Most of my property (95 percent) is on the wrong side of a creek. Needless to say this makes construction of a house almost impossible. I would very much like to drive up to my house without having to park on the road side of the creek and hike there. I also hate the thought of contractors driving through the the creek. So a road and a bridge and a little more road to get to the upper part of the property where I plan to build would seem to be in order. Thus you have the title of this page.
The first concrete pour. This was a disaster.
During the first mix the mixer I was using became unstable and crashed
into the creek. It took an hour and a few strained muscles to get it out
of the creek. I got a new mixer with a more stable base that breaks down
for easy moving.
It seems really obscene to build anything in such a beautiful natural setting. I hope I can make everything look "right" when I'm done. Still anything is better than driving through the creek. I wonder how I can hide the bridge when I'm done? Make it seem "natural" part of the landscape. Any type of flat wood decking (in a forest setting) is going to seem unnatural. What about split log side rails or even edge planters?
Cabin side pour.
Here's the new mixer and the first successful pour. The best place
for the mixer was in the creek bed. I had to get my feet wet, but it went
very well. Sprained ankle not withstanding. Looking back though, I wish
I had used 2X6 rather then 1x6 boards for the forms. There was some bowing.
Learned a lot though.
Laying a row of concrete blocks. (filler to add height) Picture in
your head a concrete I-beam. This part being the web.
Getting ready for the top pour.
Top pour. A lot of rebar. Had to use pipe clamps to hold everything
together. Very messy. Should be strong (cross fingers here).
Road side pour.
Getting ready for road side pour using 2x6 for the forms. Had to build
up one side with rock to get the form level. I'd normally just dig into
the bank a little more to level it. Unfortunately there was some pretty
tough rock and roots on 'other' side.
Road side pour. 35 bags at 60 lbs each equals 2100
lbs plus water. OW back hurts, must lie down. I'm definitely learning though.
This side looks much better then the other. I also had a one week break
between setting up the pour and doing it, due to a generator breakdown.
Add a couple of old railroad ties and I'm ready to back fill.
Here's a shot from the bottom of the falls. It's hard to get a decent
picture at the bottom of the falls. There's just too many trees.
But first I have to do the static load test! That's were I put the
tractor on the bridge and jump up and down while standing in the loader.
:-) Oh... What happens if the tractor stalls and I can't get it started?
Really big lawn ornament?
Starting the back fill. What great black dirt I have. We've had the
first rains of the season. The ground is relatively soft. A little muddy
though. This railroad tie arrangement is just temporary. My truck is wider
than the tractor so after back filling the tractor is going to stay on
the cabin side of the creek and I'm separating the ties so my truck can
fit on the bridge.