Author Archives: easternhighlander

Building a real log cabin – 18 months on

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As with all good building projects progress takes time! We are now ‘semi-finished’. The building work is long since complete. Fit-out of the interior is just about there (room partitions, doorways, wall lining, stairs, built in beds and storage, bathrooms, toilet cubicles, showers, and more). Plumbing….mmm tough one but it’s coming.

 

Square ‘Hobbit-style’ doors cut through the log walls

 

Bunk bed to the right of picture above

 

That square doorway from the other side. Stairs up to 3rd level.

 

Further to the left – toilet cubicle and sink. Stairs down to immediate right of window.

 

 

Off to a different room.

Bunk bed under dormer window

 

Same room – other direction

Now we play spot the beds – there are 5 you can just about see!

One bed in the opening above the draws – then there is a top bunk bed above that (hidden in this picture). Bunk beds to the right with draws underneath. That makes four beds. And the fifth bed – it’s flying overhead.

 

 

Including the fifth bed over head! (Built like this to customer specification)

 

With draws

 

Looking from the main entrance hall to the stairs up to the rooms inside. Doorways to the left up first flight and up second flight to the right. Split level design (nightmare).

 

And did I mention the plumbing!

 

 

 

Skidding hardwood logs by hand

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There is a new hydro scheme planned on the Gairezi river and they have just cut the transect for the route of the pylons.

Being Nyanga this includes cutting down two of the three invasive tree species – Pine and Wattle (the third is Eucalyptus).

Here we are skidding logs onto the trailer:

Skidding logs on logs

 

With a log ramp onto the trailer

 

Time to roll up hill

 

 

 

Nearly there

 

 

Or if lighter they get carried

 

and a long one

 

 

We have a lesson in knot tying

 

Well loaded up

 

Loaded front and back

 

As its all firewood for us to burn stones with we take it all – large and small

Building a real log cabin – part 7a – towards the end of chinking and caulking

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Having nearly completed the exterior caulking we turned to the interior to escape some high altitude cloudy windy rainy days.

 

cleaning up the beams after the mess of chinking

 

Willard using his newly built ladder in the stairwell

 

 

 

 

 

 

Mr Paul clearing up the mess of wood chips and caulk

 

 

Didi planing the floor joists

 

Mr Tongai helping the carpenters with the floor joists this week

 

 

Mr Daniel starting the roofing effort

 

The floor joists are finished for the day!