06-28-11

I went up to IC last Monday. I got there around 10:00 in the morning, unloaded the van, moved into the cabin and started working on the shower. By noon the temperature was in the high 90’s. The rest of the day was spent trying to stay cool, without success.

I was doing some more work on the shower Tuesday morning when my friend Bob showed up. It was around the time when it was getting too hot to work any more. I was happy for the excuse to stop. We spent most of the day just hanging out in the shade trying to stay cool (no such luck). We were sitting on a bench where there was a slight breeze wafting up the canyon. While we were sitting there we noticed a large bee hive in a tree not far from us.

At first I thought we would just blast the hive with a couple of shot gun blasts when we were leaving on Monday. But then after a couple of days and looking at the hive a few times I realized that the hive was a Hornet nest. Now, hornets are not aggressive to humans and they have a kill on sight instinct toward Yellow Jackets. Anything that hunts and kills Yellow Jackets is a good creature and should be nurtured rather than destroyed. I have noticed that there are fewer yellow jackets around the cabin this year so maybe that is the reason. So the nest stays.

The next day Bob worked on re-tapping the old spring and I started working on the kitchen in the cabin. I know, I keep changing the kitchen configuration but this time I went back to my original design with the sink and stove both in the counter. I had some sheet metal to make the counter top. Once I got all the cut outs for the sink and stove Bob helped me set the counter top. We screwed it down along the back and then started bending the edges. Bob has had some experience bending sheet metal by hand with very little in the way of tools. The tool he used the most was a 2ft long piece of 2X2 that he used like a lever to bend down the edges. The kitchen is now in its final configuration.

I will build a shelf under the window where the stove was to to use as a work surface.

Bob left Thursday around noon. he was headed up the coast to do some kayaking. I really appreciate all his help. 

I got the sink plumbed, water in and water out. It is sure fine to have some indoor plumbing even if we still have to walk 150 yards to go to the privy. Eventually we will have a septic system and a flush toilette in the bath house but that means a lot of hand digging so it will be a while.

Dave showed up around 11:00 on Friday. By then the weather had cooled a little, high 80’s to low 90’s. He got all moved in to his place

and we spent the day just hanging out. Patti showed up around 5:00.

I think that I must have over done it and worked too hard in the heat. Maybe even got a bit of heat exhaustion because by Friday I was totally wiped out. I tried to do a little work but could only work for about a half hour at a time and then I would have to lie down for a while. I did manage to get the shower to a point where it was functional. For the hot shower part I hung up Dave’s (camping on demand water heater/shower). 

By Saturday afternoon it was done.

After a week of working in the searing heat without a shower I wasted no time trying it out. The shower works great.

Saturday morning, Dave could not find his hearing aid. He said that he had set it on the empty cot next to his head with some other things. In the morning it was no where to be found. We all took his tent apart with no sign of the hearing aid. We finally decided that some critter must have run off with it probably because of the ear wax on the end.

Dave’s son Matt and Matt’s brother-in-law Mike showed up Saturday around noon.

Mike is on the left.

They came up to set up Matt’s Baker tent down on the point where Dave and Joanne originally had their camp.

The place is starting to look like an old Mining camp.

Matt and Mike left Sunday morning. The weather is continuing to cool and I am starting to feel better. Dave left around 3:00. I took a nap.

Patti and I left on Monday around noon.

Tuesday, June 28th,

As I sit here writing this to you it is raining in Santa Rosa.

We plan to go up to Indian Creek for the fourth of July weekend. Our grandson Harvey and one of his friends will be coming to spend the weekend with us. The weather is supposed to be back in the 90’s by the weekend but this time we will have the key to the gate so we will have access to the creek and the swimming hole. I will probably spend most of the daytime in the creek staying cool.