We recently purchased a home on Table Rock Lake in Southwest Missouri. We are outside of Kimberling City, MO. It's about 30 minutes to Branson. We're going to use this to chronicle our move down here, and share it with others. Hopefully, we'll be able to look back 20 years from now and enjoy!
Since I'm starting this a little late.... I will start with "real time" and fill in history later.
The plants arrived in Libertyville, so off we went to Missouri. Didn't matter that Scott had a stomach bug. Barb shoved a bottle of Immodium at him and off we went! About 2 hours into the trip, the 40 MPH cross winds kept ripping off the cover of the truck bed. We stopped and got duck tape, which of course did not work. We finally found a Walmart where we bought some ratchet straps to hold down the cover. Arrived late Saturday night and the weather was bad Sunday and Monday. Even though it rained Monday, the Electricians showed up to start working on installing the 20KW backup generator. Tuesday was a better day, and they finished their part of the job. Propane guys came and did their part and the electrician (Doug) returned and finished up. Everything worked great! We even used the winch on the MULE To remove the old generator!
Barb and I spent the week moving dirt and rocks to complete the terraces/planting beds; amending the soil, planting and putting up fencing. All in all, a whole lot of work but we got everything planted!
The lake level had receded from 935 feet to 930 feet. That is still 10 feet above "normal" levels and 15 feet higher than when we we left there a few weeks ago! Compare this to the photos/video in the April 19th posting, and you'll see how much the water has risen..
Still have 2 truckloads of gravel to move. That will be used to repair the path around the house and the paths to the lake.
Here's an interesting critter that showed up one night. Absolutely no idea what it is...!
And last (But Not Least!)... we offically christened "Jim Bald Road"!
Jim and Delinda were here for the weekend. We had a great time! We worked hard, accomplished a lot and even had some time to enjoy ourselves! Barb and I headed out Friday afternoon for a late lunch/early dinner and then to run some errands before they arrived. Lo and behold, but guess who walks into the restaurant (actually, bowling alley) where we were eating! It was a dreary, cold, rainy evening. Jim successfully navigated the twists/turns of Joe Bald Road; and we enjoyed an evening of catching up and playing cards (of course, being gracious hosts… Jim and Delinda were the big winners!).
We woke up Saturday to the same weather. Scott and Jim proceeded to work on fixing a GFI recepticle and the outside plugs at the back of the house (After Delinda warned me about Jim’s electrical skills..). Long story.. short.. we did get everything working. We still have NO IDEA how the dozen or so outlets in Barb’s “Studio” are wired/controlled.
Around Noon, the weather started to clear. The sun came out, it warmed up a bit and was perfect weather for getting some serious work done! Jim and Scott proceeded to work on clearing out a new section/path for the MULE to get down to the dock; while Delinda and Barb worked on the Invasive Ivy in the front and clearing out the tree/garden bed in the back. Jim manned the chain saw while I supervised and provided some manual labor.
Around 5 pm, Jim and Scott had completed creating “Jim Bald Road”. Here are some pic's/video of the "inaugural trip" with the MULE.
Here's a link to Barb's Facebook set of pictures. (You might need to cut/paste)
After that we were ready to start working on building the Kiwi Trellis. After about 20 minutes, Jin had one of those “ Ah Ah” moments. We did not want to use Pressure Treated Lumber for the posts, and Cedar was expensive. So, I had purchased Pine. As Jim correctly pointed out, in about 2 to 3 years, the posts would probably rot away at the base where they met the cement. We met as a “committee” and decided we should do it the “right way”, and use Cedar posts. Since all the stores were closed;; we were forced to stop working. We had some evening drinks, a nice steak dinner and got ready to catch us some Catfish!!!!
(Jim had bought the chicken livers and the bells!). So, off we go to the dock… in the dark… on the MULE….(We have video, but it's too large to load. Oh Well).
No catfish were caught, and it was quite chilly! Jim had the honor of catching the first fish on Table Rock Lake from our dock.
Sunday morning.. We call Home Depot at 8 am to see if they have the Cedar posts. They say Yes, so Jim and Scott head out (it’s about 35 minutes – one way – to get there). After a safe trip, we arrive and head on in to the lumber area. We ask where the cedar is and the guy tells us that he was wrong…they don’t carry it! Well,, we did find it. We purchased the lumber (plus some forms for the cement, etc….) and headed back. Arrived Home Base at 10 am. Kiwi Trellis Project officially begins. We did have one “False Start”…
But we reconsidered… adjusted our approach… and went with “Plan 2”..
We ended up with 340 pounds of cement at the base of the posts…. We’ll be VERY SURPRISED if they move at all!!!!
We’re going to let them sit for a few days. On Thursday or next trip down, we’ll put the 8 foot 2 x 2 strips across the top the finish the trellis.
Ended up with about 30 minutes of fishing from the dock. Everyone except Barb caught something (Barb was dog watching). Jim caught the first Bass … and Scott the first Crappie…
All in all... a very productive and enjoyable week-end. Nothing like working up a good sweat and then rewarding yourself with an "adult beverage" while watching a beautiful sunset!
Thanks again to Jim and Delinda.... All we can say is.... WOW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
We are preparing to plant some strawberries, lingonberries, and cranberries on the North side of the house. These are shade loving perennials. There is a fairly steep slope there (I'd guess about 10-15 degrees). Currently, the water just runs right down the hill. Nothing grows there. We are going to use the permaculture concept of swales to retain water and build the planting areas. Basically, a swale is a ditch that is dug on the "level contour" of the slope in order to catch the water. On the downward slope of the swale is a "pile of soil" which is your planting area. The water is captured in the swale, and seeps into the planting area. We used a "land level" as a tool to determine what the "level contour" line should be. It's amazing how your eye is deceived by the slope of the land. Here are some short videos of what we've done so far.
