Upper Peninsula Michigan and Auction Win Outcomes

-
Image
I was up in Wisconsin and the UP (upper peninsula) in Michigan. It was a lot of driving after launching/landing in Appleton WI. I got an item off the bucket list by driving across the "Mighty Mac". Altough it was built in the late '50s. It is still the longest suspension span in the Northern hemisphere. It is a crazy long bridge with a crazy long suspension span. It was good to see the bridge in context of the seemingly endless forests of Northern Wisconsin and Michigan. The culture in the two haves of Michigan are noticibly different as you might expect. Great time meeting with folks both in WI and MI. The tractor I won in auction, seems to have paid off. This time I beat the odds. It was a really good deal. I have the "no-key, non-running, may have hydraulic problems, unknown hours" -auction win, running well with minimal cost and time. I have some more tweaks, maintenance and minor fixes but the major risks are gone.
Post a Comment

Roof Ridge Line Straightening

-

There has been a "belly" in the porch roof ridge line for as long as I have owned this house (10 years). I am finally doing something about it as I prepare for a new roof, soffits, facia and gutters. I took more than half of the sag out today. I still have more jacking and bracing, but I feel good about the progress.

Certainly I have lots of experience straigtening structures like this. I remember my Uncle and my Father straigtening the collaped roof on the laundry shed near Bridgton, Maine in the 60s. The first one I did was a garage in the late 80s. I am using the 20 ton hydraulic jack I purchased in the mid 90s to jack and straighten the house I restored in Victor NY. I can't say I like working in attics and crawl spaces. I like the value it adds when complete, since it is easy, but scary and complicated for most. It is "pure" work.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

-
Image
I am flying this morning. We are getting off the beaten trail. We are going to Mt Heine on White Island and Williams Cliff on the side of Mt. Erebus. We are trying to determine if we have a found a better radio location at these two points. We are taking GPS, maps, a 900 Meg radio and ice axes. It will make the network simpler if I can prove these spots will work. Cravasses are common near Williams Cliff so we are on high-guard about where we will set the helo down. We may not set down at all. Cravasses are really problematic down here. They are hundreds of feet deep and they are very often covered with snow. Sometimes the snow may be 6 or 10 feet thick and may support equipment for a while. Then one day the equipment breaks through. Ice radar is normally used for traverses.
Read more
-
Image
Strawberry Pop-Tart Blow-Torches Please do not attempt these pop tart experiments at home. I am sure they are trained professionals and they know the meaning of DANGER. Besides, didn't anyone ever tell you not to play with your food!! --------Other news---- This should probably should be a new blog. HOWeverrr, FAWN wore a halter for the first time tonight! It took a lot out of her...and a lot out of me!. She is large and she is the last of our animals to wear a halter. it is great. She was sooo nervous. But she did it! She yanked on me and yanked. She fell once, ran into some stuff. She never came close to hurting herself but to get an adult llama haltered is a big deal in my book. I never had large animals before this group of five we got last march. It is a different kind of animal. One that could pounce on you or drag you around. It is scary. I was wary of her lunging at me. The first time Calisto lunged...it scared the crap out of me seeing a large animal legs up ...
Read more

Solon NY Water Mill

-
Image
I went and looked at the Solon Pond Mill. I was mistaken last time when I was up there in 2000. It was Summer and everything was overgrown. The mill is about an 1/8 mile from the building I thought might have been the mill. The mill is in rough shape. But everything is still there. I couldn't get underneath to see if the turbine was in good shape. I had heard that it was buried in muck. I suspect it is there, but probably in rough shape as well. It is a combination grist and saw mill, and could be restored to do exactly that. I am going to pass. I was thinking it would make a great homesite however. There is 3.9 acres (a lot for a mill) and you could build a nice house that looked period and work on getting an awesome water powered workshop out back. There is a planner, and it looks like a jig saw and I bet a few other pieces of woodworking equipment in there. All the shafting looks good. It is fun to think about the coolness of starting with logs and making furniture all out in th...
Read more

Back South Again with More Projects

-
Image
A lot of driving. I have forgotten how much driving is involved when on the farm. Everything is far. But I also had to drive up and back twice to Syracuse to pickup/drop off Angie at the airport and a business meeting for Wisdomino in Albany. Yeah it was a lot of driving for me. All and all it was about 4000 miles in three weeks. Early in the morning I decided to check out some auctions (dangerous). I ended up being high bidder on a 2015 New Holland Boomer 33 ( "hours unknown, does not run, may have problems, no key, no battery" ) from the State of Tennessee. I figured I could swing by Nashville and pick it up on the way to Georgia. And indeed I did. It was only a couple of hours extra, maybe 4. But, it was more efficient than going to Georgia and then back and forth to Nashville. Nashville is about 4 hours from Duluth. So I was looking at a 4 hour savings. After I go through it and getting if working I will tow it up to the farm in NY. I wasn't prepared for a trac...
Read more
-
Image
I got the bobcat going again and I have almost all the holes drilled. I will be taking the auger back Monday morning. I still have to assemble the fence, fashion 4 gates and generally get the job done. I am gaining on it. It is amazing what you can get done when you are not studying for a class and working a full-time job. We have our new llamas, two females named Rosey and Ultima. They settled in with the herd right away. The current animal count: 7 chickens, 6 llamas, and 2 cats. Click pic for video
Read more