Shortly after moving here, we asked our hired hand to build a fence along the gulch to keep the feral pigs from entering our property and to keep Luna the Big Dog™ from leaving.
Clearing for the fence created the beginnings of a nice path from the main house, behind the goat barn (which will soon form part of a chicken coop), to the studio. Such a path would be nice because right now, to get to the studio, one must walk along the edge of the dry pond then down a steep and often wet grassy hill then back up a muddy path. The hill is tricky in flip-flops (what I’m usually wearing) and it takes one quite a bit out of the way.
Next, we trenched along that same path (more or less) with an excavator to bury the 100-amp feeder from the inverter at the studio up to the house. Now it was an even better path, except for a once-very-tall downed tree across the path with about a 26-inch diameter trunk where it crossed the would-be path. It was a bit much to scurry over and completely blocked the tool- and material-filled carts and wheelbarrows that I’m commonly taking when I go to the studio.
I had tried cutting through the trunk with my 14-inch chainsaw. It’s tough eucalyptus and I just couldn’t do it. The electricians beat on it with the excavator, but it wouldn’t move so they ended up trenching under it.
Two days ago, I bought a way-cool 20-inch Ego electric chainsaw. It made for easy cutting until I discovered that the tree that I had thought was just laying on the ground was actually supported near its base somewhere deep in the gulch, and supported at its top by a mound in my meadow. There was a thick layer of rotten wood and other debris under the tree that made it appear as though it was resting on the ground, but as soon as I cut through it, it collapsed and pinched the saw chain deeply in the trunk.
It required HA’s help and a splitting wedge, maul, t-post, and the small chainsaw to cut the new saw free. It was a big job, and the saw ran out of charge after the path was through but while I was making one last cut to even out the path.
Next, we’ll pave the path with stepping stones and I’ll have my long-desired shortcut to the studio.
—2p