Epilogue....

I stopped by the cabin to see what the new owners have done with the place - very happy to see all the great things they have done with it. They redid the stairs, added a few windows in the peak, replaced the bargin windows I had found with really nice windows, added a deck off the back, stained both the garage and house a very cool color and as you can see they are adding a very impressive porch on the front.

End of an adventure

Well - the economy in Michigan tanked and I had to sell the cabin. I took down this blog in February but now that my grief period is over I realize it still was a great adventure and regardless if I got to keep the cabin I truly loved every step of the way. So I decided to open the blog back up and share it with you once again....

Enjoy!

Tim

The End

Finished the field stone backstop

I recently finished the field stone back stop for the free standing stove - all that's left is to run the chimney up and we got heat!

Recent photo - coming right along

As you can see I have started to trim off the ends of the logs to be more uniform, had the final grade done and planted grass and started building the support structure for the porch.

Rebar is our friend - but it don't like truck tires!

I had pounded some rebar into the ground to help tie off some ropes - and forgot to take them out.... found it!

Chinking Chick #2

Dani - she's a chinking machine!

Chinking Chicks

My wife and daughters can chink with the best of them - they can be foofy girly girls - but they can sure get 'r done!!

Da mix'er

My boy is a cement mixing fool!

A little corner work....

Chink!

We have started chinking! For those of you who have taken the class - this is cement placed between the logs to keep the wet and cold out....

Floor Plans

Changes to the plan....

As you can see from comparing the artist drawing to the real cabin I have made a few modifications that better fit our needs.

1-I did not put any windows on the front of the cabin except those on the first floor to save heat. It get mightly cold up here...

2-I am going to build a slightly different porch that is only on the front of the building and not on 3 sides. The roof line of the porch will match the roof line of the cabin.

3-I have removed all the interior walls on the first floor and placed the utility room and bathroom on the outside walls. This has given the cabin a much more open feel.

The front is done!

Finally got all the board-and-patten on the front of the cabin... its really starting to come together!

A zillion nails.... but its all good

I have stuffed the crack between the logs with insulation and now am starting the laborious task of placing nails every few inches so the chink has something to grab onto.....

One of the last really big steps in the project - the roof!

One thing I have learned during is project is to know when you are going to be beyond your skills - the roof was one of those things that I probably could have done myself but its just too much for me to do safely.

The guys I hired to do the roof have been great - working with all the "character" issues (my goof ups) and working hard.

The roof, the roof, the roof is going on!

Another look at the roof - ain't it great! The foundation and roof will be the only two things that I didn't do myself (with the help of my friends and family of course!).

Dining room

This was taken from behind the island - the first door is the utility room (washer/dryer, water heater and electrical panel) and the second door is a half bath.

Kitchen looking from stove area

Another view of the kitchen from by the stove. In between the pantry on the right side of the picture and the window will be the back door.

The Kitchen

Over the past few days I have been focusing on the kitchen. The is going to be a window in the center of the picture - should get it in shortly. There is an island where the range and stove will be.