The Drunken Bear

Steve and I went to The Drunken Bear today to see any changes that have happened since the flooding in January.  We were struck by how much more light we now have coming from the east.  Not only is the neighbor's house missing, but so are many of the trees that were located around that house.  The river has moved further north from the wall, but the bend where the river turns is still going to be a problem unless something is done.  The riverbed in front of the cabin is littered with a huge tree; large pieces of concrete...most likely from the house that was taken by the river; and large boulders that had been moved during the flooding.  The view from our property has dramatically changed.  To view the mountain which I think is Merchant Peak, we had to go down to the riverbed and look up river...now we can see the peak from the property.  We hope something can be done so that this flooding and loss of homes can be stopped. Below are a couple of p...

  This was the neighbor's house before the flood.  This picture was taken on March 6, 2009.  They had already lost their gazebo and outdoor seating area and knew it would be just a matter of time before the house was taken.     Steps to the door are the only remains of the neighbor's home In January of this year, La Nina did her damage in the Pacific Northwest.  Rain was pouring down and the snow was melting...a deadly combination.  I knew the North Fork of the Skykomish River would be near flood stage and wanted to see what was happening at The Drunken Bear.  When I arrived at the property I immediately noticed a change...a neighbor's house was no longer there.  This house was located at the bend in the river just east of our cabin.  This neighbor had lost their patio and all of the land in front of their home last year.  The house was sitting on the bank of the river, but below it were some very huge bo...

This is what the weather looked like as we were crossing the 520 bridge.  On a clear day you would be looking at Mt. Rainier... today you could only see the sun trying to break through. By the time we got to The Drunken Bear, the sky had cleared and it turned into a beautiful fall day.  And typical of a fall day here in the Pacific Northwest, the spiders are out in full force.  Luckily for us, these are not poisonous spiders.  But, they build their webs between very wide openings and if you are not paying attention, you will walk right into them. This is a close-up of the peak in the second photo above.  We think this peak has been loosing rock since we started building.  It is fascinating to see this peak in different positions of the sun, as the shadows are always changing.  We will be watching to see if more rock is lost this winter. A little of the fall color in the valley of another peak to the right of the picture above. Thi...

It all began in the spring when our friends, Joe Radoslovich and Robert Wisdom joined Steve and began the long process of sanding the cabin's logs on the outside. Off and on during the spring and summer, Steve and I continued this process when we weren't busy doing other tasks. Now if this had been a new Pan-Abode building, the sanding would not have been necessary, but since ours had sat for many years, there was quite a bit of discoloring and quite a few marks left where the logs had been stacked against other logs. Again, if you remember from the first postings, there was also some rot in some of the logs we used, so we had to use wood putty to fill in these areas. We wanted to get the cabin sealed before the onset of winter weather. Then came my accident and quess who the chore of applying the sealant fell on...the ever trusty, Steve. He came by one day and we went to the hardware store to decide on what sealant we would use. Wheeling around a big box hardware store on one ...

Rich Holliday and Cris Sabaten sitting by the campfire. Brian Landau getting smoke in his eyes. Steve stoking the fire and getting it under the grill to cook the baby back barbecued ribs...yummy! Baby back ribs, corn on the cob, baby back ribs, corn on the cob... Steve and I enjoying the coals of the fire.  Claudio Diaz de Leon Brian Landau Cris Sabaten Claudio bringing the necessities for the campfire...a cooler filled with beer and Tim's Cascade potato chips. Claudio using his dog, Griz, as a pillow. This was a fun weekend spent with good friends.  The weather held out for the most part...we only had to duck for cover on a couple of occasions.  Unfortunately for Steve, I was in a cast and using crutches, so I was not able to give him any assistance.  The others offered and gave a lot of help, but Steve pampered all of us with good meals throughout the weekend.

Steve's son-in-law Rick and his water-fearing dog.   A friend of the family who had just discovered the clay on the beach.  Steve's grandson is directly behind "mudboy" and  "mudboy's" sister is behind them both.  "Mudboy" drying out. Steve's daughter, Heidi, and her husband Rick, and their two children joined us on one of those hot days in August.  Steve and I were working on the cabin and their arrival happened just at the time we were ready for a break.  They brought us a much appreciated lunch.  Another family that are friends of Rick and Heidi also joined us and everyone took to the river to cool off. The riverbed in front of the cabin has a lot of clay deposits.  When we finally get the cabin finished, we hope to  make some things with the clay.