Slope stabilization and barn columns - Check!

On Sunday, 3/27, we finished the slope stabilization/erosion blanket project. Turns out that we had only gotten about 1/3 of it done on the first day. At first we were laughing and joking about the project but by 2:30 or 3:00 we were exhausted. Bill is in incredible shape and can climb up and down hills in mud all day long - he is going to be a great farmer!

It will be interesting to see how this turns out. This was a lot of work, effort and expense - so we are hopeful that we can stablize the slope AND get ahead of the invasives. We're going to have to learn how to do a burn because there is no way we can mow this area. Additionally, Bill finished the columns in the barn and has started cabling it together. Using wire rope and come-alongs he is pulling the areas with broken columns back together. I wasn't there when he was doing it (was working at the church/house) but he said it was creaking and groaning. I think I am glad I wasn't there!

One of the new concrete footings

We are in the upper part of the barn and sliding the beam down thru a hole in the floor to rest on the footing down in the lower barn.

This is all the siding from the summer kitchen that I took down a couple of years ago

Most of the beams that you can see in this photo are new

(Great light coming thru the slats!)

Bill is standing on the scaffolding and chain sawing through one of the old oak timbers to install the new beams

Photo of the beam resting on the new footing