# Our Northwoods Homestead



## NorthwoodsMike

A little over 1 year ago, my wife and I purchased some property in the Michigan U.P. surrounded by the Ottawa National Forest. It's a pretty diverse 56 acres, some field, young forest, older growth, rolling hills, etc. It used to be an old homestead, and our plan is to bring that history back.

I plan to document the building process here, and hope others will benefit from the sharing of this ongoing experience. I suspect it will be a project that will never be truly finished.


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## AngieM2

documents such as this are best with lots of beautiful UP photos. !

Welcome to Homesteading Today. 56 acres seems like a good bit of land to me.

(remember the best homes have porches).


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## simi-steading

Welcome... You're not alone, My wife and I are doing the same thing with 57 acres in the foothills of WV... We try to post a lot of pictures too so everyone learns from our mistakes.. 

I wish you the best in your journey... I've found mine to be pretty rewarding so far...

Looking forward to see what you are doing..


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## NorthwoodsMike

Below are some pictures taken from a few trips shortly after our purchase in spring 2012.

The field and it's hillside:




























A view from the top of the hill, the future building site.




















The sugarbush:











In addition to the maples, there is a great deal of "young" forest.




















A path through the property-which long ago was a "main" road.


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## simi-steading

Nice looking land, and looks like a lot of great trees... Lots of young ones to watch grow too... 

Trade ya some Autumn Olive for some of those


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## NorthwoodsMike

AngieM2 said:


> documents such as this are best with lots of beautiful UP photos. !
> 
> Welcome to Homesteading Today. 56 acres seems like a good bit of land to me.


I hope to keep Picasa busy! Thanks for the welcome!



AngieM2 said:


> (remember the best homes have porches).


Then you will be happy to know I won't disappoint 



simi-steading said:


> Welcome... You're not alone, My wife and I are doing the same thing with 57 acres in the foothills of WV... We try to post a lot of pictures too so everyone learns from our mistakes..
> 
> I wish you the best in your journey... I've found mine to be pretty rewarding so far...
> 
> Looking forward to see what you are doing..


Thanks!


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## NorthwoodsMike

We found, and continue to find, lots of history in the woods.

An electrical switching station, used as a shed.











A leaf spring and milk bottle box.











A wood fired oven.




















Sink.











Something for moving dirt.











If you look closely, a well head. The old well pit is only a few yards away. I'll have to be careful to ensure it is sealed in a way that will prevent someone from falling in.











An old outhouse.











There are many other items. One of particular interest is a large steel tube 3'x15' that has a tag stating it is/was a lightning arrestor.


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## NorthwoodsMike

We purchased a set of plans for a 20x30 1.5 Story(Countryplans) with the intention of extending it to be 20x40, adding dormers, and a 30" knee wall on a full second floor. We also wanted a full length covered porch on 2 sides to enjoy the views that building on a hill allows. While sketching floor plans, we quickly discovered that adding 4' of width greatly increased the amount of space available to us. Using Chief Architect's Home Designer Suite 2012, we put together our plans.

The first floor layout. We wanted a very open concept with a very large kitchen. Not shown is the wood stove which will be between the stairwell(door removed) and bathroom door.











Here is the second floor layout. The 30" kneewall allows us to squeeze a triangle tub into the place. As you can see, there are 4 very large dormers which really open everything up. The flat part of the ceiling will have a height of 9'.











Eventually the basement will be finished, but here is the plan for initial construction. 4' of the basement will be below grade and made of poured concrete, while the top 4-5' will be conventionally framed and have large windows. This allows for egress and good ventilation.











Here are some pictures of the outside. It is a little deceiving in that it shows the basement walls to be fully concrete, and where the porch roof meets the main roof it's a little strange, but the intention is clear.




















I'll talk about construction for a bit. The wider 24' required some additional planning. I ended up opting for floor and roof trusses. Going through Menards, the cost was not much more than conventional framing, at least in my opinion, especially when one factors in the time saved in construction. Most importantly, this option allowed us to truly have whatever floor plan we wanted without the need for supporting posts and interior bearing walls, excluding 1 post in the stairway. There are other advantages with trusses as well, running mechanicals and plumbing without drilling being a big one.


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## NorthwoodsMike

Once we finalized the plan, we started the construction loan process. While I am pretty handy, my job capitalizes a great deal of my time, so we decided that paying for labor to build the shell would be best. I was my own "General" and pulled all permits, so while there was a certain amount of cost involved with hiring the work out, this helped lower the labor cost some. We were referred to a contractor out of Wisconsin, who was very reasonably priced. He showed me a garage he built, and the work was top notch. He was very friendly and seemed like a stand up guy. It was late fall at this time, and we were in a rush to beat frost, so we put money down to pay for the concrete work-Poured walls, insulated slab with pex, and sonotubes for the porch. He broke ground in late November. He sent a few pictures which were very encouraging.























































Things are looking pretty good at this stage. The walls were tarred, installation installed, and drain tile was inspected and approved. I drove up to see how things were going, and took some more pictures.


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## NorthwoodsMike

Edited:I decided not to get into the entire story

Sadly, this is where things went south with the contractor. This is what our foundation walls looked like.





































Lack of communication, zero progress, and no desire to make it right had us parting ways. Even though a fraction of the work was done, they had no intention of giving us a refund. A broken promissory note, an insurance claim denial, police reports, and a lazy D.A. all went nowhere. The business owner was a teacher, and knew full well the business had stolen from us. A threat to notify the school board of her illegal and immoral actions was the only reason we got all of our money back. This is not how I like to do business, but I don't think a criminal belongs in the classroom-and since she made it right(albeit not for the right reasons) I no longer had any reason to notify them.

It ended up being a good thing, because the fantastic rough in/roof/siding work he showed us wasn't even his. Who knows what we would have gotten.

I'm embarrassed by the whole thing, and am glad it is behind me. On to better things...


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## AngieM2

Mike - I know that house plan. I've bought it from the same place years ago for whenever I get land. I like what you're doing.
Sorry for the flaky concrete guy, but as long as it's okay other than ugly and you got a concession on the rest of the build.

Those photo sure bring back memories of the UP. It's been more than 30 years since I've been there, but sure have a fondness for it still.

(and I'm from the South and liked it a lot, with proper clothing, even in winter)


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## NorthwoodsMike

In late January things got back on track. The trusses and other building materials were delivered.




























Framing started the next day!


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## NorthwoodsMike

About 2 weeks later we made an attempt to install porch footings. The operator called it quits after breaking two teeth on the backhoe. There was just too much frost. The porch would have to wait until spring. At least I got some good progress pictures!

View up the current driveway.











View from the bottom of the hill.











The sky-trak used to place trusses and work high.




















The front of the house. Notice the cantilevered dormers.











East side of the house-2 windows spots covered by OSB











South side. The window height on the dormers was adjusted.











West Side.


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## NorthwoodsMike

The basement was full of snow.




















First Floor Looking West.











First Floor Stairwell/Bath.











First Floor Looking East.











First Floor Looking North Out Window.











Second Floor Master Bedroom-North Window


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## NorthwoodsMike

More Pictures of Second Floor.




















A gift for the crew.


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## NorthwoodsMike

I visited again a week later.


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## NorthwoodsMike

More Pictures






































The 9ft ceilings really open things up.











More Exterior Views





























Renting that lift was very expensive, so I was sure to have fun with it.











One of my best employees


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## AngieM2

That last photo of the house thru the trees shows what a beauty is in the works. That's an awesome photo.


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## NorthwoodsMike

Stove Installation











































Siding Started




































Steel Roofing


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## NorthwoodsMike

AngieM2 said:


> That last photo of the house thru the trees shows what a beauty is in the works. That's an awesome photo.


Thanks Angie!


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## NorthwoodsMike

More Progress






































I'm trying my hand at plumbing. The upstairs tub and shower stall pan is in and connected. The corner tub was especially tricky, as the drain was on one side of a floor truss, and the overflow on the other. It's difficult to see, but there was just enough room to straddle the truss and run the overflow through the webbing to rejoin before the trap.






































My Helper.











On our way south, we passed a very large snowman. You can see Rachel near the base.


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## NorthwoodsMike

More roofing complete...




















...along with more plumbing.

Kitchen Sink


















Bathroom Sink/Sink Stack Vent Merger


















Upstairs Toilet-this was tricky. The location of the drain was a bit to close to the wall to clear the tank, but immediately in front of the drain location is a double floor truss. To solve this problem, the tank is going to project into the wall a bit, which is why the studs have been removed. T&G is going to be installed behind this toilet to cover and provide support for the stairwell drywall.











Upstairs Shower Trap, Shower and Bath Vent, along with the Kitchen Sink Vent.











Kitchen Sink Vent merges with Bath/Shower Vent











Sanitary Tee for 2nd Floor Toilet


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## NorthwoodsMike

That night I actually spend the night-I setup a small room using bubble insulation and heater. This was my view in the morning. 











Weather slowed work for a few weeks after that. Our heat source will be in-floor hydronic. I have most of the pex installation complete-only 1 room left! It is a very time consuming process.


















This is the system used to heat and distribute the fluid. Heat comes from a propane-on demand water heater. In the future, I will easily be able to integrate an outside wood boiler. It's a 6 zone system, so each room will be able to control it's temperature independently with it's own thermostat. I pretty proud of this assembly.











The basement floor went in a few weeks ago. Sadly, I don't have any pictures of the finished product. These show the pex and them spreading the concrete.





























They protected the window they moved the concrete through.


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## NorthwoodsMike

Last week the septic went in.















































As you can see from some of the pictures, the soil has a very high clay content. I mentioned earlier sand was taken from this hill when the highway was built, and was replaced by this clay fill. Because of this, we needed to install an "undercut" or "inverted mound" system. The original plan was to truck in material, however, when I mentioned that I someday wanted to dig a pond in a low area, we decided that since the area originally was sand, it was worth moving a few buckets from the low area to see what was there. Just below the surface, we hit sand, which will work perfectly in the drain field. I'm really excited about this, because with the cost of the septic, I get the start of a pond.



















I also had the company do some grading and place these concrete forms. These forms will be of interest to those using pier foundations-they are sometimes called "big foots" though these are made by sonotube. They add a little more stability and make the pier less susceptible to frost heave from the side. I will be building my covered porch on these, after they are filled with concrete of course.


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## NorthwoodsMike

Saturday was a great day thanks to my Dad and Uncle Bill. We were able to pour the porch footings.




















I was also able to see the finished drain field. I really like how the septic company protected it with large stones to prevent someone from driving on it.




















While I don't have any pictures, we also started the electrical rough in. We finished most of the outlet boxes in the kitchen and living room. It doesn't sound like much, but when it comes to electrical outlets, I always go overboard. It's better to have too many than not enough.

I should mention, we met my uncle at the local airport, who arrived in this:










Before leaving, he was kind enough to take me for a ride. I was able to see the homestead from a point of view that not many experience in person.




















As you can see, we are remote.




















So that's my project! I have a long way to go, and will continue to post updates. I'm really excited to be a part of this forum, and look forward to any feedback you might have.


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## PorkChopsMmm

Mike, great homestead. We built a place in the LP -- your land is beautiful. Are you going to be on the grid or off? You look pretty far out there. Congrats on the progress!


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## NorthwoodsMike

Thanks Porkchops! We had originally planned to go off-grid, but my neighbor to the north wanted power, so with credits and splitting the cost, it ended up costing 1/4 of what a reliable solar panel system would. I hope to eventually go off grid, but that budget could be better used elsewhere for now. I have a military surplus diesel generator as a backup for now.


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## PorkChopsMmm

Ahh, makes sense. Sounds like you've got it covered!


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## Jenstc2003

Looks like the place of dreams to me!! Sorry for your contractor issues, but it seems as if you've managed to make lemonade from that lemon in the end. How exciting it must be to see the hard work coming to fruition. LOVE the pics from the plane- not many get that chance, as you said.


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## AngieM2

Ah, Mike - that's looking wonderful. And getting to go up in that plane, too.

(love flying, too. )

And I really like seeing how far out the footers for the porch are - looks like an outstanding beginning for a wonderful porch.


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## NorthwoodsMike

Thanks for the kind words everyone.

Angie-the porch comes out 10ft from the house, so it will be 50ft on one side and 34 on the other counting the corner overlap. We would like to get some retractable screens to make it more usable during "bug" season.


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## AngieM2

and hammocks and rocking chairs for visitors from the South?


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## NorthwoodsMike

Those are on the list of possibilities, along with a porch swing.


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## Bret

Good work. What Planning! The magic of the UP--Unlimited Potential. I hear her calling in the winds through the pines. Once she call you, you are hers.

Nice airplane too.


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## Wojo

I just came across your thread, and have enjoyed catching up on your project. Very cool, indeed! We moved to the northeastern Lower Peninsula in September of 2011. Our project isn't a new build. It's fixing up the existing house on the property. There are days I've wondered if we wouldn't have been better off knocking it down and starting from scratch.  

I look forward to keeping up with your progress.


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## Joe.G

Looks good, Some of those pic's looked real cold.


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## d'vash

Must subscribe. Your place is looking great!


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## tarbe

Those pics sure made me homesick for northern Wisconsin.

Place is looking great!


Tim


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## NorthwoodsMike

Time to post an update from the weekend.

For you Angie, porch construction is underway!













































We finally have all of the tubing and transfer plates for the in-floor heat installed and ready for the boiler system hookup. This took so much longer than I ever expected. I'm so glad it's done.


















We are all pretty tired...


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## BlueRose

Really enjoy your thread. Please keep posting. By the way your beagle can come visit me any time.


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## HuskyBoris

your house looks great!,,don't forget to add a sauna in somewhere,it just wouldn't be a U.P. homestead without a sauna ,I love the aerial shot ,I have one of my farm as well from the 50"s?


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## PermaAMP

Your land and house are so beautiful! The aerial shots really emphasize that. I can only hope that some day I can live somewhere like that. I've only visited and lived in the lower states from California to North Carolina.


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## NorthwoodsMike

The lateral for the well was going in last Friday, and having never seen one installed before, I wanted to watch.


The rough in for the porch is completed, for the most part. I need to install some deck ties and beef up the posts.




















I also have basement stairs now!











Pictures from the well installation:

Digging the trench











Cutting the outlet in the casing











Welding on what I would call the "transition" plate.











Plate Installed











Drilling the holes for power and the water inlet.











Water line and wiring


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## NorthwoodsMike

Over the weekend, I invested in my first piece of "heavy" machinery for the homestead.




























It's a New Holland L555. Kubota Diesel, 1700lb lift, just under 800 hours. I need to adjust the linkage for the left motor, and had to clean the battery terminals, but other than that it runs great!

I had been in the market for awhile since I have so much landscaping work to do, and was waiting for a good deal. $4000 well spent.


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## Wojo

I'm glad you took the well pics. I've been curious about that. 

The right tools make all the difference, don't they? We bought a Kubota with a front end loader, and have never regretted the purchase. That's a nice machine, and a great price.


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## NorthwoodsMike

We went up last Wednesday and stayed until Saturday night. The nights were rough as the house isn't sealed up yet, and the mosquitoes are quite bad. We should have brought a tent. After being eaten alive Wednesday night, we slept in the car Thursday and Friday. We made great progress, but sadly the pictures don't really illustrate the amount of work that went into these days.

We finally connected some fixtures to the septic. Only the sump and some vents remain when it comes to the drain system. You will notice in the pic below that the grey water is separate from the black water until the very end. This will allow me to separate it from the main septic system should I want a dedicated grey water system later.











I started to build the water system. We are going with a whole house filter and a softener. I put a great deal of thought into this. Water comes from the well into the pressure tank. From there the outside spigots branch off, as those don't need to be filtered. Water then goes through the filter, after which another branch occurs. This branch is for unsoftened water. The refrigerator ice maker, the pot filler, and the cold water for the kitchen sink will feed off this line, as apparently it is better to consume unsoftened water. After that split, water goes into the softener, and afterwards splits one more time for hot on cold.


















One last huge accomplishment. The tank needs to be filled manually, but this temporary setup is quite nice to have around.


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## unregistered358967

AMAZING!! 

Can't wait to revisit this thread many times...the U.P. is where I'd like to settle too and I'm currently looking at properties somewhat nearby to Marquette.

Hey..I'm heading up there next week - what's the bug outlook? Are they just as prolific as always??


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## NorthwoodsMike

Thanks!

In the evenings, they will carry you away 

During the day they aren't as bad, especially with a breeze. Lot's of flies, but they weren't biting by me.


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## unregistered358967

Dang. Oh well. We have bug hats ready to go. Thanks Mike.


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## Ostie82

Awesome build thread. Your property is stunning. I can't wait to see more!


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## NorthwoodsMike

Update time-it's been awhile!










Rough electrical is in and approved!!!

We installed lots of recessed lighting:























































Generally, I always "overbuild" when it comes to outlets. Each bedroom has two 20A circuits, with many receptacles. Much easier to run now than to look at extension cords later.










Only 6 slots left in my 40 space panel. It's the most panel work I have ever done.


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## NorthwoodsMike

In addition to completing the electrical rough in, is that the exterior is nearly complete! We are absolutely thrilled with how it turned out.









































































Water lines are well on their way, and insulation should be nearly complete by the end of the week.


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## FarmChix

I was jealous with just the pics of the land. Then, I scrolled to see the progress. ENVY..... **SIGH**

I can't wait to watch the progress!


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## 349141

Wow, the place looks great; thanks for the updates!


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## John_Canada

Can wait to follow more. We are looking across the lake on the canuck side towards north bay so it is great to see others have the same thoughts (cheaper land north). I noticed a half basement. Was it for code reasons for frost line? We are likely going to use a frost protected slab on grade with in floor (one floor) to save on foundation and heat costs. We also have to follow the new energy star ratings which absolutely suck for what we have in mind but can meet them never the less.

What are the snow depths in that area?


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## Bret

Nice update. I can hear the spirit wind in the pines. She is happy.


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## unregistered358967

Amazing.

So, when do you expect to be able to move in 'for real' ?


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## NorthwoodsMike

Thanks everyone!

John-we plan to eventually add a bedroom in the basement, so we only put half of it below grade to make egress easy and to allow for full size windows. It also saved on cost as framing is generally cheaper than concrete.

Our current home is built on a monolithic slab. Be sure to insulate under it, and consider adding pex-it's a great, and simple way to heat. To save a little more, you may want to consider a 1.5 story with a knee wall like we did. It's cheaper to built "up" than "out"

Last year we had 2-3ft of snow, not including drifts. Be sure to post about your project!

Less-is-more, we hope to be in "for real" by the end of the year. I'm racing against the clock. I'll post more on that later


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## AngieM2

Mike - you do a porch proud! With the right bug inhibiter - I'd love to come park a rocking chair there and try it out for you. You do know I'm the porch inspector?

This is wonderful - thanks for continuing to share with us.


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## Dixie Bee Acres

Your house is beautiful. It compliments the land nicely.


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## Jerngen

I don't know how I missed this thread previously, but I really enjoyed reading through this and admiring the pictures. 
We just moved down from the da U.P. two years ago, I left a piece of my heart up there in Marquette County


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## farmgal

Very beautiful, I have building a new home also. I was wondering how is your roof vented?


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## NorthwoodsMike

Hi farmgal! Do you have a build thread for your project? How far along are you? 

We used plastic vent chutes to create a gap between the insulation and the roof deck. The soffits are perforated, and we have a ridge vent at the peak.


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## MichaelZ

Beautiful! I think I would love to live in the UP.


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## farmgal

NorthwoodsMike said:


> Hi farmgal! Do you have a build thread for your project? How far along are you?
> 
> We used plastic vent chutes to create a gap between the insulation and the roof deck. The soffits are perforated, and we have a ridge vent at the peak.


My home is done except for floor coverings, cupboards and trim on inside of windows. 

I see when your walls went up they added the osb after. My framers put the wood on the walls while they were down and papered them, then lifted the walls. I did have a thread long time ago. Maybe I will post a picture sometime. I'm kind of private...lol My place is open to the roof, I had to rent a crane for the LVL beam. I borrowed a scaffolding from the ymca, when we did the drywall. When I did the siding, I used my parents scaffolding. I put my power from the road underground.

Recently had the top soil laid back down and had millings put on the driveway, it 400 ft long. finally have a lawn...

I hired out the concrete, framing,metal roof and insulation. We did the rest ours selves, my 16 y/o son and I. It was half the price to hire out the insulation, as apposed to me buying the stuff. They were done in a day. This included baffling the whole roof. The great room is 23 feet high,28 wide and 36 foot long, thats just the great room. Energy star approved insulating the whole house with the pinks stuff was only $2760.


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## Kelly

Wow! Awesome house, land, view and porch! Thanks for sharing! I'll be following your updates.


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## HappyYooper

NorthwoodsMike said:


> We found, and continue to find, lots of history in the woods.
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> If you look closely, a well head. The old well pit is only a few yards away. I'll have to be careful to ensure it is sealed in a way that will prevent someone from falling in.
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That was my favorite thing to do when we bought our 4 acres! I LOVE finding treasures and that sink is pretty cool! Beautiful property!


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## UperJoe

My dear man - you never cease to amaze me!
So what's the status on the old place in WI?
We have been wondering where you disappeared to - glad you linked over at other thread.
Looking superb and not that much longer and the skeeters be gone!
Life will be grand.
Boy - you'll have hundreds of taps running this year. I'll smell the sap a boiling from o'er yonder and follow me nose to your place. 
Cheers buddy:goodjob:


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## NorthwoodsMike

Insulation is in and drywall is up! I don't have too many pictures of just the insulation, but it is fiberglass with a plastic vapor barrier. R21 in the walls, and R49+ in the ceilings.












































































We also started to install the pine ceilings


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## NorthwoodsMike

Painting is done! The lighting when I took these pictures didn't do the colors justice, as everything looks very gray. We went with varying shades of green and brown.

Kitchen











Living Room




















Master Bedroom-3 colors




























Second bedroom





























It took me three full days to paint everything. On my way home after day two, I had to deal with this:










As you can see the damage wasn't bad, I hit the very young deer in the head. No meat was wasted, so I had that going for me. The meat was very light colored, similar to veal. Butchering it gave me some much needed time away from painting. I'm still deciding if i'm going to fix the car myself or take it in.


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## NorthwoodsMike

During my time off, I was also able to build my cabinets. They are made from birch plywood, and have hickory faces. 











I combined the cabinets together before applying the faces to give them a built in look. I'm very happy with how they turned out, but it made lifting them into place alone a big challenge. I inched them up by lifting each corner and wedging a board underneath.





























We got our first snow!











Some pictures as things become more finished. Better examples of our colors too.


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## NorthwoodsMike

Bath vanities are in.




















So are the kitchen countertops-a first for me.










We went with a granite sink.











This last weekend we worked on the stairs. I think they turned out pretty good for a couple of novices!





























With the lower railing. Please ignore the messy cot.




















Home depot will be installing the flooring on Monday! We are going with their laminate deal. I can't argue with $400 for whole house installation!


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## NorthwoodsMike

I had to share one last picture today. It's a picture of my helper through this project. The best partner a guy could ask for.










She's due Nov 27th!


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## shanzone2001

The house looks wonderful! Congrats on the new baby! How exciting!


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## PorkChopsMmm

Congrats Mike! We just had a new one here, too. I pray you get enough done before the baby comes so you can relax afterwards.


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## unregistered358967

She looks wonderful! Congrats on your little "turkey"


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## Candy

I just found this thread, it is wonderful. It was like reading a good book! 
Congratulations on the baby and all the work you have done on the house. It is beautiful and the land is also. I will be watching your progress.


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## MichaelZ

I am getting tired just reading this! Wow, you guys really don't mess around - Good Work!


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## NorthwoodsMike

Happy New Year!

Flooring and appliances are in. Flooring install was a little disappointing, poor attention to detail. We'll see if the company comes and makes it right before I give them any bad press 





























Woodstove is also in!











I got this far, and back to our (then) current home just in time. Less than a week later, Nathaniel was born. 7lb 7oz, 20in long.




















Throughout our time on leave, we have been gradually moving in. We also completed all final inspections and got occupancy. Mechanical was a bit of a challenge, in that our boiler didn't have the appropriate "stamp" Michigan required, so we added electric baseboard to be legal. Quite a racket in my opinion, considering the stamp requirement is a result of lobbyists and politics, and most states would approve my setup, but I digress.

Another accomplishment was window trim. I install mine differently than most. I take measurements and build the trim outside of the window using pocket screws as one would build furniture. This makes the joints extremely tight, and less prone to separation in the future. It also reduces the number of visible fasteners.



















I hung up most of the trim today, but didn't get pictures yet.


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## NorthwoodsMike

All in all, it's been a great year, and we have been so blessed.


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## SimplerTimez

Congratulations on your son! I have been watching your family's progress with enthusiasm. Oh, and the kitchen is beautiful too 

Best wishes in 2014!

~ST


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## unregistered358967

Congratulations papa!!


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## Westexas

Great work all around!


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## Candy

Congratulations Nathaniel is so handsome, and the house looks great! I have been following your story also. It looks wonderful


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## Joe.G

Congrats


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## BlueRose

Congrats on the handsome boy and your homestead


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## lperception

Amazing work and progress, thanks for putting it on display for us! Congrats on the little guy!


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## LittleRedHen

I have seriously died of envy. I would love a home like that!! and i love the UP


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## ralph perrello

With your four footed buddy and a shotgun there should be meat on the table.


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## rod44

Where are you in the UP? We have a cabin in Vilas County, WI just south of Wakefield.


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## NorthwoodsMike

We aren't too far away from you, near Kenton.

Edit:I say not too far, but a trip to the grocery store is an hour drive time round trip, so it's relative.


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## NorthwoodsMike

ralph perrello said:


> With your four footed buddy and a shotgun there should be meat on the table.


Done...


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## NorthwoodsMike

Snow is keeping me busy here. I have to thank my brother, who was kind enough to build this setup for my skid loader. I'm the woodworker, he's the metalworker.










I got a little greedy, and managed to get stuck. I put the welds to the test lifting the front of the loader to shovel the snow from underneath.











Another view of the house.


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## unregistered358967

That last picture looks like a postcard!!! (seeing it makes me really homesick for the UP). I really, truly believe that's the place I'm meant to be.


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## NorthwoodsMike

The snow on the metal roof finally let go-sadly the railing on the stairway was in the way, and not up for that kind of force. I think I'll need to build a special awning for winter, to protect the porch, and more importantly anyone underneath it. Snow stoppers aren't really a good option with the snow load possible in our area. 

The second picture is of our shed at our cabin. Just too much...




















I also invested in a new snow removal tool for my skid loader. The plow works, but snow builds up on the sides of the driveway, and even starting "wide" didn't leave me enough room for new snow later in the season. This spring I'm moving my driveway to go through the woods, where starting wide isn't an option, so switching to a snowblower was the best choice.

I found this bobcat 48" setup on craiglist priced very low, and close to my family further south. My dad, brother and friend took it from there, even though I wasn't nearby. They fabricated wings to widen it, added a better chute turning mechanism, and constructed an electrical harness. They did such a great job, all without my asking for help-they knew I had enough on my plate with other projects-gotta love family.










I also thought I would share a few recent pictures of my son. He's getting so big!


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## 349141

Wow, the place looks great Mike! I keep hoping to talk my wife into something similar in the U.P. one of these days. Keep up the nice work.


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## NorthwoodsMike

Listen up  It's time for an update!











This spring I had to travel alot for work, so we spent some of the weekends closer to the airport with family. Mother's day weekend we started planting the family garden.

Dad and Grandpa tilling up the dirt before planting.











The Earth Way seeder works excellent. Dad loves it.











Cousin Emma inspecting the seed plates.











Nathaniel hanging out with Rachel.











Naptime in the barn.











Back in the Northwoods, to catch up on the house, we decided to hire the trim work out. Work is ongoing.




















While they worked on that, I started some outside projects, like getting the jeep hood to open. I replaced the mechanism once already, so after it seized again, it was time for re-engineering. No amount of force would get the mechanism to budge, so I gently (yeah right) removed the old hood with the skid loader. I picked up a hinge and hood from the junk yard, and switched to hood pins. It's all about function over looks, but it turned out pretty good.


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## NorthwoodsMike

Another project I started was the pond/driveway. The two go hand in hand, as I need material to build up the driveway, and the pond has material that needs to be removed.

I started by stockpiling sand/dirt.











It was quite a process











Here is where the pond sits today. I plan to go much deeper, but it's a good start.











I also had to clear some trees. The picture is taken from far away, as the trunks of these trees are 8+ inches in diameter.











On a fun note, we had always planned on getting a utv for the logging and forest roads that surround us. They are pretty expensive, so I started looking into old jeeps. When I passed this for sale on the side of the road, I snapped a picture. After doing a little research and talking it over with Rachel, we decided this was a much more affordable option. I've always been a jeep guy anyway.











It's a 1959 Willys CJ5. Top speed is about 45, but in low range it's like a tractor. It has a fiberglass body so it won't rust, and seems to have been completely rebuilt.



















Like father, like son...


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## PorkChopsMmm

Looking good!


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## CountryDriven

Wow that's a awesome place and a awesome family!


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## 349141

Every time I view this thread, I start looking for work up in the U.P. again (I need an excuse to move up that way).  Mike, the place looks great!


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## stuckjk

That house is awesome. Im new here, and amazed by you guys who just go and build a house right quick.... Im a Jeep guy too - That CJ is a nice find.


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## NorthwoodsMike

Thanks for the kind words. I hope to post an update soon. I have lots of work to do before the snow flies.


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## LittleMrsAdams

How beautiful! I'm green with envy! And your little one is so adorable, none of mine are that small anymore.


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## NorthwoodsMike

I can't believe my last update was mid June...I have to get better about that.

I did some exploring with the Jeep the second half of June. So much to see.






































I also worked on rebuilding my shed at our cabin using recycled concrete forms. The original metal building collapsed under the snow load. So far, I've invested a tarp and a box of nails into the project, other than my time of course.











Hanging out with cousin Emma











July didn't have much to report. Lots of work on our driveway, which unfortunately I don't have pictures of, but lots of time as a family. We spent a little of that time at our cabin.











A hognose snake from the morning walk.


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## NorthwoodsMike

August brought more time at our cabin, so work continued on the shed.











But it wasn't all work there...











A day before heading back home, my truck developed a problem. For all the gear heads out there, it's a Ford Excursion with the 6.0 diesel. These engines have a terrible EGR/Oil cooling system. When it fails, it can kill the engine if not dealt with immediately. Most people don't catch it in time, which is why this very capable engine has such a bad reputation. Fixing the weak point was something I had planned to have done as a preventative measure a month later, by someone who knows these engines front to back. Unfortunately, this person lives about 300 miles away, so the job fell to me, as I wasn't going to let just anyone do the work. In the end, I'm glad I did it. I saved myself a huge amount of money, and I learned a ton about my truck. 

Add diesel mechanic to my resume of skills acquired by necessity.





























Late August we did some more exploring, and went on a day trip to Lake Superior via Porcupine Mountain Wilderness State Park.


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## NorthwoodsMike

September brought a little harvest for us. Other than a couple of topsy-turvys, we didn't have our own garden this year. Still, we definitely got quite a take of blackberries. We picked 2 1/2 gallons worth, freezing 2 for jam. The other 1/2 gallon didn't last long.










We were caught in a rainstorm during one of our picking sessions. Someone didn't mind...











The cool climate didn't stunt any growth here...











In mid September, we visited the most magical place on Earth. I didn't get pictures of it this year, but they have a huge hydroponics operation. It's very cool-I'll have to start a thread with pictures from past years. In any event, we had a blast.


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## NorthwoodsMike

Our flight home was cancelled, so after a very long drive, we came home to Fall.





































180 Degree Panoramic















































Perfect timing to fire up the woodstove.


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## NorthwoodsMike

We are only 2 weeks into October, and so much has already happened here.

Remember that pond I was digging with the skid loader? I finally cried uncle. I looked at the amount of dirt I needed to move from the pond area to the surrounding low spots, and it wasn't going to happen. We spoke with a neighbor who had an excavating business, and with 2 dozers and a backhoe, he did in hours what had taken me weeks.

Here is day 1:




















There was a significant drop off on the left half of this photo. As you can see, it is quite level. This is where my garden will be.











The pond before it was lined, with dog and Frisbee for scale.











Day 2-lining the pond with sandy clay. It was packed down with a vibrating roller. Time will tell if it will hold...











A view of the house and the hillside they took the clay material from.










After rolling...time to do a rain dance...











While they did that, my time has been spent getting ready for winter.


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## NorthwoodsMike

One last shot from our trip, but Nathaniel had a question for us...










"What do you mean we are going to need another set of ears in March?!?!"


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## unregistered358967

Congratulations!!


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## Jade1096

Congratulations on the news for another wee one!

I haven't posted in this thread before, but I have immensely enjoyed watching your progress.


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## Adirondackgal

Congratulations! We have a grandson and his name is Nathaniel also, and Nathaniel is going to be a big brother in December. 
Your place really looks awesome. What great pictures you have posted.


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## vpapai

Could you tell us more about the pond? How big, how deep, and ballpark on cost. Thanks


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## NorthwoodsMike

vpapai said:


> Could you tell us more about the pond? How big, how deep, and ballpark on cost. Thanks


Until there is water in the pond, I can only give my best guess, as it isn't perfectly level all of the way around, making it more "natural." Initial measurements were about 75-100' wide, 125-150' long, and about 10-15 ft deep, depending on how high I fill it. How high I fill it depends on how "happy" it is at different levels, as it relates to water retention. 

It was a tough pill to swallow, but it cost just under 5k to move all of the dirt and line it with material I had onsite. The machines average 100/hr. Three machines running at the same time adds up quick. That wasn't all pond work though, as much of the time was spent pushing the material to and leveling the field, which will make countless other projects easier. I will be doing all my other landscaping here, so I could bite the bullet on this.

I'm not going to lie, the pond is a bit of gamble. An artificial pond liner, on the cheap end, was over 5k. They wear out over time, and don't allow the pond to breathe as a natural water feature would. Supposedly, compacting material with some clay content is adequate. We put about 1 foot of sandy clay over the pure sand and rolled it with a vibrating roller. Any small leaks, in time, will patch themselves with natural pond muck and other organic material. Natural swales feed this low spot in the field, and kept it close to "wetland level" before digging. A few new man made swales, combined with the leveling of the field should help supply water. IF that is inadequate, we will likely be investing in a windmill pump, since there is no shortage of wind here. Time will tell, and this project has already kept me tossing and turning at night.


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## SimplerTimez

So good to see your family's progress (in more ways than one, lol!) Congratulations on both the homestead expansion and improvements and the growth of your on-stead helpers!

~ST


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## NorthwoodsMike

Winter seemed to come overnight this year. The day before the first big snow, we were putting the cover on our hoop shed where the skid loader lives. We keep a torpedo heater in there to preheat the equipment, as cold weather can be hard on machines, especially diesels. The storm was in full force when I finally got around to wiring the snowblower attachment, but I finished just in time.





























Even the snowshoe hares were caught off guard! Now it's face is all white.











We enjoyed Thanksgiving as a family...











a first birthday...


















a first snowmobile ride...











and a first buck...(a little one)











Even though it was on the small side, we certainly got alot of meat from it.


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## NorthwoodsMike

We are so grateful for all of our blessings.


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## unregistered358967

I had heard that the UP got hit pretty hard! That's interesting about the rabbit..like him I know we were really caught off guard here too. It literally came overnight.

Great pictures of your wonderful life. Thanks for sharing.


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## Ky-Jeeper

Nice really nice


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## philm

so what do you do for a living haha


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## NorthwoodsMike

philm said:


> so what do you do for a living haha


I'd tell you, but then i'd have to kill you...

Ok, not really. Both my wife and I work from home, in the software industry.


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## thefairfields20

Very beautiful place. I have loved every post on this thread.


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## arjan

very interesting!
What is new?


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## NorthwoodsMike

We had a great winter!

Lots of hunting...


















fishing...


















pots of stew simmering on the woodstove...


















and snowmobiling with Dad!

[YOUTUBE]Ue3nZqAJ9qw[/YOUTUBE]


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## mpulse

love the rabbit hunting


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## NorthwoodsMike

A few more videos from winter.

The snow blower in action...

[YOUTUBE]rOUg0f6swE4[/YOUTUBE]


A snowmobile ride, and getting dinner along the way...

[YOUTUBE]hVMrvfBXA8E[/YOUTUBE]

Enjoy!


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## logbuilder

That second video made me flashback to the 70's for some reason.


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## NorthwoodsMike

More pictures from winter...

To circulate the air from the woodstove, we installed a bath fan above it, and ducted it into the upstairs bedrooms, giving us a much more even heat.











Someone turned 1...











We had a wonderful Christmas, with a tree from our property.











With the exception of the range hood, we finally finished the kitchen cabinets. We hired out the doors and drawers. I'm glad I did-they turned out so much better than I could have done. We also added an island, but I don't have pictures of that.











Maple sap season couldn't come soon enough.




















...but I had no sooner gotten the taps in, when someone decided it was time to make an appearance.











Heidi Elizabeth was a wonderful addition to our family...


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## MO_cows

Congrats! A great home, a beautiful family. You are blessed.


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## Mick23

How's the pond?


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## NorthwoodsMike

I just noticed in my last post the kitchen picture had the wrong link, and it's too late to edit. Oh well-here it is.


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## NorthwoodsMike

The pond is doing well. Here is a video of it in early spring. Yes, that is snow. 

[YOUTUBE]DdmuUaeU_HA[/YOUTUBE]

The water level was up about a foot, and since the grade isn't steep, it really expanded the size by about 1/3. It has since returned to normal levels. It seems that any water loss is due to evaporation, and rain has been maintaining the level nicely.


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## Joe.G

I love the pond, you have a nice spot up there, no one to bother you seems quiet peaceful.


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## NorthwoodsMike

Maple syrup production continued in spring. I had more sap than time to boil!











Different grades for different boil times. I also got better at eliminating nitre as the season went on.











It was nice to see the snow disappear.











Jeep rides could begin again...











...and so could summer projects. This was much easier, albeit precarious, way to move the "hoop shed," compared to disassembly and reassembly.











LOTS of ramps this year. I made at least 20lbs of ramp butter, probably more.


















Soon enough, it was time to start plants indoors, which grew along side the rest of the family.


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## NorthwoodsMike

I have to share this picture, it's just too special. My grandfather was a farmer, and my grandparents actually live in the home my grandmother was born in. They, along with my parents, still maintain a pretty large family garden there. I may even have pictures from last year earlier in this thread. We visited them for a family party. My grandpa keeps an old organ in the barn, and my son wanted to play alongside him.











That same weekend, our family grew again...











Wendy is a Chocolate Lab-Doberman mix, and has been a wonderful addition.



























As she grows, it will be good to have her around. A black bear has been hanging around, and she will be another, much appreciated, line of defense against any unruly locals.


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## NorthwoodsMike

Remember how we moved that hoop shed? We were so excited for the reason why. My wife and I have never had a garage for our vehicles/projects. Winter can really restrict what we can do, or lead to a very messy basement. Here, where winter is long, we needed something more practical, and a pole barn made sense. We were shocked at how little it cost to build. The cost of materials AND labor to put it up the pole building was about the same as just the stick built materials. Stick built required a slab on top of it, so it was a no-brainer.

Here is the building site. You can see the sand where the hoop shed used to be. Because it was so reasonable to build, we used the extra funds to put in a proper driveway. It was an absolute mud pit up until this point. It's made of recycled asphalt, but when rolled it looks like the real deal!











No worries, snow was still flying in May.











The ground was still thawed, so they could move forward with the project. They did what they could with this rig, but switched to a bucket later as some of the rocks were just too big for the auger.











Soon the posts were set.











And then the trusses.




















The metal went up quickly.











It turned out great!











It was a very productive, and beautiful Spring!


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## mooose

Thanks for the pictures!!


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