
Gunns Peak in April of last year.
I know I have left things out, but nothing major that comes to mind. I hope that I will be a little more up-to-date in the future.
