Land: The road to no where

 Land: The road to no where

We didn't get to work on the project until mid-July due to the weather.  We needed a week where there would be no chance of rain.  It was a wet spring.  By July, we had to go rain or not if we wanted to make the hunting season.  Once again, Warren-Cat delivered a few machines to make the work easier.   We rented a 320 Excavator and 299 skid steer with tree sheers and a grapple.

The primary goal was to expand the area around the RV and the food plot.  Secondly, we wanted to create a new road, two ponds, and a second food plot.   We also scheduled a driller for a water well and gravel delivery to improve the road.  

The 320 makes it very easy to clear off land.  I wish someone had told me this when we started this project.     The 320 is big enough to rip most trees out by force alone.   It can simply knock over bigger trees.    For big trees, I held the arm at 90 degrees then pushed the bucket at 10 ft up the tree.   If the machine rocks without moving the tree then I back up and dig around the base.    Taking a full bucket on three sides will destroy the roots enough to tip the tree on the next attempt.   The thumb makes it easy to stack the tree logs out of the way.   This solved the problem of a dozer which can only push them down from about 4 feet high.  The low height reduces the leverage you have against the tree.  The dozer is not able to knock down larger trees.  Furthermore, the trees would get in the way once they fell preventing further work.   This means every few hours I would have to cut up the trees and move them out of the way.    Since the dozer can't move trees it can become a danger when the trees get hung up in the canopy.    

If you need to clear many trees then the 320 excavator is definitely the way to go.

I was able to create half a mile of new road 20 feet wide through a thick forest in about 8 hours.  At some point, I will need to rent the dozer again since the excavator is not good at leveling the ground.   The road is clear but it is rough to travel over even for the Jeep.    

I doubled the size of the food plot in a couple hours.  It took less time than the road because the skid steer could help clear.   The excavator didn't have to travel as much as it did for the road.    It could stay along the tree line removing trees within reach and set them behind me.   

The skid steer could not travel over the new road.   The rocky ground and pits from downed trees made it unsafe for the short track base of the skid steer.   Unfortunately, the skid steer was down for a couple days due to the track slipping off and waiting for the service technician.

It was later determined that the track and grease regulator were worn out.   This caused slack in the track that could not be tightened despite several attempts to do so. 

The bad luck continued when the excavator blew a seal on the thumb hydraulics.   It produced a nice flower pattern when the thumb was used.  It was before the cut off valve so it leaked constantly and we lost nearly two gallons of hydraulic fluid while moving it out of the deep forest.

By Friday we had completed most of the task but both machines now had mechanical issues.  The equipment trouble prevented us from doing the gravel.   The company was not happy when I called to cancel delivery.    The scheduled delivery was for 6 truck loads and without the equipment we wouldn't be able to move it.    We waited two days for parts and the technician to return. There was only one full day left by the time the equipment was working again.   We will have to try to do the gravel again next year.

Clearly, we planned to do too much for one week.   We had delays due to equipment repairs and had to go every couple of days generator fuel.   Every technician or delivery required us to meet them in town and lead them to the site.   Every trip takes at least 2 hours round trip.   

Initially, the drillers were not confident we could reach water since we're on top of a mountain.  I have never seen a well being drilled before.   First, they drill 20 feet down with a large bit using air to push the material out of the hole.    Once they reach the end of the line, the drill is pulled up and a large PVC pipe is dropped in the hole.     They pour concrete in to seal around where the pipe contacts the ground.   Then a smaller bit is installed and they resume drilling.     They switch to water to push the material out of the hole instead of air.     

We agreed to drill up to 200 feet in search of water.   With time running out, we hit water at 160 feet.    He said it was flowing at about 1.5 gallons per minute.    They determine this by how much the water moves when the drilling is paused to add a new pipe. 

This probably wouldn't be enough for a full time residence but we don't plan to live out here.     He finished drilling at 180 feet which would give us about 230 gallons of water before the well is dry.  The well casing is just PVC pipe with holes cut to allow surrounding water to fill in the pipe.   The pump sits 10 feet from the bottom to avoid debris only connected by the electric wires and the water line.   

Most of the well is in black shale. The water comes out milky, but the test shows there's no bacteria or heavy metals.   I'm sure the water will taste as bad as it smells but it appears to be safe to drink.   We just needed water for the toilet and showers.  We bring bottled water in for drinking and cooking.  At some point, we will need water for concrete mixing too.  The driller said the water should clear up over time and to run it dry as often as possible.

 

We left a 275 gallon tote we've been using to bring water in. I added a little plumbing and wired a breaker with a generator connection.    The plan will be to power the pump (240v) and fill the tote then put in water conditioner to prevent mold/bacteria.   The 12v RV pump will be used to draw on the tote.    The 275 gallons should last several weeks which means we won't need to bring the generator with us on every trip.    The best thing is we will no longer have to transport hundreds of pounds of water every trip.

My son brought the beverages.  After the long day, we would gather around the campfire.  Drinking beer with good company.   My hope was always that this land would be a place we could spend quality time with friends and family.   

Maybe I should have asked them if they liked camping first?