November 10 - 19, 2017 - Roof, Snow and Installing the cast iron stove

The weekend of November 10th, Jim worked on the final touches of the metal roof on the screen porch.  Since I was planning to stay on til Monday, it was my job to check  for leaks (in the event of rain).  Well the Monday stay ended up being a week stay since I had to pick up fireplace pipe from Truckee and replacement glass for our Lopi in Grass Valley.

A trip to Truckee (Tuesday) sometimes includes a trip to Reno for thrift store shopping.  I didn't manage to find much of the items that are needed at the lodge - but it is always a fun trip.  I got stuck in traffic coming back, so Grass Valley and the glass purchase had to happen on Wednesday.

Grass Valley also has some really nice thrift stores (visited a few), a Habitat for Humanity (got some joist hangers there) and a great Grocery Outlet (our fresh food supplies were getting low).

On Thursday and Friday, I stayed at the lodge.  And it rained and snowed quite a bit, so I was able to verify that the new roof DOES NOT LEAK!!! And I started installing the stone work to the hearth of the cast iron stove (picture below).  I also finished stacking the rest of our firewood near the game room (we need a cast iron stove in there too) and did some general clean up and laundry.

Saturday, Jim returned to install the cast iron stove and the stove pipe in the screen room.  Well that stretched into Sunday and is still not 100% complete.  But we are close.  Once the stove is installed, we will give it a virgin burn and then continue insulating and cedar shiplapping the lower walls in the screen room.  We also need to insulate and shiplap the snow room (cedar of course).  The stone tile in there will have to wait until spring now.

I have a few small projects pending - but since I was being way to helpful (with suggestions) on the stove, I was sent out to do a burn of the tree debris that we have stacked up on the property on Saturday and Sunday.  I managed to burn everything near the big fire pit - but still have a few stacks way in the back of the property that probably will not be burned until spring.

And we have a mouse in the house.  Since we do not live at the lodge full time, we have always had a challenge with rodents.  Quincy learned how to open the front door (from our dearly departed Dakota) when he is out and wants to be in and has not learned how to close it.  So we have a mouse to deal with.  I am hoping that the traps I put out before I left the lodge work and we have a expired mouse when we return for the holiday weekend.

Our neighbors at the Hyatt Mechantile Store (now a cabin) are outshining us in building.  They have just weathered in their new recreation building which will include a sauna and a hot tub lap pool.  So they will soon have three building on their property.  We have not met the new neighbors who purchased Rad and Paula's place yet.  The neighbors across the street have not been at their cabin much, but were there Sunday winterizing the place.  They told us AT&T are going to be putting a cell tower up the hill behind their property.  Hopefully we will not see it from the street.

That is about all to report for now.  Waiting for the Storm King to really reach us and Christmas with the family.


Snow Storm on Friday.

Adding stone in Screen Room

Stove Installation

October 29, 2017 - Getting ready for SNOW!

The  weekend  of Oct 29 was all about buttoning up the lodge for winter.  Our first big snow storm is due in Friday November 3rd. I finished the metal roofing top on the wood carrier by the screened in porch, added some additional lumber to the existing wood carrier in front of the house (so that water will not pool as much on the tarp).  Built another firewood rack (this one is 32 deep by 5 1/2 feet high by 5 1/2 feet long) for on top of the old concrete foundation and filled it with firewood before Jim arrived on Saturday.     

On Friday we had a nice visit from Jim White and his wife (just a drive by but always fun to hear his history at the gap).  He talked about a guy he used to know from PG&E who had scads of old pioneer relics at his place  Oxen yokes, wagon train stuff, etc.  Jim told me there used to be two large metal posts on the hill that leads down to Bear Valley (the dirt road is a mess now and probably does not go all the way down anymore).  The posts were used to help lower the wagon trains into the valley. A few years back there was a landslide there and PG&E just plowed down the area (wiping away the posts).  Some more of our history lost.  

He also told me there is a trail off North Fork Place that leads to two lakes.  There are a few cabins back that way - one on Black Mountain, that he hopes to explore sometime.  

His wife is currently working her strength back up from a spinal injury and is in a wheelchair - I invited him into the cabin for a tour - but we couldn't figure out how to get her wheelchair down the steps.  Hopefully, when she gets better, they will stop by for a real visit (coffee included!).  

He reminded me that there used to be wonderful old pictures on the walls of the lodge of historic Emigrant Gap - I wish we had some images of those.  They were long gone before we bought the lodge.  


When my Jim got to the lodge, he worked on getting the final metal on the screened in porch roof.  He also started to install the posts for the new fireplace mantel.  Next, I get to add the lathe and mortar to prepare for putting in the stone work.  

I piled up all the firewood from the patio near the game room and  swept off all of the debris so that the water can drain there.  Water has a tendency to puddle right in front of the room - though there is screening under the building, I think one day we will have to lift it and put a taller foundation with better drainage below it.  

We were taking the Polaris home this weekend, so I pulled the tarps off the Steel Frame Canopy for winter.  Next year, I plan to double up the frame (one more canopy and a lot of steel cutting to make the rafters closer) and add a metal roof to the structure.  That should make it a nice winter storage for the Kayaks and Canoe.  


Since we resided a bit of the lodge this summer, I added some trim to the edge of the house and cut and installed a plywood snow blocker wall on the lower entry. I need to paint it since it is repurposed siding plywood in Forest Service Green - the color we are slowly eliminating from the siding.  

Saturday night came too quickly, so we headed over to the Rustic Table for dinner.  They have some really great people working there and they are well on their way to starting their new futures in Restaurant and Hotel services.   The Rustic Table and Sierra Woods Motel are owned by Teen Challenge, an international group that helps older teens recover from drug issues.  They train them and then move them to Alta as they find jobs around the lower summit area as their final transition back into the workforce.  They are a great group!  Anyway - Jim had the burger (always delicious) and I had the Cobb Salad - yummy! We met a guy - Joe, who owns some land off North Fork Place in the meadow.  He lives over by Forest hill and works in Auburn.  He plans to build a small cabin on his property next year.  He uses his property as a get away and for a staging place for hunting.  I am sure we talked his ear off,  but was very nice!  


I put away the picnic benches (still need to stack in the basement).  And pulled some fallen branches and trees onto the fire pile.  I am still waiting for Cal Fire to lift the fire restrictions so that I can burn the debris.  Lastly I tarped, tarped tarped.  

I still need to add the door to the outhouse near the game room, add some plywood to the outhouse peak, paint (almost everywhere), build a canoe rack and stone the wall behind the new cast iron stove before Christmas. Of course, Jim needs to install the cast Iron stove which is much harder to do .  And we need to haul some stuff down to the basement - plywood, drywall etc.  But we are making progress. Sorry - no photos. Just too busy!

October 15, 2017 - Wind Storm Damage and Log Splitting Weekend

Last weekend we had planned to spend most of our time cutting down trees and splitting logs for this winter's heat.  However, mother nature decided we needed to take a few steps back and fix 3 panels on our new metal roof.

When we left the lodge a week ago, it was very windy. So windy that the traffic on I-80 came to a complete standstill at Davis due to poor visibility.  The winds were epic and caused power lines to fall all over Northern California.  That resulted in the Napa, Sonoma, Mendocino fires killing over 40 people and burning thousands of acres of prime wine country.  Thousands of homes were lost.  So I guess we were pretty lucky that the wind only took off 3 of our new roof panels on the Screened-in Porch. So cancel tree cutting, still split wood and fix the new roof.

Since we had a log splitter reserved, we started Saturday with splitting all the rounds that we have been stacking in front of the water tanks, in front of the game room and over by the backyard gate.  We ended up with over 6 cords of wood (mixed cedar and oak).  We are ready for winter!

Once we got all the wood split, we moved onto repairing the roof (Sunday).  Jim did most of the work - while I helped him and worked on cleaning up the debris from the storm.  

Then we updated some of our wood storage area that used to be tarped by adding our old aluminum roofing to the top of the storage pallets.  

On Monday, with Jim gone, I started loading all the wood into our storage areas and then stacked a lot in front of the water tanks (the wood by the gate and the game room is still in a big heap).  

And finally, since we are adding a cast iron stove in the Screened-in porch, I built a slanted roof log storage holder that I put on the small deck for this winter.

We still need to add the ridge cap to the new roof (2 weeks from now) and get those darned dead trees cut down.  

One more thing.  While Jim and I were clearing some of the debris from the new property, we found and old car canteen (rusted out of course).  They used to hang these on the front of the cars and used them to cool down hot engines while crossing the Sierra.  It looks small in the photo - but it is actually at least 16" diameter.  Goes well with the Model A engine guard we found a few months ago.  

We also found a Lea and Perrins glass bottle stopper (with the plug part broken off).  Vintage 1860 - 1910. 

No gold yet.  We just keep hoping. . . . 

September 20, 2017 - Snow (in Summer?!)

I headed up to the lodge this week to work on the new hearth for our cast iron stove that we are installing in the screened-in deck.  Jim finished re-inforcing the deck framing the last time we were up at the lodge, and added the 3/4 inch plywood that was needed for the base of the stone tile and the heavy stove.

I had the task of adding the hardiebacker and tiling the base with random, slate.   Usually, this would not be too difficult of a task - but Jim's base measurements were a bit off (the hearth was about 1 1/2 inch too deep for the deck flooring).  So, after two trips to Colfax, running supplies down the hill in a rain downpour and adding another layer of Hardiebacker and 1/2 inch of base mortar, I was finally able to thin-set in and the stone tile (picture below).

Another layer of difficulty, it started to snow (yes, snow!) on Thursday which made the screened in deck close to freezing (well actually it was freezing since it was snowing).  On our last visit had not put up the storm windows or shutters yet (it was only September and officially still summer) nor have we pulled the portable heaters out of the attic yet so the job got quite chilly.  I kept running up to the kitchen for hot water for tea and to add to the thin-set.

But all is well and next week I will be mortaring the stone to the back wall of the hearth and adding the grout to the hearth floor.  I see a lot of warm fires in our future!

I also managed to refinish a new addition to our fireplace lounge chairs.  I scored a maple western chair on Craigslist last week which is much like our existing chairs.  But, as usual, it had to be sanded stained and varnished.  And it still needs new cushions - but it is a great add to the living room.

The bad news about this stay - due to the snow, there was a jackknifed semi truck up at Cisco (resulting in a fatality) and several piled up cars that smashed into the accident scene.  The traffic was back-up over the summit for 3 1/2 hours.  Luckily, I was in the screen room working when this all happened and did not hear about it until the nightly news.

When I returned home, I found that I have received an email from one of the descendants of the Laing Family (they owned Laings Pioneer Resort from the early 1920s to the 1950s).  The person who emailed me lives in Alberta Canada and could only tell me when the Laings moved to the area ( around 1903).  I told him that if I ever hear from the Laing descendants up on North Fork Place, I would advise them of his email.

And our dear neighbors Rad and Paula, have sold their cabin (papers signed yesterday).  So of the new people at Emigrant Gap (folks who purchased in the last 8 or so years) we are now the last ones (all of the folks who purchased at the Gap when we did, have now moved on).   It is hard to have a cabin in the snow.

Photo of the snow (it is the grayish white stuff on the ground) from the 21st.

New hearth for the screened-in deck.  Plywood wall behind will have stone added next week.

  

September 12, 2017 - Thoughts of Yellowstone

Last week, we took an amazing trip to Yellowstone and the Grand Tetons.  Of course, we came home with lots of ideas for the lodge.  We stayed at the Three Bears in West Yellowstone for a part of the trip.  The owners (who we believe are in their late 70s), are also trying to preserve the history of their place.  When they remodeled in the 80's (after a nasty fire), they kept much of the preservable wood and used it to create furniture and wall accents.  They found layer upon layer of old wallpaper in one of the walls and used it to create a lovely framed history (no fiberglass in the 20s)  and added fuel to the fire.  Since their lodge was build around the same time as ours, the walls were filled with sawdust for insulation.  They worked at the Three Bears as managers for many years prior to purchasing the place.  They also took a road trip to southern California to meet with the previous owners, prior to their deaths in the late 80s.

We fell in love with the Old Faithful Inn and the rustic quality of the great hall.    We are thinking about adding some "log" look to the exterior of our place with some of our dying Cedar trees (we shall see!).  We were sad that they replaced the old dark Douglas Fir floors with something that looks like Pergo (though I think it is light stained hardwood).  But they were smart enough to recycle some of the old wood and make it into furniture and frames that they have for sale.

And whoever let them design the addition to the dining hall should be sat on a log and run out of town. It has none of the log quality that is in the older part of the hall. Why do \ designers sometimes feel they have to mess with a really really good thing.  The pillars in the room were pretty with a relief mural quality, but they did not fit in with the overall look and feel of the main dining hall.   And the lowered acoustic ceiling was atrocious.

We took many photos of accents at the main hall that we thought would be appropriate for our place.  Now - just to find the time.

Unfortunately, the Grand Teton - Jackson Lake Lodge was not as lovely as the Old Faithful Inn.  It was build in the 1950s during the time of budget constraints, concrete and linear lines.  We did not find many ideas there that we would wish to carry to our lodge.   But we were lucky to see a few moose out in the bogs from their deck.

We stayed at the Heart 6 Dude Ranch while in Grand Teton/Jackson area.   The owner is a collector of vintage Jackson items and had most on display in his main building.  Another lovely log great room to admire.  All the individual rooms are built in log ranch hand style.  During the peak season they offer tours into the back country on All Terrain Vehicles and in the winter on Snowmobiles.

Speaking of snowmobiles, here is a story of how the bad few have ruined things for the many.   In both Grand Teton and Yellowstone National Parks, during the winter season, people were allowed to snow mobile until recently.  A few idiot yahoos, were found chasing the already stressed wildlife with their machines, so now, the only way to take a trip on snowmobile is with a guided tour.  Not that I am a fan of snowmobiles in the park - but it reminds me of how much disrespect some people have for our public lands.

Additionally, (and I am ranting now), many of the boiling pools at Yellowstone have been ruined by people throwing coins and rocks into them (for good luck?).  Each year, the park has to fish out loads of debris from these pools and it has left them with bacteria that is killing the ecosystems.

We caught some foreign women collecting small rocks at the entry to Mammoth Hot Springs.  Of course,  they did not "understand English" as I asked them what they planned to do with the rocks.  I did follow them around for a bit to make sure that they were not pitching anything into one of the pools.  Such fools!

At our lodge, we have to deal with people who litter our streets with beer/soda cans and paper bags, drop glass bottles into our creek and dump their plastic garbage bags on the side of the street.  Sick though that is - it is not as bad as what some people believe they can do in our national parks.

One of our neighbors is trying to set up an "Adopt an Exit" for our neighborhood.  I will be happy to join her in that effort (since I already pickup everything I see), but I would prefer it if people would just stop littering!

One last thing.  I found a copy of a 1955 map of Emigrant Gap Area that I would like to add here - but alas - too big, so the URL is below.    It shows the route of Highway 40 and the railroad during this time.  With Siri and Google maps, I am wondering how long paper maps will be used?  For me, paper maps are dreamweavers and I hope they will always be published for our use.

https://www.sciencebase.gov/catalog/item/58954d34e4b0fa1e59ba62ac

August 19 - 21, 2017 - The Great American Eclipse

We spent the weekend working on the lodge (putting in a new foundation in a section of the screened in porch so that it can hold a cast iron fireplace).  While Jim worked on the foundation, I worked on getting a railing on the bunk bed in the lower floor, providing cooking and cleaning support and on picking up supplies.

We found out that Placer County is planning to sell the schoolhouse next door.  We don't know when it will go up for sale or for how much - but the pending sale makes it rather important to complete our lot line adjustment (granted by the school district) for 10% of the portable.

I am pretty sure that the well at the school is bad.  Last time the water was running - it was running really red (iron oxide) so  the well may need to be dug a bit deeper to clear through that issue.  I don't think a whole house filter will do the trick - the water is just too mucky.  Above the well on the hillside is a lot of Sierra Slate (or shale) which is quite full of iron.   And the well is located up near the street (was broken into when the school closed).

Other than that, the building is in rather the same shape the lodge was when we purchased it - sad.  It has limited heating, only a small kitchen and bath, and no bedrooms (just a small loft over the main room), broken window (it was broken into a few winters ago) rest of the windows are vintage single pane and has been boarded up for 2 years.   I believe it is on less than an acre of land.  Not sure if anyone is crazy enough to take on that project.  It will need a whole lot of work.

The only access is through the pedestrian gate.  The road down to the school is on our property and there are no easements to allow for it's use once the property is no longer a school.  But with the sale, we will lose our winter parking area in front of the school fence.    Something to think about.

On Monday, I tried my best to capture the great eclipse.  I didn't have any special glasses with me, so I just put my phone over the brim of my baseball cap and shot photos every 10 minutes.  Since I have limited photo storage, I deleted the photos that did not show anything and the only one I kept is below.  Does not show much.  The sky did get a bit dim and the air got a bit cool - but not much to see of the eclipse itself.

Also on Monday, one of our long time neighbors from Fulda (they have been there since 1972) told me about a book that would be an interesting read.  It is titled "Diary of a 49er" and it is a diary that was found in a cabin up on the Yuba river.  Though it is out of print, I will try to find it an add it to our collection.

Once the foundation work is done and the floor joists re-supported, I will start working on the stone work for the cast iron fireplace.  While I am doing that work, Jim will probably be working on the interior wall siding (cedar shiplap) and on getting the metal roof installed over the screened in porch (the sheet shingle roof did not fair well last winter).  No rest for us.

10:37 am Eclipse Photo

July 30, 2017 - No Work Weekend

Jim and I spent my 62nd (yikes) birthday weekend at the lodge.  And we did not work on any projects!  Mom came along for the trip - but got sick due to a rash and the heat and the long drive.  Mary and Lynn came up Saturday afternoon and stayed until Sunday evening.

Saturday we went in search of the Signal Beacon footings (or concrete Arrow) that a 1932 map told us is located at the highest point of Sailor Ridge.  We started at the Texas Hill entry and drove in about 8/10ths of a mile on the Ridge via a pretty bumpy dirt road.  We stopped and hiked several areas that were high, yet flat on top - but no concrete anywhere.  Eventually, the road became too narrow for the truck - and we decided to try the other end of the ridge (from North Fork Road).

1932 Map

North Fork Road starts just after the Sierra Woods Lodge.  It is also a pretty bumpy dirt road (last year's storms left many wash outs and ruts).  We drove past the old Quarry (granite - not sure if it was used for the transcontinental or the freeway) and up the ridge.  The road is pretty steep for a bit, then levels out at the upper North Fork of the North Fork of the American River. At that point, there were 3 forks in the road (one of which was Sailor Ridge Road and none of which were marked).  We decided to try the left fork and ended up crossing a 1935 wood forest service bridge near some summer cabins that we have never seen before.

I got out of the truck to ask directions and ended up meeting some very delightful people who are the grandchildren of Laing (of Laing's Pioneer Resort). They told us that their grandfather had purchased the resort buildings fully furnished and had planned to put in an ice skating rink at Emigrant Gap.  The only problem was the altitude.  Since Emigrant Gap is at 5200 feet, the water seldom freezes hard enough for a skating rink.  As a result, Mr. Laing built a ski area (J-bar) across the road from the Resort.  People used to drive up highway 40 to ski at the resort (many stayed at Laing's and our Emigrant Gap Hotel).

Both of the Laing grandchildren told me they went to school at the Emigrant Gap School and one of them actually carried the Olympic Torch for part of the delivery for the 1960 Olympics (just like the son of the Nyack Lodge).

I am hoping the Laing descendants stop by the lodge sometime so that they can share their history for our blog.  For now, I think I have pretty much decided that Laing bought the old Carpenter Hotel (see the Carpenter story on the history pages of this blog).  Since the Laing Resort was located on the same spot as the Carpenter hotel.

We headed back to the lodge to pick up Mary and Lynn, then back to the three forks to try to head up the ridge.  Alas, we were greeted by a gate which had a sign "do not lock" with a very large padlock on it.


Sunday we headed out to Webber Lake.  The lake is about 20 miles north west of Truckee and has just recently been openned to the public after 100 years of private ownership.  It was purchased by a conservator group and they are adding campsites as well as preserving most of the vintage outbuildings at the lake.   The lake itself is just gorgeous.  It is a natural lake so the shore eases into the water and there is grass growing almost to the shores.  The water is clear and cool (not cold).  The surrounding mountains are still capped with snow.  And at the end of the lake there is a nice "saddle" between the mountains to create a great view for sunsets.   The sight has a 150 year old hotel, an old store and assorted summer fishing cottages that are as old as can be while still able to stand.

Here are some URLs for the lake:
http://northernsierrapartnership.org/project/webber-lake-and-lacey-meadows/

http://tdlandtrust.org/webber-lakelacey-meadows



After Mary. Lynn, Jim and I walked along the shore for a while, we decided to head to Webber Falls (which is on the east end of the lake).  What a sight!  The falls takes two drops (one about 15 feet, the other about 75 feet) into a 90 foot deep gorge.  Most of the rock looks rather volcanic, definitely uplifted in the area and around the falls, it looks a lot like Devils Postpile near Rainbow falls at Mammoth.  People jump or climb down the rocks into the first drop which has a 30 by 20 foot pool at it's base.  From there, they can look over the rock edge and down into the gorge.  (Photos to follow)

While at the falls, we thought that one of the loose rocks looked like it might have a petroglpyth on it.   The shape of the carving looked like an upside down apple with an arrow shaft on the top.  And another carving that looked like a bear.  Not sure if anyone else has discovered this rock - but I hope that if they do, they leave it be.

Webber Falls URL:

http://www.calexplornia.com/webber-falls-sierra-countys-little-known-waterfall/

After sitting at the falls for a bit, we decided to head over to Sierraville for lunch.  Sierraville downtown is only about 1/2 block long and has a vintage hotel, an antique shop, a feed and grain store and 2 small restaurants.  Lunch was at one of the restaurants (Mexican cuisine) that has some pretty good Chili Rellenos.

After Lunch we drove down the road (49 toward Loyalton) a bit and veered off to check out a Hot Springs Resort that is in the area (a future trip to the Hot Springs is in our plans).  The resort is pretty laid back, and very hippie with some areas being clothing optional.  There are at least 3 hot springs pools there, a hotel, and a small cafe.

http://www.sierrahotsprings.org

Headed back to the lodge just in time to say farewell to Mary, Lynn and Mom.  Then headed out ourselves on Monday morning.  Of course, next time we are at the lodge it will be back to projects - but this weekend was a special time!

July 4, 2017 - Mom's Birthday Reunion!

So many things going on at the lodge this month.  First,  we hosted a family reunion to celebrate my mom's 88th birthday just before the 4th of July (with some folks staying on to celebrate the 4th).

Most of our California family was able to attend and extended family flew/drove in from all parts of the U.S.  My mom had the opportunity to see hear sister, 3 of her nephews from New York, Virginia and Oregon, some of their family and her grand-nephew and great grand niece from Missouri.  Additionally, her extended family (my sister-in-law and brother-in-law) flew up from Orange County. And our family friend/handyman and his little boy came in for a day.

Though we did not get a lot of interest in a 2nd annual 5K (not many runners in this group and it was very very hot out), we managed to have a trip up the lake, a trip to Lake Tahoe, a day trip to the falls and a big BBQ.

Mom was so surprised when she walked into the lodge and found her Oregon nephew, her Missouri family, her nephew from New York and her sister there.   We managed to squeeze 33 into the lodge (there will be more at Christmas) 7 in campers and  5 in the hotel down the road.

Photos of this amazing event will be added at a later date.

On July 3rd we went to the Colfax "pre-4th" fireworks.  This event is very casual with folding chairs in a dirt field - but the fireworks are stunning!  The kids were in awe.  Then on the 4th, cousin Rod, Denise, Matt, the boys and assorted other family attended the Dutch Flat 4th Parade.  We have attended for the last 5 years since it is such a fun small town parade.

Just after everyone from the reunion departed, our niece Tina, her husband Joel and 5 kids drove in from Utah for a few days at the lodge, and a few days in the Bay Area.  The kids loved Quincy.  They had such a fun day at Tahoe (Emerald Bay) and some days at the creek and the river  and the lake.


Last week, Mary Beth hosted a reunion with some of her old friends from High School and College.  They loved the lodge and brought up their archery gear and throwing hatchets.

Now we are finally settling into the late season of summer.  This weekend, it will be just Jim, mom and me at the lodge (and possible Lynn and Mary).  Then back to our work schedule of adding the metal roof to the screen room before the snow comes this fall.  

May 27, 2017 - More Siding

Though we are still working on completing the wiring and interior siding in the screened in deck and the snow entry room, we decided that it was a good time to start residing the other side of our building.  Jim targeted the southwest front side of the building for this project down to the side door.  It seemed like a good idea because  1. any further and we would need scaffolding and 2.  There is a natural break for the siding at the roof for the side door due to a large supply line for our electrical running down the wall.

Once we pulled of the junky plywood siding and the brittle clapboard cedar siding, we found the original siding which was unpainted and appears to have been "board and baton".  The vertical boards are about 16 inches wide and the batons would have been a few inches wide to cover the seams of the boards.  The batons were probably removed when the clapboard was added.  The very front of the building has no board and baton because it was originally the front porch.  Also below the window, the board and baton was too damaged to retain, so we cut it out and added 3/4 inch plywood.

Here is a photo of the tear down.  Currently we have just tyvek covering the original board and baton and plan to put in our tongue and groove cedar siding next week.

April 29 and 30 - Work Weekend

Spring is here.  There is still snow on all the peaks around the lodge - and 3 piles of snow from roof run off - but the snow is gone everywhere else at Emigrant Gap.  This weekend Jim continued to work on wiring in the Snow Entry Room and the Screened in Deck (also known as the Ahwahnee Room).  We will be adding two ceiling fans, outdoor string lights and lots of plugs in the Screen room and plugs and many many lights in the Snow room (probably much more than we need).

I continued to paint the old bedrooms upstairs.  We will be busy again this summer - so the remodel on these rooms (down to the studs) will have to wait a while.  Here is an after picture of mom's room after painting the Wains Coating.  Not quite as a dramatic change as Mary Beth's room - but it looks a lot nicer.  I also put real trim around the window (we had temporary trim up for the last 7 years).

I went ahead and stained the floors in both Mary Beth's and Mom's room for now (they will need to be sanded, stained and varnished when we do the remodel to these rooms - but for now - they are improved. 

We also finally mudded the ceiling in the Dining Room (in a previous post, we noted that the sever weather over the winter caused a ceiling collapse in part of the room).  

Other than that, we are enjoying spring, clearing branches off the property and out of the creek, stacking them for a future week's bonfire.  

Next time we are at the lodge, we will be picking up more rocks from the landslide and most likely doing a big Saturday debris burn.  

Mother's day is in a couple of weeks and we will have family up for the occasion.  Hope we have a great weekend!  No new history to post - still need to go to the musuems to see what they have since I have exhausted all of the online news papers and posts.   

April 7 - 9 Another Winter Storm

Jim and I traveled up to the Gap on Friday night.  There was a winter storm warning in effect in the Sierra, but we were traveling in the F150 and since it was springtime, thought the weather would not be too crazy.

When we reached Auburn, we began to have our doubts.  The rain was pouring so hard, it was difficult to see out of the windshield.  We discovered we were on the leading edge of a supercell that went from rain to large hail in a few moments.  There was lightning every 10 seconds and Quincy was cowering in the back seat.  We turned up the radio so that he would not hear most of the thunder (an event that usually finds him hiding in the shower or with his head under our bed).

Two ski friends had traveled ahead of us and were having dinner and drinks at the Monte Vista in Dutch Flat.  We called them and advised that the weather was traveling along with us and they should think of heading out to the lodge.

When we reached the lodge, we were surprised to see that the snow cover was pretty low.
We had expected our friends  to be waiting for us at the door - but they stayed for one last round.  By the time they got through,  the chain requirement stop was at Nyack.

The next morning we woke to about 1 foot of snow on the ground.

The weather was beginning to clear so Jim decided to go skiing with his friends.  I stayed back at the cabin and painted one of the old bedrooms (which we will not have time to remodel this summer).

On Sunday, we had a bit of an incident at the gap.  Here is what I posted on Facebook:

Hit and run at Emigrant Gap! Frosty bowled over! A local, out for a walk with her dog, found the lifeless remains of Frosty, a newly built snowman. Tire tracks leading up to the scene shows the dastardly deed in full detail. "He never saw it coming", stated one local who did not wish to be named.  

Information leading to the capture of the perpetrator can be posted here. "We are looking for a four wheeled vehicle with snow coal and carrot stains on the right front fender.

March 11 -12 Spring is on the way

Though we still have over 2 feet (and in some places 10 feet) of snow standing, we can tell that spring is on the way!  We had planned to ski on Saturday - but due to a mishap with my ski boots, we decided to try to catch some of the World Cup at Squaw Valley (or at least Apres ski).  But by the time we reached the entrance to Squaw - the road was shut down (due to all of the traffic) and they were shuttling people from Truckee into the valley.

Shuttling into a very crowded valley did not seem like a good idea, so we headed to the River Ranch for lunch (at the entry to Alpine Meadows on the Truckee River) then on to Tahoe City to visit the local museum there.  

There is so much water in the Truckee right now.  We watched the river blasting through the bend as we  ate our lunch and had a cold beer.   The snow on either side of the river is acting like banks of a gorge and causing the clear, glacial water to put on a spectacular show.  Got some design ideas at the restaurant (no surprise) from their tile work.     The restaurant/hotel was built in the 1950s (not as old as our place) and has been owned by the same family since 1972.  I have driven by the place, countless times - but have never stopped to eat.  The prime rib sandwich was good and the beer was cold - what more could you ask for on a sunny Tahoe day?

The museum is housed in the gatekeeper cabin (the gates that let water out of Lake Tahoe into the Truckee).  Two of the gates were open and the light blue water was gushing into the river.  The Museum was sort of interesting - they had lots of native american woven baskets on display.  The building itself is a re-creation of the original that burnt down some time ago.   The docent was really nice and we ended up talking with her for a while.

While at the museum, I asked about the Tahoe Tavern.  In our history (1900 - 1950), I cover the Emigrant Gap to Tahoe Tavern Cup which was a race from our old hotel for the first car to cross the Sierra each spring.   I have a photo of one of the cups that was recently for sale by an antique dealer and thought that the tavern might be interested in it.  But alas - The Tahoe Tavern is long gone (along with a lot of the "old' Tahoe buildings that are being replaced with condos and hotels).  So, I guess we need to buy the cup for the lodge (ha ha - it is priced like a priceless antique - so the photo will have to suffice).

Sunday we worked on small projects and Jim swept the roof of the game room (it leaks) clear of melting snow.  A few of Jim's coworkers stopped by for a tour, then we headed back to the bay.

No more winterizing!   I don't except any more extended freezes now that we are seeing 60s and 70s in the sierra.  Time for the big melt!

February 10 2017 - It Never Rains, But it Pours

Another big storm on the summit last week.  This time, mostly rain.  It rained so much that a mudslide occurred on westbound side of the freeway at Baxter (a few miles west of Emigrant Gap).  They closed the I-80 freeway on Friday as a result.  The only other option to reach the lodge, was Highway 49 to Highway 20 then I-80 west back to Emigrant Gap.

Of course the detour forgot to mention that semi trucks would not be allowed to travel on 20, causing a huge backup of trucks onto 49.  I was traveling mid-day so it only took me an extra 1 1/2 - 2 hours to reach the Gap.  (For Jim, Katie, Jeremy, Jodie and kids - the ride was very, very long - 5 extra hours).  Jeremy and Jodie finally gave up and spent the night in Roseville. Jim and Katie persevered and arrived at the Gap around 1 a.m.!

When I reached I-80 above the slide, the westbound freeway entrance was closed.  I went eastbound for 1 exit, turned around and headed west.  When I reached the 20 exit, 80 was coned off - but there were a bunch of Cal Trans guys there and I requested permission to pass through - advising them I was at a lodge at Emigrant Gap.  Once they checked my address, I flew down an empty freeway for about 3 miles.  It was SOOOO QUIET!!!  No cars on the freeway at all.

Once I got to the lodge, I noticed that the rolled shingles on the snow shed had ripped and slid off the roof.  An opportunity for repair but nothing that major since the snow room is not done yet and is currently just an access portal into the lodge when the snow gets high.

Then the big surprise.  When I entered the lodge and went into the dining room, I was greeted by the following (see picture).  Actually this photo was taken about 2 hours after starting the clean-up, so the mess was quite a bit messier.

Apparently, when the snow on the roof got hit by the immense rainstorm, an  ice block must have blocked the run off  near our PGE tie down/roof diverter, causing the ceiling to collapse and an indoor flood in the dining room.  Not too bad of repair (drywall) - but the old blown in insulation from the attic had blown everywhere!  And it was wet.    The oak veneer floor in the dining room was so saturated, I am afraid it is a total loss (already buckling).  So onto plan B - I probably will tear out the oak veneer floor to see if the original floor (douglas fir tongue and groove) is restorable.  If so, I will refinish the dining room for now. Then at a later date pull the rest of the pergo flooring in the living room and refinish the remainder of the front rooms - which will then match the vintage Doug Fir floors in the kitchen, hallway and bedrooms on the main floor.

I cleaned up most of the mess while waiting for Jim and Katie to arrive.  Then started a fired in the cast iron stove to heat up the front rooms of the lodge (which usually takes about 6 hours).  Since the ceiling was wide open over the dining table, the front did not warm up very well.  The next morning Jim (mostly) and I (somewhat) added plastic sheeting to the big hole with the plan of drywalling later.

We had hoped to go skiing at Sugar Bowl on Saturday, but apparently everyone else in Northern California thought the same, took the bypass on 20 and Sugar Bowl parking was full by 10 am.  Jeremy and Jodie arrived from Roseville at 9:30, so we had a nice breakfast and the gang headed out to the back property to sled.  Unfortunately, the snow was so iced over  - sledding was too fast for the kids - so we just all hung out in the backyard for a while, then headed over to the game room to play foosball and air hockey.

Saturday afternoon, the kids, Katie and I went for a ride up to Hampshire Rocks to see the gushing water on the Yuba.  It was pretty intense - but not too bad.  Then rode over to Lake Valley to see how far the road had been plowed to the lake.  Unfortunately, the there were cars parked along the 1 lane road, so there was no turn around.  I got an opportunity to practice my backing up skills for a few miles.  No worries - my old UPS drive training did me well.

Dinner was at the Monte Vista (a local favorite) to celebrate Jodie's promotion at work.  Then the next morning Jer and Jodie loaded up the kids and headed home.  Jim cut out some of the drywall to prepare for putting up new sheets and Katie and I worked on putting away the sleds.

All in all, with all the little mishaps over the weekend, we still managed to have a great visit, a nice dinner and some sunshine in the high sierra.

January 27 2017 - Holy Cow

Another storm swept through Emigrant Gap the week before January 27th.  We came up for the weekend with the intent to ski , got stuck in a multitude of car accidents on the route, 3 1/2 hours later  we saw the piles of snow and started digging out the front door.

With sore backs the next morning and the thought that Sugar Bowl had not dug out yet, we decided to hang at home.  Here are some photos of what we saw.

First photo taken by our neighbors the day before we arrived (we got in pretty late).

2 windows are completely blocked by snow drifts, 3rd window 1/2 covered.

Saturday dug-out

Jim clearing 3 feet off roof

 Climb over to get to snow room entry.

January 14 - 16 - Martin Luther King Weekend at the Lodge

What a change from last January.  Over the week of January 10th, about 4 -5 feet of snow feel at the lodge.  When I arrived there on January 12, I had to shovel myself into the snow entry area.  I never did get all of the snow out of the front walkway, so I just climber over it (and sunk into it).

The weekend of January 14th brought us friends Lowell, Christine and Chris.  On January 13th, Christine and Chris went skiing at Sugar Bowl.  There were so many people looking for powder, that it took them 2 hours to get into Jerome side of the hill and 2 hours to get back to the freeway at the end of the day.  They said the skiing was amazing.  Some of the best snow they had seen in forever.

I stayed back at the lodge with Quincy dog and took a walk around (climb around) the property to access what havoc we received since new years.  We lost at least two big cedars and a large cedar branch and our one and only apple tree pencil- cracked in half.  Other than that, there was about 2 feet of snow standing on the snow-shed roof and the screened in porch roof (and it is probably still there).

Jim and Lowell came in Friday night.  All four of our intrepid skiers went to Alpine skiing on Saturday.  I would have gone - but I was thinking of skiing at Sugar Bowl on Sunday, when I hoped the crowds would improve.  And I thought they were skiing Squaw, which is not my favorite ski area.

Snow was still good on Saturday for them.  While they were up skiing, there were about 50 off road jeeps in front of the lodge preparing to head down Texas Hill road for the annual Grass Valley Jeep Off Roader's Jamboree.  Most of the Jeep group are pretty nice and respectful of our area (though I did have to shoo a bunch of their kids off our front area).

The Jeep group was there all weekend as were the snow players.  We got to meet another Highway Patrolman who was ticketing and moving the snow players out of the area.  We basically have no parking and no public land for them to play at on our exit, and still they come in hoards every weekend.

I try to keep them off our properties in the culdesac and keep the turn around clear so that emergency vehicles can turn around  That is always a battle.  Some of the snow players are just disrespectful of not only the land but of our requests to not block the road.

On Saturday, two kids in a Prius decided they could drive down Texas Hill Road (which is closed and full of snow) without 4wheel drive or chains.  Of course they got stuck and I had to loan them shovels to dig out.  After about 2 hours of digging, I found a rope that was thick enough to pull them off with Jim's truck.  Saturday night Chris left for home.

We took a hike on Sunday down to Fulda Creek Bridge.  We all managed to fall at least once.  It was pretty snowy and ice.  But worth the 1.5 mile trek down to see the water rushing.  Then Christine, Lowell, Jim and I headed over to the game room for some Ping Pong and Foosball and Air hockey.  Christine and Lowell left later that day.

Our neighbors across the street came over for wine and beer on Sunday night and we all talked about the gap while we sat around the fireplace.

Monday was shut down time and time to head home.   Since we left , they have gotten at least another 2 feet of snow with more coming tomorrow.  We hope to head up next week and see how much snow is there then.

Pictures from this weekend will be posted later.