Fall at Flint

One parting shot on my way out of here this trip... always so sad to go!

A Wet Firecracker Island

The water is still pretty high. Firecracker island is mostly under water. I took a walk down the creek to see water levels on the newer property.

A Path More Travelled

I was really tired of all the stacked rock and muddy walkways that remained. I had tried to be respectful and patiently wait on Mike to finish where he left off. But I finally ndecided to throw them down on my own - saving mom some money. What would have taken days by other means was done in a couple of hours! And now we have rock paths going everywhere! You could go all the way from either house on rocks with no shoes all the way to the garage! I am amazed sometimes when I remember the very first path dad laid between the two houses so long ago - and then the massive steps down to the bluff I dug out a few years ago...

Waterfall in Action!

The natural waterfall I dug out last trip has been quite active with all the rain and water run-off. This view is looking down. There is about a five foot drop down to the creek - this shot does not really show that.

Walled In

We finally have walls on the garage - but no roof or door yet. This picture also shows the spot where one of the trees had to be cut down and dug out. Both trees on the creek side of the putting green were dead and we did not want them to break in half and do damage to the green. I think these were cut down before the last trip in August but I did not mention them then. At first it was very stark and quite unsettling. But with the amazing landscaping mom did and the clearing that Tom did of the lower bluff, I hardly miss them!

A new natural waterfall!

Drainage off the newly dug out bluff rocks is always a bit of a problem. So I made a few smaller dry creek run-offs to help the flow find its way. In some cases, you help a little of the rock dislodge with a hammer and a rock chisel. There was a definite natural fall line - and it looked liked there was bluff rock underneath. So, out comes the power washer! Now we have a new natural waterfall between the two houses - one that we can enjoy!

Tom Brazil is my Hero!!!

Got a slow start today. It was wet, the rain actually kept us up a bit during the night with the metal roof in the big house. So I enjoyed the morning first - kind of piddled around, and unloaded the truck.

We have a guy helping us clear the land between the bluff and the small creek down by my house. You can walk from the table on the old bluff (we have lots of bluff now) all the way to the old auxiliary creek pump much like the south 40 has been for a few years now. Very nostalgic - this was once the only creek front we had. Brings back lots of memories of dad sitting on the stump of a cut off tree - one of my new roosts! Not only is it a nice area to enjoy, but since Tom has finished clearing Snake Island of everything but a couple of trees, you can see all the way across to the big creek. They had cleared some of the brush before, but burned a lot of it off since I was here last. I noticed a couple of spots that looked like you could have a natural waterfall (right where the bluff and dry creek drains) by clearing off some dead grass and dirt. So that is what I did. Amazing sitting spot!!!