This weekend was a big one! We came up on Sunday afternoon after dealing with some minor car trouble that Dad had right after church. We had to stop at 2 different Menards stores to get the stuff we needed and settled mostly on getting the remaining cement we needed to finish off the pilings (Dad decided that we should cement them in even though the ground seems plenty rocky enough) and a picnic table with 4 chairs and an umbrella that I gave him for Father's day. On Sunday afternoon we fished, put up the table, mixed and poured all of the cement and hung the solid panels for the gazebo that Debbie gave us so we wouldn't get too wet when it rains (which, of course, it did!).
On Monday we began with the platform and by Noon had the sections directly under the cabin completed. After lunch we got right back on it and built the remaining porch sections completing the platform all in one day by 4:30pm! I personnaly think that for 2 guys, who normally do not do this kind of work, using 2x8 green-treated wood and doubling up on the cross-sections, that's a pretty decent feat. We did a little more dirt scratching and weed cutting this weekend. We also went for a short swim in the lake that the dam at Willow River forms, and caught some baby fish there (again, nothing big enough to eat). That night, I heard a bear in the distance. Dad suggested that it might have been a moose, but as it happens, I caught a wildlife show on Tuesday which featured bears and it was clearly those noises that I heard.
Next week, we intend to purchase all of our remaining framing supplies and bring them up. Also, it is our plan to lay the base floor and erect the walls then, as well.
This makes the second or third construction weekend in a row with temperatures in the 90's. We even weathered a 4-5 hour thunderstorm overnight.
