Well, Im hoping the weather is nice this weekend. I’d really like to be able to get up to the Beta Site without needing the SxS. If I can get up there in my truck, then I can really start pre-positioning a few things up there. (Well, more than a few, really.)
Still need to get more cameras set up, another game feeder, and a few other things. It occurs to me that I need to dedicate a game camera to watching the creek so I can track the seasonal flow remotely. Tracking how the water supply, creekwise, changes up there throughout the year is going to be rather important. I’m also going to borrow one of these from work and calculate where along the creek I get the most drop.
And, honestly, I just want the satisfaction of sitting under a tree, hearing all the nothing, and daydreaming about putting what where.
The goal for this year is, at the moment, fairly simple – build a small little structure to give me a roof over my head and a little security when I’m up there stomping around. Just a place where I can put a folding cot, sleeping bag, some supplies, and be out of the weather. Some place where I can stay on-site when the real building and construction starts.
Its a tricky situation…temper the desire to do everything at once with the need to be careful and strategic. I often say that I can only afford to do this once, so I need to make sure of where I’m placing my feet before I commit to the next step. I’m getting there, but sometimes I also just wanna sit under the trees and indulge myself with just the tiniest little bit of back-patting.
So…we’ll see how the weekend shapes up.
Ah yes, mindless, numbness.
Enjoy 🙂
At my home, I built a PVC pipe framed lean to hut to house our push lawnmower, spare outside chairs and tires and other odds and ends. It has lasted more than 25 years and still appears sound. I covered it with laminated metal panels which were nailed on 1x4s, those tied to PVC frames. Columns were inserted into ground (post hold digger) and backfilled. Maybe heavy duty tarp to make a tent ? Plenty of other structures like this might work for you.
When my kids wanted a tent for the back yard for weekend play I took 4 pieces of 2-foot rebar and pounded them halfway into ground. Took 2-10 foot sections of 3/4 inch PVC, joined them together and slide each end over a piece of the re-br. Now had two large ‘hoops’. Zip tied a big ass tarp over the whole thing and the kids played in that all weekend.
Not a long term thing but for a fast temporary cover for gear and supplies…..
Make a plan, make a checklist ,write it down so that you can see where you are and how much further you have to go.
By writing it down you can easily rearrange the Order of Things to do as the situation changes. Include estimated costs helps a lot. The budget always has the final say.
check this guy out on youtube
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g10K2waWtYY
There quite a few vids and vid shows a hot tent on a platform. He is Canandas north west, been following for a couple of years.
“the desire to do everything at once with the need to be careful and strategic” – LOL, if ya don’t take the time to do it right, you’ll have to find time to do it over. But whatever ya decide to do, making time for some well-deserved back-patting is very important – even if no one else recognizes your accomplishments, you need to do it.
“… hearing all the nothing …” You’ll have to come to terms with the birdsong, and the fact that it’s all variations on a theme of: “Come and have a go, if you think you’re hard enough”; or alternatively; “I’ve got a big tonka”. [grin]
Here in the desert SW water is the #1 concern. Some kind of storage, maybe a stock tank from Tractor Supply, along with a gravity water filter. Corrugated sheet metal and scrap utility poles (watch out for creosote) or steel pipe make an inexpensive and near permanent shelter.
For water flow measurement, you want to set up a weir.
https://www.openchannelflow.com/blog/what-is-a-flow-measuring-weir
Set up one of your cameras to watch a properly positioned yardstick, and you can track water flow quite accurately over time.
This book is a very good resource:
https://www.amazon.com/Microhydro-Clean-Power-Water-Living/dp/0865714843
Highly recommend it.
Do it quick and easy and cheap if you are unsure what you will want eventually.
Often, using something will reveal hidden or unknown requirements or preferences.
Musk says, fail early and fail often to find out what doesn’t work before you spend a lot of time and money on it.
I put together the deck outside my BOL by stacking pallets to the right height, then covering everything with housewrap and 1/2″ ply for the top. I got the pallets crazy cheap as surplus, and since they’re just stacked, we are on our third configuration. Simple, flat, and rectangular didn’t work for my wife, so now we have some landings outside the doors. It also let us try out the size and see if the patio furniture fit. It did, but was tight.
Because we did the “practice”deck, our very expensive permanent deck is much more likely to meet all our needs and desires. AND we were able to use the cheap one for the last 2 years, keeping everything out of the red mud while we actual can use the space.
Take a look at getting some plastic pallets locally. They are lightweight, durable, and easy to move. Bring in a few at a time, build a flat raised area, and you can have your tent out of the dirt in no time.
A tarp and some pvc pipe as a sun shade/ wind break, and you are good to go.
n
On keeping records: Get a “Composition Book” (kinda like these – http://amazon.com/composition-notebook/s?k=composition+notebook).
Number each page as you fill out the book from front to back; put a title and the date of the original entry on the top line. Add whatever it is that you are documenting on however many pages it takes, but try to capture only the things that drive decisions or document a design of something. Remember to number every page (no need to copy the date and title for items spanning more than one page).
Now for the key that makes this work: Go to the back of the book and on the last page write the page number(s), then the title, then the date as an “index”. Now that you’ve documented the index go back to the first page of that entry and UNDERLINE the title to indicate that the entry is in the index.
What happens is that you now have a chronological (mostly) record of your “stuff” and a way to find it all. The key is to have good titles: be consistent in how you title things – all related items should be titled similarly going from general to specific. For example from my construction book, “Lighting Layout – Living Area” vs “Electrical Wiring – Living Area”, etc. This makes scanning the index easy to find what you’re looking for.
When you make major changes that would be impractical to incorporate on the original pages, start on the next fresh page regardless of how far back in the book you need to go (skipping over what else has been documented in the interim). Note on the original page that there is an update on whatever page(s) you used for the update. There is no need for that reference in the index since the note on the original will get you to the updated info. Retain the title and add “UPDATE” to it. Updates on the original pages should preserve the original information but show what was changed and why.
The book fills itself without having to reserve any pages for the index, and the most recent info is always found on the last page of the index which is farthest from the back of the book.
You might have several books, but try to avoid having books overlap in topics – it makes you have to go through multiple books to find what you need. Don’t ask me how I know.
DGM
Throw a half dozen semi dwarf fruit trees and a shovel in the pickup when you go up and get a good workout planting them. Or at the very least plan where the orchard is going to be and buy some trees while they’re still available and plant them a different weekend
I have a fantasy about having my own apple trees and bottling my own cider in the fall.
Well once you buy the trees, it ceases to be a fantasy anymore. The trees I planted 40 years ago when I bought my property are still producing. And every couple years I’ll add a couple more to make up for trees that were lost due to storms, disease and deer.
Apple trees get wrecked out here by the bear, deer, and elk. Keeping the fences up is a chore.
You’re absolutely right. Establishing a presence on the property is going to be extremely challenging. Along with a constant battle with the wildlife.
I thought this had been mentioned before but I can’t find it now. An interesting building material for when the time comes – although logistically would be a hurdle to get them to the building site. Supposedly the 14” blocks can withstands multiple rounds from a .50
https://aussie-block.com/
do not get into to big of a hurry, its always cheaper to do something right the first time than to go back and do it again the right way. i have learned this the hard way in the last 40 years.
building a homestead doesn’t happen overnight or in a few years, it’s a life’s work, its very rewarding and it’s never ending. just be sure that this is what you want to do before you get to deep into this because you are going to work harder and spend more money than you ever thought possible.
is it worth it? oh hell yea, if you have the determination and stamina to do it. we have a good place here in the deep south boonies and we sleep good at night knowing that we are as self sufficient as two people can be, we won’t need the outside world as long as our health holds.
best of luck to you in everything.
I think there’s a good case for planning in phases. Also with an eye on the future, what is your sleeping shed in 2026 could be whatever shed in 2030 when you’ve got a sweet little concrete house up there.
Exactly! Sleeping shed could later be turned into a bunkhouse, work shop, shed, generator or solar shack, or storehouse.
I think if I remember right that my grandfather first put in was a root cellar with
a smoke house on top. then he started on the house. after that was the first barn
and then a spring house and second root cellar. also did a small pond that fed water into the house and barn. up on the hill from both. spring fed as well.
I think he stopped building at 65 or so and just kept things up after that.
he lived in a tent for about a year and a half until the house was done.
but weather is milder in eastern KY hills than where you are.
he got the house done right before his first kid was born so I was told.
still, the man had 13 kids so, he had time to THAT after working all day.
I sincerely wish you the best. My advice would be to remember If you don’t hold it you don’t own it. Most everything at my site was stolen in the last month because I couldn’t be there. Equipment,ammo, copper pipe, tools, etc. Even toilet paper and paper towels. Not to mention trail cameras. I left set up instructions in the cabin and they found the trees they were on. I’m not going leave anything from now on of real value if I am not there!