One bear had to be caught and destroyed. This action is sad for us - but it is better to keep people safe, than risk break-ins.
Jim is still completing the siding on the back of the cabin and I have been busy putting away the gear from our family reunion (portable garages, tables, chairs, hammocks, etc). We are starting to get ready for fall and winter. The pine cones have dropped early again -- which we have been told is an indicator of a long and snowy winter. We shall see.
We need to repair the roof over the Sunroom (screen room). We have decided that since the snow force coming off the main roof has been getting caught in the ridges on the sunroom metal roof that we will replace the snowfall area with flat metal roofing. Hoping for less leaks in the roof this winter.
As of yet, I have not had time to work on the game room walls. We installed new windows in the game room, leaving the walls pretty trashed. My plan is to paint the damaged wall black, then add barnwood to the wall. On another wall, I want to put in wood rounds as a tribute to my mom. We still have one more window to install in the game room where the old broken heater is located. I am not in the game room often because our neighbor can not tolerate our dog barking and he is with me most of the time.
Once the back wall siding is done, Jim is going to start felling dead trees again for firewood for this winter. We went through 5 cords of firewood last winter and I think we will do the same again this winter.
Today is overcast due to a tropical storm that is skirting the sierra. Our neighbors across the street are gone for a bit so, other than passing cars, it is rather quiet. Campers are just about done since the weather has not been nice for that. I have been picking up litter along our road all summer. Seems like much more than we usually get. I have tried signs but nothing seems to help. And with the bears litter is a major issue. We have been keeping our garbage inside. Unfortunately, while we gone, someone dumped a bunch of beer cans and unwashed chili cans and steak containers into our trash cans. This is a big problem with the bears being so active, so we have removed our trash cans for now. We usually only use the cans for clean recycles and building materials. Our compost and regular garbage is kept inside and disposed of quickly.
SPECIAL REQUEST!
For anyone who still reads this blog.
First: I am still trying to fill in the History of Emigrant Gap. In particular, I am seeking historic information about the area post World War 2. If you know any history about the area that I have not already covered, please let me know.
Second: During my long walks with my very active dog, I have found a lot of blooming and now fruit filled apple trees. The trees are located along Emigrant Gap Road and Laing Road. Does anyone know if there was once a commercial orchard here? If so, what was the orchard name and when was it here? Do you know the type of apples grown here? We had a large apple tree on our property that we have been told was a great a snitch tree (neighbors gleaned the tree for apple pies while our lodge was boarded up). We had to remove the tree because it was growing in the middle of our deck and it was damaged due to the heavy snows the first couple of years we owned the lodge. We have a second tree which is much smaller and has been damaged over the last two winters due to heavy snow fall. We would love to put in more apple trees, but need to know the variety that grows here. SOOOOOO, if you have any information about the apple trees of Emigrant Gap, please contact us.
Third: If you have any vintage photos of Emigrant Gap that you would like to share on this blog, please send them with the timeframe they cover and a short story about the history behind the photo.
