# Swamp crossing road



## Jim Timber

I bought 84.5 acres of hardwood forest 4 years ago, and was land locked on 6 sides except for one corner which happens to be a 5 acre black ash type 7 wooded swamp (I own roughly 2/3 of it). Over the past 3 years I've been working with the county wetlands coordinator on how to gain useful access to my high ground, and this past winter I finally decided that the silvicultural exemption was the best tool to use at this time. My exemption was granted, and I then waited for the spring road weight restrictions to be lifted on the 8th - 9 days ago. It's been a busy week.

In 2011 I started working on a corduroy trail. This was tedious work as I had to hand carry the sticks since the muck wouldn't support the atv's weight let alone with cargo (I had to winch it through). I had plenty of wood from trail building and other clearing projects, so I worked at it as I did other things on my high ground. Last fall, I was about 90' from having that trail completed to handle the atv and a trailer. It was in dealing with that, which pushed me to pursue a permanent option. My WCA decision on the corduroy was that it was a no-loss, but I was limited to 6' wide and couldn't add any fill, it was also issued as a temporary use permit which would expire this year. Even walking on the wood was dangerous when it was wet, and the wood would shift in the spring with the high water of snow melt - the trail needed to go.

Click on the pic and the video will pop up.





The trail was cut using the path of least resistance going around a pair of 24" downed trunks. That turn would become the Achilles heel of the trail, because there wasn't enough width for the trailer to follow the arc even after it was firm enough for the weight.







After initiating the permit process, I started cutting trees to straighten the path.






Then brought in stone to firm up the landing area (the day before spring weight restrictions took effect).


----------



## Jim Timber

So after 5 loads of stone it started firming up, but there was still frost under it holding things from sinking. I'm not sure how much fill it'll take to get that shoulder to not flex under a 3T axle load, but if we keep the heavy loads limited to when there's frost in the ground it shouldn't be a problem.






After the rock, I switched to taconite tailings to top dress it and make my base for the road bed.






There's 255 yards of tailings down so far, and I'm only at about 75% width for my road's drive surface. I'm not sure how many more loads of tailings we'll need because this should've gotten me to my 2' elevation at 12' width already. The swamp will eat more yet, so I'm not going to worry about it. I'll just keep adding as needed from here out.

Once I had the base down and driven over a few times, we put the culverts in.











Then I kept motoring loads back with the tractor to get the rest of the way to high ground.






Had to extract those logs I'd worked around before.


----------



## jwilly

Geotextile fabric laid down first will save you a whole bunch of material. We us it all the time.


----------



## Jim Timber

Being within a few buckets from driving across is a wonderful feeling.






Until you manage to rip out your wiring with one of those sticks...






It was just the lights going up the roll bar, but it could've been much worse as the fuel tank outlet is inches from where these were zip tied.






But a half-hour with some solder and crimp connectors got things put back together and I was back in business shoving trees up the hill so I could fill over clean mud.






I have a lot of work left yet, but my swamp is passable!



And I'll get to remove those sticks too...


----------



## Jim Timber

jwilly said:


> Geotextile fabric laid down first will save you a whole bunch of material. We us it all the time.



Without scraping out the organic matter, there would be too many stumps and it wouldn't lay flat. All the info I found on geotextile also indicated that it needs to extend to firm ground on both ends for it to work, and the asphalt isn't even bedded firmly enough to handle a 42Klb truck without rolling "waves" in it (kinda cool to watch).

The muck depth is 3.5' at most over a 3" clay bottom, then dry beach sand below that. So geotextile isn't needed in this type of project.

If I cut a hole in the clay, it would drain the swamp and I'd be responsible for replacing the affected area at 2:1 - it'd bankrupt me. So I made the decision to fill over the root mat and deal with compaction and settling.


----------



## 54stude

I would have probably made he same choice and put the road on the top. Where I am in mn, we don't have taconite tailings available on a regular basis, too far south from the range. Is it similar to class 5 recycle in terms of size and compaction, or more like gravel?


----------



## Jim Timber

There's some similarities between it and class 5, but with the sheer volume of tailings my guy has we had the option for bigger chunks or more fines depending where the scoops came from. When he knew I was putting in base he'd bring me larger material, then when I was top dressing he'd get the finer stuff. The tailings were a joy to work with. They firm up nicely over goo, and pack down like concrete with a bit of traffic. My front axle was around 6,000# with a full bucket of this stuff and you could see it rolling when there wasn't enough cover. Once you got about 6" and drove some passes over it, it'd stop moving.

This is the cheapest fill available due to it being a waste product from an hour North of my guy's pits. The material itself is $6/yd, then the rest of the cost was delivery and he's about 45 minutes away. Running a tandem axle 12yd and quad 15yd truck in pairs, I could usually get the 25yd loads down before they came back with more, but just barely. When I had to do any other tasks like moving trees, I wouldn't beat them to a flat landing. It made for a couple really long 11hr days (no lunch break or beer 30's), but I'm glad to have it done.






Once it rains on the stuff a couple times, the iron oxide washes off and the color of the stone comes out. I really like how it looks. I'd been planning to top dress it with sand, but I'm going to leave it.


----------



## chucker

lol!! it wont be long jim and the wife will be wanting a copper red vehicle as the tailings will turn what ever color you are driving now to red! you can always know when someone's been in the mine pits with the tell-tail signs of red tires and side panel's..... if you take a drive to Crosby/ironton, you can tell who goes off the tar beaten path!


----------



## Jim Timber

My tractor doesn't seem to pick it up. It was raining 2 of the 3 days we were hauling fill, so that probably had something to do with keeping it clean.

Also, the water in the swamp cleared up after a day too. 

I think the pits/mine color is because it's not getting washed off, but I could be wrong - it's happened a couple times.


----------



## Fly By Night

Why couldn't you drain the swamp?


----------



## Jim Timber

Because it's 6.5 acres and I only own 3.5 of it. And then there's that pesky government with their Wetland Conservation Act which says that's illegal. And that still doesn't account for the natural spring which feeds the swamp - and it's 30-50 gallons per minute of flow I'd have to send somewhere else.

All of which is rather moot though, since I love my swamp. I just needed to get to the other side of it.


----------



## Jim Timber

After 60 more yards of tailings to get over some "high side" muddy furrows, today made history. I drove up the hill to the future garden (present pistol range).  She's a functional road now.






Just need to cut more trees and grind the stumps, then it'll be ready to move the cargo container up to this spot.


----------



## Jim Timber

Still need to drop a couple more trees and remove the stumps, but the road is taking shape.

Sorry for the shaky video. Might want some Dramamine.


----------



## Jim Timber

Haven't done much of anything in the woods this summer. About 4 weeks ago I started working on building a 3pt stump grinder to knock out the stumps in the road and garden (and for future clearings, etc).

My first rendering used 1" pillow block bearings for the cutting head pivot (to raise/lower the wheel) and that turned out to be no match for the forces involved. The bolt ears cracked off in less than 1 stump, but the grinder was showing great promise.
















Pillow blocks were succeeded by some PTFE bushing blocks I made out of steel, and got back to grinding stumps.
















I ground about 8 stumps out and started noticing the grinder would twist when the swing cylinder was almost fully retracted, but figured I was on a hill and the arm must be dragging on something. Then I kept going and it happened in a new spot. No biggie, I don't need to swing it that far to cut that stump - kept going.

Then I went to line up on another stump and popped a stringer weld on the back of my bushing block mount. Then the "new" bushing block snapped the tubing holding the bushing. "How odd" was all that came to mind. Knowing I needed to re-work that joint now (as the mount was 15 degrees from square), I took the grinder off the tractor - only the PTO shaft didn't want to come off. WTF??

So I pulled back the cover to be able to gain access to the u-joint and found out why it was binding earlier, and why it broke the way it did:






As it happens, the PTO shaft I got wasn't "heavy duty" as advertised and couldn't handle my 58 PTO ponies. It was wedged together about 16" and twisted at least 120 degrees.






Chopped the old mounting flange off:


----------



## Jim Timber

Made a change to the .240" wall 2.5" square tubing, and made some new pivot blocks:











Then modified my 3pt chassis a bit since I had it home.






I didn't have a long enough piece for the left corner brace to be the same as the right, and it looks a bit goofy but it'll work fine.

Then my neighbor helped re-assemble everything on the trailer (sans cylinders so it'd fit on my 4x6 trailer). I'm still waiting on my new Series 7 PTO shaft parts, but hope to be grinding again by the weekend.


----------



## Rookie1

Wow!Thats alot of work. What do you plan on doing with the land other than garden?


----------



## Jim Timber

I'm working on lining up a mill to sell some aspen and oak to this fall, and will be building my house close to the middle of the two 40's, further up the hill from the little garden clearing. The garden is only about 1/4 acre and will double as a landing once I get the stumps out of it. The garden's littered with 12" stumps that pretty much make it impossible to navigate with anything but the atv.


----------



## svk

This is an excellent thread, thanks for sharing!

The old access to our hunting cabin was through a swamp and we buried many a vehicle over the years so I feel your pain. Always talked about corduroy but never did it. Then the loggers built us a nice road in from the other side and now we can drive a car in anytime snow isn't an issue.


----------



## Jim Timber

Thanks!

It's still somewhat surreal just going for a walk and heading out in sneakers. Used to be 18" muck boots and you still might get wet feet. ATV bushings and brakes wore out quickly from the under-water/mud exposure every pass through the swamp. In-laws were always bitching about the mud from the ATV in the driveway (even though it's just class 5). Neighbors were always bitching about the high revs of the ATV driving through there at all hours of the night (because I'm a night owl).

The road has been a huge improvement. The taconite tailings are staying put nicely despite several heavy rains this year. We have vegetation coming up in them as well, which surprised me how quickly the swamp tried to absorb the road (which is good). I'm absolutely thrilled with how the road has gone so far. Next spring will be interesting, but I don't envision much drama with any of it.

Most of my PTO parts arrived today (just missing the safety shield), but my Father-in-law is in the ER from possibly a mild heart attack. Looks like I might be stuck home a couple more days. He's 81, so this could be really bad for him. His brain is on it's way out to dementia, and I think his parents died in their late 70's. I don't want to get stuck with just my MIL either. I actually love my FIL and like him as a friend. I'd tie a brick to his wife and throw her in the lake if I could get away with it.


----------



## svk

Looking forward to updates and wishing the best to FIL and family.


----------



## Jim Timber

Sounds like he'll be fine. They've got him admitted for observation overnight but don't think anything will come of it.

His wife got her hair cut before going to the hospital to relieve my wife from staying with him. I should've let her walk under a tree I was falling when I had the chance. She just wandered out on the road when I was expanding it. Silly me, I actually chewed her out for that instead of telling her where to stand so it'd be a direct hit.


----------



## Jim Timber

Made a little video after getting the grinder back together.

The jump cut was from pausing to back the tractor up.

All the road stumps are gone, and I've started cleaning up the garden. Hopefully my neck cooperates and I can get things situated to move the cargo container Monday.


----------



## Jim Timber

Tractor and grinder did their jobs today. Still have some work left up there, but I'm happy with what my afternoon accomplished.


----------



## Jim Timber

Dropped the last of the pinch point trees today and erased the stumps with the grinder. Then did some grading to prep for my cargo container's relocation in the morning. Then drove my truck up the hill for the first time. 

I'm pretty darn happy right now.


----------



## KiwiBro

Onya Jim.


----------



## Jim Timber

This week was a little more eventful than I wanted. The "surgeon" who moved my container into the in-laws yard between two cedar fence posts 9' wide in a single un-aided shot; quit to work for a different towing outfit unbeknownst to me. And they didn't tell me that when I specifically asked for him Monday.  They sent out a one month rookie and after walking the whole trip making sure I didn't overlook anything and making sure the driver (who I didn't know was a noob yet) was cool with the project and the hill - he refused my offer to spot him through the swamp (the swamp road was barely wide enough in a couple spots), and then promptly drove off the side 20' from dry ground. 






Then his boss showed up and promptly drove off the edge in reverse at mach 3, and got stuck too. Then started calling the noob retarded for agreeing to take the truck over my road. Umm, excuse me? We had a 42,000# tandem dump on that road you jackwagon! 






So after getting the little tow truck un-stuck, we decided to take the container off and try to pull the flatbed forward with my tractor (which was inland of the swamp).






Which worked, sort of.






20' cargo container's work great as a drag. 






With the container off, we still couldn't budge the flatbed, so they called in another driver with a class 8 wrecker.






But that thing's winches were mostly shot, and jumping teeth more than pulling cable. It took a lot of monkeying to get the flatbed up out of the swamp. After all the jockeying to get the container off, and trying to use the stinger to assist in lifting it up and out, the shoulder was pretty well mashed into the soup and the truck had sunk down over the culvert even more.






Eventually we did pull the rear end up onto the crown, and got the front axel out of the hole it was in. The big wrecker couldn't drag it back any further because it was about to rip the DPF off the tailpipe. That's when we tried pulling it with the tractor again, and that actually worked great!

So once we got it un-stuck, both me and the flatbed drove up the hill to the garden, then I went back down and fixed up the road a bit so he could drive the truck back out. This time, I guided him.   No problem! But what was tight before was now really tight. My culvert is wrecked. 






And the container isn't on the correct side of the swamp either. The big wrecker guy said he'd come move it tomorrow after work for free before he left Tuesday night. Wednesday morning I assessed the damages with a clear head, and called my tailings guy (who I expected to be in Texas at his hunting lease) - he was still here, and he brought me two more loads before quitting for the day. 






It was 5:21 when they left after I talked with him about the culvert and how to go about fixing it proper. I walked in the door at 7:49 after all the tailings were spread. Fortunately I have kick ass LED auxiliary lights on my tractor and had no trouble working when the sun set. I didn't get any pics of the newly widened and straightened swamp road, but it's much nicer now. I've been holding off on bringing more tailings in until I start selling some wood. Seems like money just vaporizes these days, so I've been trying to limit expenses until I have better cash flow.

I did shoot a quick video driving from the garden to the street while waiting for Scott to bring my fill, so you can see how much wider the road is inside the swamp now after I got the stumps ground out. I need to decide the best way to make the turn from the shelf the garden is on, up yet another hill, to where my house is going. Either I follow the atv trail (seen just to the right at the very beginning of this video) around a slight dog leg, or I blaze a new path through a patch of poor growing aspen that are mostly dead and knocked over. But at least now I have somewhere to dump and burn the slash.  I also need to clear out the turn-out at the inside edge of the swamp road. I'll need more room to get a semi aimed up the hill than we have now. That won't be a problem for a while yet. No semi's are hauling wood for me. I'll be using that C65 Chevy to pull a trailer to haul wood to the mill.




Tuesday was pretty expensive for the tow company, and I'm not sure what resolution we'll have about the culvert. They haven't contacted me about it yet (which is disappointing), but Scott said to give them the chance to fix it. He seems to have a good opinion about the outfit, and I trust his judgment on folks up there (he's been spot-on in every case we've discussed). I'm headed back up there shortly, and get to put vinyl siding on a shed that should be demolished for my FIL - but he's paying me and he's sentimental on the old shack so I'm going to do it right for him. And of course, hopefully seeing the container to it's new home would be nice. 

Thanks for looking at my thread, and for the kind words guys.


----------



## Jim Timber

That Friday, true to his word, the Class 8 driver and another skilled driver came back and we got the container up the hill and into position despite some mud from 2 days of rain that week (we winched the flatbed up the hill).

And then on Sunday I got a call that the same two were en route with my new culvert and a rental mini-ex.

So Sunday afternoon the three of us dug out the damaged culvert and put in the new one.

Only cost me my 2 loads of tailings, that I would've bought eventually anyway.






It's nice having the container up the hill where it belongs.


----------



## KiwiBro

Nice to see there's still some people left in the world who will own their screw ups and put it right. Hope you look after and use them again.


----------



## Jim Timber

The employees took it upon themselves to fix the noobie's damage. The owner (guy who stuck the F650) wouldn't talk about it all week when Ben asked (Class 8 Volvo guy). So Ben and Robert used their company credit cards to collectively force the owner to fix it. 

I haven't talked to Ben since emailing him some pics from the repair and stuck International, but he's still got his job, and so does noobie. Turns out Ben just lives around the block from me - which is still about 13 miles away. 

You're right though. I was grateful to not have to go to lengths to get this fixed. Those guys are good in my book. Chit happens; how you deal with it matters more to me in the end.


----------



## Bobosocky

Liking this thread.. 

Awesome you have the driveway in.. the payoff in the end will be great once you have your homestead back there. When I was looking for land I learned how much driveways like that can cost.

Are you planning to run electric across that swamp, or go off grid?


----------



## Jim Timber

I'll have the power company plant a pole on the inside of the swamp, and I'll install a transformer to bump my 240v up to 600v and run the remaining 700' up to where the house and shop will go, then another transformer (or two) to drop it back down there.

What's sad is that I'm 1/2 mile from 3ph industrial power, which would be awesome with my current needs and future plans - but the cost to run those extra two wires across the neighbors lots would never be recovered or even justified. I could run a generator for the rest of my life for the price of stringing those wires that distance.

Single phase will cost $750 per pole, $7.50/ft, and $5,800 for the transformer. Distribution is at 10Kv, and they won't let me meter at that, so I have to be at 240v at my connection which is the reason for stepping up right away.

I'm not sure if I'll bury my lines or string them tree to tree yet. I'm not paying $750 for more than one pole. 

I mistyped and got this heart I can't delete via android.


----------



## Jim Timber

Last video of the season. Sorry the sound sucks. I didn't know the engine would be louder than my voice for most of it.

The grounds a bit lumpy yet, but I could probably drive my truck up to where the video starts.


----------



## dancan

Great thread Jim !


----------



## Jim Timber

Thanks Dan! It was quite the year for my Northern woodlot.

The two neighbors who've been a royal pain in my butt since the purchase agreement was signed (they wanted my property but never took the initiative to contact the owner like I did) have finally figured out I can make things worse for them than they can for me; and there's strong evidence they're done trying.  Their "last stand" was trying to fight my road permit last spring which resulted in 14 letters of objection to granting it, and I still got it without any resistance from the county. Even recently, the guy who's called the county on me every year since my trail permit was issued to "make sure I was still legal" backed down when confronted by me about being a hypocrite on the lake association's fb page. He used to be good for a full blown 3yr old's quality tantrum in years past.  I don't know what I'll do not having to look over my shoulder anymore. I've gotten kinda used to the little rat bastage and his yippie dog-like persistence. Pushing his buttons was almost a sport since he was always wound so tight. 

I've also been in touch with the tow company. Noobie still has his job and still makes dumb mistakes, but I guess he's pretty good on the routine calls. Ben and Robert also still work there, and the owner still leery as ever about my property.  I asked for a quote to haul in a 45' HC container and never did get a bid back. The owner said Ben had to check it out first before he'd send another truck in. 

I haven't been up there since around Thanksgiving. I'm hoping to get some wood cut next week though.


----------



## Yooperforeman

I had two areas about 100' each that were always wet and mucky.I had a bulldozer push out the stumps,then corduroyed two layers of logs.I covered the logs with felt and then 6" of pit run.I'm letting it settle and
compact then I'll add about 4" of lime gravel.Last fall we had about 4" of rain at once and it was flowing really well through the corduroy,So I should have good drainage.


----------



## Jim Timber

All seems well under the snow so far. The town's culvert is frozen again, so the water level is presently elevated. I let them know, so they should have the steam crew out soon.

When the thaw comes is when the real assessment can happen. I have no idea what shifted or stayed since the top froze over.

Sure is nice driving across in my truck.


----------



## Jim Timber

We had a really mild winter this year and the lake is starting to melt good in the narrow sections. The township did clear the culvert back in Feb so my water level is normal. I haven't done any frost checks in the swamp yet, but the surface of the tailings is looking good so far. It's a little lumpier than I left it in the fall, but I couldn't have asked for much better survival given how bad the frost heaves the asphalt out in front of my place.

I still need a few more loads to give proper protection to my culverts for heavy use - it's in plenty good enough condition to keep driving my F350 and tractor over.

I'm rather pleased with this one right now.


----------



## KiwiBro

Jim Timber said:


> We had a really mild winter this year and the lake is starting to melt good in the narrow sections. The township did clear the culvert back in Feb so my water level is normal. I haven't done any frost checks in the swamp yet, but the surface of the tailings is looking good so far. It's a little lumpier than I left it in the fall, but I couldn't have asked for much better survival given how bad the frost heaves the asphalt out in front of my place.
> 
> I still need a few more loads to give proper protection to my culverts for heavy use - it's in plenty good enough condition to keep driving my F350 and tractor over.
> 
> I'm rather pleased with this one right now.


So you should be. Every time you roll over it, it's like giving the neighbours the one finger salute. A gift that keeps on giving.


----------



## Jim Timber

Pffttt... I couldn't care less about them these days. I'm back to focusing on what I want/need to get accomplished and will deal with them as encountered moving forward.

Everytime they leave their driveways, they see my stump pile - that's my gesture for their courtesy.  It's gonna keep growing too.  I've got lots of ground to clear.


----------



## LittleLebowski

Fantastic, excellent, great thread. You should host a forum shooting day at your pistol range to piss off the neighbors


----------



## jcsmith

Very nice work. Don't you just love miserable neighbors? I think they're jealous and can't contain themselves. I can see it now; they will need your help in the future. Yeah right. 


Chris


----------



## Jim Timber

Thanks!

I tried being nice, but when you hear from other neighbors up the road that you were introduced as the new owner and an A-hole, at the lake association summer meeting by the Prez of said organization (complainer #1), it kinda tempers the enthusiasm to be kind. I gave him 30 days to vacate the corner of my lot he'd been squatting on illegally for 25 years after learning of his double face, but first I offered to sell it for $25K (knowing full well he's one of the cheapest people to walk the earth).  I'm completely ok with disagreeing with people and going about our lives without interaction, but when you taint people's view of someone because of your own jealousy and sour grapes that they beat you to the cake; I don't have much respect for you.

I'm just finishing up a subsoiler project so I can cut some drainage slots in my muddy high ground. Should be headed up next week to play on the tractor.


----------



## svk

Jim Timber said:


> Thanks!
> 
> I tried being nice, but when you hear from other neighbors up the road that you were introduced as the new owner and an A-hole, at the lake association summer meeting by the Prez of said organization (complainer #1), it kinda tempers the enthusiasm to be kind. I gave him 30 days to vacate the corner of my lot he'd been squatting on illegally for 25 years after learning of his double face, but first I offered to sell it for $25K (knowing full well he's one of the cheapest people to walk the earth).  I'm completely ok with disagreeing with people and going about our lives without interaction, but when you taint people's view of someone because of your own jealousy and sour grapes that they beat you to the cake; I don't have much respect for you.
> 
> I'm just finishing up a subsoiler project so I can cut some drainage slots in my muddy high ground. Should be headed up next week to play on the tractor.


Been there. Some people are just plain a holes. 

Knowing that you did what you wanted to on your property and they have to see it everyday is a prize in itself.


----------



## Jim Timber

I'm just doing my thing. I can't help it if they're butt-hurt over my being there.

Gotta tell ya though, driving my truck up my driveway still puts a turd eating grin on my face.  My muck boots are going to file for a divorce.


----------



## svk

Jim Timber said:


> I'm just doing my thing. I can't help it if they're butt-hurt over my being there.
> 
> Gotta tell ya though, driving my truck up my driveway still puts a turd eating grin on my face.  My muck boots are going to file for a divorce.


Long story short. My dad had a lifetime easement into our hunting cabin across some land that was sold to a first class Richard head. When he died I was literally locked out. We plotted out a trail across public land that connected two logging roads and allowed me to get in. The guy trying to lock me out was so mad. I cackled everytime I drove in on it. 

3 years later we had a logging road straight in and then they graveled it. Froze those guys right out lol.


----------



## Jim Timber

I would've liked to not have my driveway through the swamp, but it just wasn't in the cards. One of the tasks I built the subsoiler for is to break the hard pan of the old buggy trail that comes in from my North neighbor's place. That trail pre-dates maps, but since it was never legally a road, it's not an access and that neighbor has outright said I can't expand it. You could drive a short wheelbase truck through there, but I have a dented fender from doing so.

This way my driveway to the street is shorter, the distance from our house to town is shorter (not having to drive around the block saves 7.5 miles), and we can take a road vehicle straight from the future house down to the cabin instead of an atv. So it's got its advantages too.

The buggy trail's so hard I can't drive a stake in it. Hopefully I'll have better luck with the tractor. Nothing grows on the old road bed but some light grasses in the middle of the tracks. I've tried planting trees in there and they die. If I can break that crust, I should be golden. I'd like it to revert back to forest and look like the road was never there. We'll see if I live long enough to make that happen.


----------



## Jim Timber

Spent a few hours clearing trees and moving dirt today. I'm thinking tomorrow I'll fire up the stump grinder again since I'm back to having obstacles on the shoulder. 












Been working on knocking this ridge down to fill in the gully, but also lessen the slope of my driveway. I may still need to move some dirt in here to eliminate the chasm, but so far it's going pretty good.


----------



## Jim Timber

Spent some more time on the gully last weekend and got it mostly gone.






I still have a bit left to work out on the top, but that's not more than a couple hours worth as long as the maple doesn't fight me too much. I already have a good bit of it's roots cut on the inside of the road. It's possible it'll just fall over if we get some wind before I head back up there.






Here's the other side of that mound with the root ball, and a better view of the remaining hole I need to fill. It's about 4' deep in the middle, but I'll be pushing the left side of this pic over to the right and bringing that down to make a slight ditch out of the remaining bank on the right.






Never did get around to grinding more stumps. Spent too much time ferrying fill from my "watering hole" (eventually to become a pond) to fill in the chasm. I'm pretty happy with how it's turning out. Once I get some coarse material over the sand it should make for a decent driveway.


----------



## Jim Timber

Got the maple out today.





Still have some buckets worth of fill to bring up, but my gully is almost gone and the road is getting more user friendly by the day.


----------



## Jim Timber

If the weather holds out, I should be into the "yard" by Memorial Day. The gully is a small ditch at the bottom of the hill, and otherwise a memory for practical purposes. 

Did some grinding to clean up stumps carried over from last fall and the new ones from the past weeks work.













A view of the road at the crest where the maple was dug out. My front bumper is about where the root ball was.






Moved some rocks to keep people from trying to back boats in my driveway and wiping out my cable post (also restored the ditch so using it will be a mistake too). Game warden won't enforce the no trespass signs without a barrier, so I have to cable it (unfortunately).






Still need 2-3 big'un's to fill the gaps to the back, but I have plenty more where those came from (in my trails).


----------



## Jim Timber

I'm starting to get into some nicer logs too. I left this oak until I can get at it with the loader. The hill is all loose sand right now and trying to winch against it results in submarining the blade, and then dragging the tractor if the butt hangs.






I'm standing at the edge of about (6) 12-15" aspen that need to come out while taking that pic, and then I can start working on a mud pit at the base of the house site. I'm about 50' from the last turn into the yard. Close enough I can taste it. Or maybe it's the mud in my teeth?






The tractor sinks to the axles in this, but I got to sand with my subsoiler. It's not draining well, but it is draining slowly. I'll scoop all the dirt out of here and assess how to "fix" it permanently. I'll probably do some sculpting of that transition anyway to even it out a bit, as well as getting the water flowing down into the adjacent draw instead of collecting in the buggy trail like it's done the whole time we've owned it.

I tried getting in there with my bucket (the area I've been working is out of frame to the top left), but the trail isn't wide enough to drive in reverse with an 84" wide implement. You either hack the trunks up, or pull the smaller stems down on your head. Nothing a couple hours with a saw won't fix.


----------



## Jim Timber

8x realtime and edited to remove redundancy.


----------



## Jim Timber

Getting closer to passable by a semi. Tomorrow I'll grind the stumps.


----------



## Jim Timber

The clutch disks exploded on my PTO shaft Monday, so I still have stumps to deal with, but I started leveling things out prior to excavating a pond for more fill to fix the mud hole.

This is the view down the hill like that last post.






Then the first jog in my driveway (as you pass the pond site):






This sand has beautiful structure for the task. Lots of big coarse grains all the way to silt. Just add limestone and you've got premo class 5. 

Then this is the hole it's coming out of:






The back edge is just shy of 5' deep to the water level (which is rising). I've been taking fill out of here for the gully and now for pretty much the upland side of the road. I'm renting a mini excavator sometime in the next few days to contour the back edge, dig down as far as I can, and extract more sand to haul up to the mud.

And just my luck - we're expecting more rain the next 2 days. Oh well, my knee needs a break anyway.


----------



## Jim Timber

The pond is trying to be a pond! This is mostly ground water, but it's probably holding some rain too.

We got soaked yesterday, and again today. My plan to rent the mini-ex tomorrow is officially cancelled.

I did manage to catch a raccoon in a bucket set (330 conibear) I had put out for porkies. That's the first coon I've ever whacked with that style trap here. Normally they avoid them entirely (and I get skunks instead).


----------



## svk

Lol coon didn't stand a chance in a 330. Those things can kill a tough as nails beaver in under 30 seconds.


----------



## Jim Timber

Nope. 330's are lights out for most critters dumb enough to put their noses in 'em.

I've got two porkies showing up at my mineral lick now. Moved the bucket set over there and added fresh salted apple slices.






Who'da thought a coon would go for salt dried apples? There's more frogs, toads, and mice than you can shake a stick at where this trap was.


----------



## svk

That's a pretty good sized coon!

I caught a fat one once. It only had one foot pad left, had chewed the other three out of traps previously and they had healed over. I caught him with two feet (including one foot in an old toothed trap) and another trap on his arse so he wasn't getting away lol. I used a little box with table scraps in it and traps at the "doors".


----------



## Jim Timber

Lol, she's small for these parts!


----------



## svk

Late at night I saw a fat one on the cabin road. Looked like a grey beach ball going across the road.


----------



## Jim Timber

18-25# is normal for an adult around here. There's a hundred cabins along the beach road, and probably half of them are good for easy food of some kind. Either coon are too well fed to risk going in a bucket, or one of my neighbors had previously educated them on the sets. I couldn't get a catch with shrimp tails when I first started trapping here. Corn and or marshmallows in dog-proof traps are my bread and butter.


----------



## svk

My former cabin neighbor (rip) had a big garden. He actually got corn to grow to maturity (darn near impossible with our short growing season). He had endless problems with skunks and coons and trapped many of them. I'm assuming he had educated that big coon I got. 

Took a few nuisance skunks too. That's always a pleasure lol.


----------



## Jim Timber

Yep. I had a skunk in my leg hold I'd set for yotes in a sand bar on one of my trails. I had it tethered to a tree off the side, and the damn thing wrapped itself in the cable after chewing it's foot off. Was still alive when I was trying to get a clean shot on it without wrecking my trap. Pee'd stink all over everything! 

When I'm finally living up here I'll get more serious about trapping. A few years back I put a big dent in the coon population (26 in one season just off my swamp), and slowed their roll to where I'd run 3 sets and be lucky to catch one in a weekend.


----------



## svk

I've heard if you can break a skunks backbone he can't spray. Not sure if that's urban legend or truth.

My BIL heard a skunk can't spray if it's feet aren't on the ground. WRONG! Although it can't vaporize the stench it comes out like snot instead lol.


----------



## Jim Timber

That stink oil is something else, ain't it?  

Going back to my big haul year. The next year my idiot lake neighbors were commenting about how they hadn't seen any coons in a while. I stopped short of saying "you're welcome."  Those morons think they're cute and cuddly (my mother in law has little coon statues and stuffed animals - not real ones  all over).

Growing sweet corn to ears is something to brag up in the North country. Coon break the stalks for sport!

Did I mention I hate coon?


----------



## svk

We were up in the boundary waters a while back and had a coon come into the campsite after dark several times until my BIL chased it away. Our dog was in the tent and slept through it all lol.


----------



## Jim Timber

Why didn't you shoot it??


----------



## Jim Timber

Added some new debris to the shoulder across from the complainer's garden. I hit the new RoW growth with gly, but I guess I didn't mix it strong enough.







Can't fill it with dirt, but slash is 100% allowed per the WCA.  Gotta keep that thistle controlled.


----------



## Jim Timber

Harvested some fill this weekend.


----------



## Jim Timber




----------



## Jim Timber

The mud hole is nearly a memory. I'm able to drive the wheeler over it, even though the tractor just churns it up. Having this road open again (even just for the atv) is nice, because without it my South 40 is another 1/2 mile round trip.






I've got some of this fill on another (former) mud hole that's had time to dry and it's just like concrete with all the clay and silt. Once this spot dries out and I can get the rest of the fill placed, I should be in good shape all the way up to final grading and taconite top dressing.


----------



## svk

Jim Timber said:


> Why didn't you shoot it??


It's illegal to discharge a gun within 150 yards of campsite or portage. Not worth a ticket!


----------



## amberg

svk said:


> It's illegal to discharge a gun within 150 yards of campsite or portage. Not worth a ticket!



Again I am dumb, But what is campsite or portage?


----------



## svk

amberg said:


> Again I am dumb, But what is campsite or portage?


Portage is a trail connecting two lakes. IE if you paddle a canoe to the far end of the lake then walk the portage trail to the next lake. There's roughly a million acres of wilderness in ne Minnesota that's designated canoe area meaning only canoes, kayaks, or small boats can be used. 

Campsite is a single group spot to camp.


----------



## amberg

svk said:


> Portage is a trail connecting two lakes. IE if you paddle a canoe to the far end of the lake then walk the portage trail to the next lake. There's roughly a million acres of wilderness in ne Minnesota that's designated canoe area meaning only canoes, kayaks, or small boats can be used.
> 
> Campsite is a single group spot to camp.



Nothing like that here in Va. But I would like to live up there, - the canoe, We don't do canoe's here that I know of. We do have a giant lake here, It is called lake anna. Power station. ( nuke )


----------



## Backyard Lumberjack

amberg said:


> Nothing like that here in Va. But I would like to live up there, - the canoe, We don't do canoe's here that I know of. We do have a giant lake here, It is called lake anna. Power station. ( nuke )



pretty country there amberg... is ur place close?

Lake Anna, VA


----------



## amberg

Backyard Lumberjack said:


> pretty country there amberg... is ur place close?
> 
> Lake Anna, VA
> View attachment 520719



Yes I am close to it, The creek that runs through the farm feeds the top side of the lake in Orange co. I am only a couple miles from the top of the lake. The lake itself runs through three county's, Orange, Spotsylvania, and louisa. I am close to the Orange, Spotyslvania line. ( The old stomping grounds )

( Check out North Anna Power Station.)


----------



## Jim Timber

Been back at the driveway lately and did a quick video about half way last week (kept working after shooting this). I probably moved 50 yards of fill to this spot that day.  Thank God for good music or I'd be miserable driving this route.



Keeping with tradition, I'll be on the tractor for firearms deer opener tomorrow, just as soon as I get out of bed (whenever that happens  ). I'm pretty close to getting into clearing the lot for the house and shop, so that's exciting progress.


----------



## Jim Timber

And I'm into the yard.


----------



## Jim Timber

Made some more progress at the house site today.


First time any highway vehicle's ever been on this site. 

Back to deer hunting tomorrow.


----------

