“It’s easy to make a buck. It’s a lot harder to make a difference.” – Tom Brokaw
Sunday, September 29, 2013
Cabin Day 9, 2013 - Another Provisioning
A couple of comments on yesterday: Lynne made home-made pretzels and we had lasagna soup for dinner. Neither recipe is currently entered into our online recipe book, so I can't provide a link to them (although Lynne has a link to the soup recipe on her blog). Before bed we watched Pioneer Woman, and old movie with William Shatner, Joanna Pettet and that introduced Helen Hunt. We enjoyed it. We buy these collections of old movies on DVD at Walmart of $5 or $6. There are usually 5 or more movies on each one. The quality is not great--terrible on some--but, still fun to watch.
We woke this morning to an awesome sunrise, orange everywhere. It looked to be a breezy day, and we needed to do provisioning soon, so we decided to drive into Laramie. We dumped trash and recycle, hit K-Mart, then the laundry (while I made a feeble effort to wash the truck), Murdocks, Albertsons and lunch at Taco Johns. Back about 2:30. Batteries did not get a full charge, but are in good shape--didn't even run the generator during showers today.
We are planning on leftover chili tonight. It is now warming in a pot on the wood stove.
We've used very little of our cut and split wood stored on the front porch this year. Instead, we've taken the wheel barrow down into the meadow where there are slash piles of wood trimmed from trees cut down a few years ago. We gather fireplace-sized bits of limbs and branches and burn them. The trees were all beetle kill and we had them cut to reduce the fire danger to the cabin. The logger who did the job for us did a lousy job and did not clean up the site adequately. So, it has been a bit of an eye sore for a few years. Now, it is starting to look better with some of the wood breaking down and grasses and aspen trees growing up. Still, it needs to have stumps cut down to the ground and some fallen trees cut up for firewood.
Watched Amazing Race on TV, read some, then off to bed!
Posted under: Cabin News • by Rick on 09/29/2013 at 03:14 PM
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Saturday, September 28, 2013
Cabin Day 8, 2013 - Winter at the Cabin
Last night's snow and todays blowing wind had led me to post about winters at the cabin. Over the years we spent many winter days in Sand Creek Park. We've done some day trips, where the real story is getting here and whether we were successful or not. And, we've done some week-long stays over Thanksgiving or Christmas, where the story is about the experience.
Lonely Tree:
Winter days can be great or terrible. The terrible comes from the snow combined with wind. Regardless of the amount of snow we get, high winds blow it into drifts. Some parts of the land can be blown dry. But, at the sacrifice of other parts having drifts that can be several feet high. Where there are fences, or bushes, or even high spots in the ground, there is a snow fence effect and downwind drifts can be as high as the "fence". The road to the "bottom" at our cabin site is behind a hill that acts as a snow fence and can dump as much as 20 feet or more snow on the road. These drifts are impossible to get through with our truck, even with chains. So, we either have to dig our way through the drifts (impossible if the wind is blowing because they fill in as fast as you dig them out), or be happy with being snowed-in. As Larry Martin once told me, "you're best bet is to try to go over the snow, not through it." So, if we winter up here someday, we'll need a way to go over the snow.
Sun Through the Trees:
Temperatures are usually not too bad, between 0°F and freezing. We do see a few days each winter as low as -30°F. And, really nice days can be in the 40s. However, when the wind is blowing, the wind chill can be miserable. Winds can be bad. I just took the Kestrel outside to check the wind. At the top of the driveway, it is blowing 20 mph or so, with gusts upward of 30 mph. Okay, that is just a breeze. But, the winds can get much higher. We've seen 40-50 mph winds during our visits and I've heard of speeds in excess of 100 mph. And, the winds can go on for days! When the wind generator is commissioned, we can judge the wind speeds by when the generator "furls". This happens at speeds in excess of 27 mph and is a feature of turbine to protect itself in high winds. It sounds a bit like a helicopter landing on the cabin.
Bottom line? Winter days can be cold, windy, snowy and downright dangerous up here. If you want to spend time here in the winter, be prepared!
Hummingbird Nest:
On the other hand, there are those days with bright sun, blue skies and no wind. And, they are glorious days. The snow is pristine, the scenery is awe inspiring. I've collected a few photos for this post that show some of those days.
Most of these photos come from a time when we were living in Fort Collins and would come up for winter holidays. And, during those times we had a lot of dogs. We can recall trips with anywhere from seven to ten dogs (and two to three cats). So, dogs feature prominently in most of the photos.
Posted under: Cabin News • by Rick on 09/28/2013 at 09:05 AM
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Cabin Day 7, 2013 - Not Much
I'm actually writing this on the morning of Day 8. I am settling in the cabin life now and just don't feel the compelling urgency to sit in front of a computer and publish my thoughts and activities. And, it was a bit of a slow day for both of those things.
We woke to damp weather, it drizzled some, but was not really raining. Just wet air. And, we had our normal morning routine, except I made pancakes and bacon for breakfast. There is only one muffin left, so it is time to make Sylvie Bread. We'll need a run into town for flour and yeast first, though. So, that comes next week.
Not sure how we spent the morning, probably just reading and talking and looking out the window watching the birds and looking for deer or moose or elk.
For lunch, we did an traditional grilled cheese, although I put some roast beef slices on mine. We used rye bread and combined provolone and Saint Andre cheeses.
We started a wooden puzzle, with extraordinarily complex pieces that my cousin had given us for Christmas last year (or, was it the year before?) We'd been meaning to work on it for a long time, but every time we opened the box and looked at the pieces we opted for something easier. Turns out, after struggling to get started, we found a method for working on it and now have the bulk of it together. We will work on the complex, black border area today.
When the weather was nice, that is not drizzling rain and it had warmed up some, we took both dogs for an "around". It was their first time all the way around and we were worried a bit about Hailey. She is getting old and we think she may be starting to have a bit of arthritis. But, she kept up with us all the way and seemed to enjoy the walk.
The aspen leaves are now starting to change. When we got here a week ago, they were all still their normal green color. But now, many of the trees are starting to show their golden colors and I think early to mid next week will be peak season for color. We'll likely take a drive around the area to see all the trees, then.
We brainstormed how we might do an addition to the cabin to better accommodate us if we lived here full time, or at least for long periods of time. We'd need a second fridge and more storage and think a "mud room" addition on the back of the cabin might do the trick. It looks to me like we could put a 50 to 60 square-foot room there without much problem. We would lose the window int the bathroom, which would become an interior room, but I think that would be okay. We need to look into finding a contractor who could do the job. We'd need to do a few other things too. We'd add another propane tank. We'd need some kind of winter transportation--a vehicle like a Polaris Ranger with tracks for the winter, or a snow machine, as well as a play to store it like a shed or garage. The wind-powered generator would need to be recommissioned. It is fun to think about, but years away.
I guess the big news of the day is the snow. Late afternoon it began to snow. At first it did not stick, but as it got colder and the flakes got bigger and denser, it did stick to grasses and leaves (and the truck). It won't last, but was nice to experience.
Lynne made a wonderful Chili for dinner along with Red Lobster Cheese Biscuits. Earlier in the day she made one of my favorite desserts, a Frozen German Sweet Chocolate Cream Pie.
We watched an old movie on DVD and then went to bed around 9:00.
Posted under: Cabin News • by Rick on 09/28/2013 at 06:48 AM
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Thursday, September 26, 2013
Cabin Day 6, 2013
First, let me catch you up on yesterday, since that day's post was not about our daily activities, but rather our history with Sand Creek Park. In summary: we walked down to the beaver pond and allowed Bella to "swim". We finished the donut puzzle. We visited a dear friend in the Park that had lost her husband earlier this year. It was so good to see her, but so sad her husband was not also there to visit. We had leftover stew for lunch and Buffalo Thigh Sliders for dinner. We watched Survivor live on TV and munched on some popcorn. During the day, we got a full equalization charge on the batteries. This is a "super charge" that literally boils the acid-water in the batteries to restore them. It should be done monthly, but we try to get it done once a year while we are up here. It had been over 450 days since the last equalization! This means our batteries are in good shape, will probably charge fully by noon today, and that's good given the weather forecast. Now, on to today's news:
We had frost over night. It was 27° when I got up around 6:30. The dew point was 25°, so there was a light fog everywhere that quickly burned off when the sun came out. Today is supposed to be nice weather, turning cloudy and "breezy" later with the possibility of rain or snow overnight. Tomorrow, not so nice with cloudy skies and continued rain.
It was a mostly lazy day. The cold start turned into a wonderful September day in the Colorado high country. No wind. Temperatures in the high 60s. Sunny and bright.
We were lazy and did frozen corn dogs for lunch. Well, we didn't eat them frozen, they were baked. A fun lunch without a lot of effort.
I washed all the windows inside and out, they get that once a year. And, I noticed the window in our bedroom that we replaced recently is broken. Not sure what to do about that. It is not the glass that is broken, but the hinge system on which the window is mounted allowing it to be cranked open and closed.
We drove around a bit, but are saving long drives for next week when we think the aspen trees will be more changed. We drove down to the beaver dam on Sand Creek and Lynne took some great pictures.
We also gathered some wood from the meadow for tomorrow, given the weather forecast of rain and possible snow by morning
Fajitas for dinner. Yum. There is nothing like Woody's barbeque sauce to make a fajita marinade (combine it with some water and lime juice). Watched Project Runway on TV, and now it is time for bed.
Posted under: Cabin News • by Rick on 09/26/2013 at 07:00 PM
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Wednesday, September 25, 2013
Cabin Day 5, 2013 - History
For years, Lynne and I had frequently ventured up Larimer County road 80C west of Highway 287 just north of Livermore, Colorado, also known as Cherokee Park Road. It is a dirt road that goes west to an intersection called Cherokee Park. From there it goes up toward Iron Mountain and the headwaters of the Poudre River. After a while it drops down to Sheep Creek and finally over Boulder Ridge and into Sand Creek Park.
A mountain "park" is a large open valley nestled in among mountain ranges or ridges and you'll hear the word used often in the mountainous areas of the west. Winter Park, Estes Park, South Park, are well known examples.
The view from Sand Creek Park north toward Laramie, Wyoming:
Sand Creek Park is no different, nestled between Boulder Ridge on the east and Bull Mountain to the west, it is a wide open expanse of high prairie grasslands with expansive views north of Wyoming. The average altitude is probably just above 8000 feet. Sand Creek runs through it northwards to join the Laramie River (although I'm not exactly sure where).
We loved to camp along Sheep Creek. It was quiet--not as busy with traffic and people as more popular spots closer to town such as the Poudre Canyon or the Big Thompson Canyon, both recently in the news because of the disastrous flooding. There were numerous camping spots in the Roosevelt Forest along the creek and opportunities to hike and fish.
And, in the fall we'd drive a big loop up Cherokee Park Road, over Sand Creek Pass, down into the Laramie River Valley along the Diamond Tail Ranch. Then, north on Laramie River Road along the foothills of the Rawah Mountains to join Colorado Highway 14 near Chambers Lake. A left turn on a paved road (well, it wasn't paved in the early days) and down the Poudre Canyon back to home in Loveland and later Fort Collins. We'd make that drive to see the aspen trees changing colors. There were hillsides, and ridges lit bright yellow, and sometimes with a tingle of orange or red. The aspen season only lasts a couple of weeks and we made the trip annually trying to catch the peak of the season.
Aspens so big, I can't wrap my arms around them:
So, we were familiar with the area when Lynne--who had a desktop publishing business at the time--took a job to create a newsletter for the Sand Creek Park Landowners' Association in 1986, or maybe it was 1987. They published and mailed a newsletter a couple of times a year. And, through that newsletter we not only learned of a land development called Sand Creek Park, but also of the true community of landowners. The newsletter advertised fish stocking events, annual picnics (held at the top of Bull Mountain, at the time) and other association news and activities.
Rick and Lynne, with Bella and Hailey on Picnic Rock:
Learning of land for sale in an area that we loved stirred us to call Angie at Cabin Country Realty and inquire about property.
Posted under: Cabin News • by Rick on 09/25/2013 at 06:00 AM
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