Green Valley Continued...

Mid-March the trail crew worked toward wrapping up our various projects at Green Valley State Park near Creston, Iowa.  After the internal siding and shingles were added to the cabin, it was time for external siding.  A great idea for providing a rustic look and durable, lasting protection from the elements, this siding was unfortunately quite a challenge for these novice carpenters.  We received some pointers from Mark, the carpenter in charge of the cabin's framing and electrical work, and learned the rest through trial and error (but not too much error, because these panels are costly!)

No idea what we were getting into...

Was it scant?  Or strong?  Oh the precision required 

of this task...

One wall down... you might think this other one looks over half 

finished, but that's where you're wrong.  The final pieces take 

almost as long as the first dozen.

This would be another "almost finished" wall, except

for the fact that cutting that final wedge piece can eat up an

afternoon.  No straight lines here, being stacked on a dozen

other pieces of wood each with their own natural warps

means this final piece needs to be so irregular that it's a task 

best suited to pocket knives.  

So close!

After finishing the exterior siding, the heavens decided to pour.  Some of the crew worked on intensive Asian Lady Beetle habitat destruction back at the house (i.e. cleaning windows) while others waded through the mud moat around the cabin to oil the interior siding, leaving a protective coating that still showcases the natural beauty of the wood.

The cabin still needs some final touches such as a drainage area under the eaves, some landscaping, and a protective coat on the exterior siding, but those all needed to wait for dryer, warmer weather so the crew moved onto their second large project at Green Valley, a check-in stand for the newly renovated campground.  This is where campers will reserve their sites, ask questions, and buy sodas, and it will be the daytime "home" of the campground host.

First wall!

And we have... a frame!

Always looking for ways to cut down on costs and waste, we used

rafters from an old, torn-down building in the park.  Unfortunately, 

this meant an incredible amount of nail-pulling.

 Adam demonstrates how the checkstand will look when it's in use.

Fascia board... harder than it looks, especially with reclaimed rafters

See those blue skies?!  Finally!!!

Back to one of our favorites, roofing!  

We look to be wrapping things up in Green Valley soon, a couple more weeks ought to see both projects through.  This brings us into the long-awaited trail season, and most likely we will head to (somewhat) nearby Lake of Three Fires next, where water quality issues require us to take a look at the popular equestrian trails and re-route or re-structure areas where runoff is going straight into the lake.  Unless somebody finds a (legal!!!) way to dissuade thousands of geese from calling the park home, spiffing up the heavily-used horse trails should do the trick and get the lake's bacteria levels back in check.  

Green Valley Cabin

After a rough start to the month, Trail Crew bounced back to begin working on its next big project: finishing the construction of a cabin at Green Valley State Park. The primary carpentry work was completed while we were working on clearing out and refurbishing the house nearby, and it was our job to put the finishing touches on both the interior and exterior.

The first step was the interior. Fiberglass insulation and a vapor barrier help to ensure that the cabin is weatherized and energy efficient. After applying these, we finished the walls with tongue and groove siding, cut to fit each wall individually. Doing so was a complicated affair with a steep learning curve, but we quickly learned to mind all of the many details associated with trimming a board to have a tight and level fit that was aligned with the boards on the adjoining walls. We also learned to "blind nail" each piece, a technique that hides the nails in the joints of the siding so that the final product is unblemished wood.




After Ceith cuts a piece of siding, Adam blind nails it to the wall. The before and after can be seen on the final photo.

After mounting a mantle above the heating unit, applying the siding to the walls and vaulted ceiling and providing trim to the windows, we moved to the exterior. Siding was again individually cut from stock, this time from log siding that gave the cabin a rustic aesthetic. We also applied drip edges, shingles and vents to prevent moisture from rotting the wood, thereby ensuring that the cabin will stand the test of time.




Adam Delilah and Ceith raise a piece of external siding. After that was finished, everyone moved on to roofing for a day.

Though the bulk of the work is now finished, we still have details to finish on this project. All of those loose ends will hopefully be tied up next week, allowing us to move on to what will hopefully be our first project of spring (is it spring yet? please?). More on the Green Valley cabin, as well as pictures of the final product to come soon!