It’s been busy lately… almost too busy. Katie and I just celebrated our one year wedding anniversary, and what a year it’s been. With the birth of Rustic Pines MN, we’ve hopefully not only put down roots for our future, we’ve developed an opportunity to bring us closer together as a couple. The simple comradery that comes from a common goal can create a bond that lasts forever.
Speaking of common goals, who doesn’t like a nice place to poop? I know the term chosen is a little juvenile, but we all learn at an early age that, as my Navy buddy Dave often reminds us, “Everybody poops.” One of our first goals was shelter, the second, was a place of private rest, where we could answer natures call, without sharing it with all of nature (and anyone within eyesight). Surely we have our priorities in line.
As a work project came to an end, I found myself with a little extra time before my next contract began, and decided it was a good opportunity to spend a few more days up at Rustic Pines. Katie was still hard at work, so it appeared I might have to go solo, but the work I had to do looked like it might need an extra set of hands. I called my brother and asked if my 14 year old nephew was available to head up with me for a week. Josh was available, and excited to join me. So I picked him up, and returned home to load up the truck.
Loading the truck always makes me laugh… I think we always end up looking like the Beverly Hilbillies, but with each trip we get more established, and inch toward the day when loading truck means packing clothes and putting food and ice in a cooler. With the kid, dog, and supplies loaded, we began our journey north.
As luck would have it, I forgot the ATV key on my nightstand next to the bed at home. No ATV and no ATV trailer meant that we would have to drive into our campsite. Driving in meant widening the trail by a couple of feet to accommodate the width of the truck. If you’ve kept up with our posts to this point, you’d know that I’m a common man, bound by Murphy’s Law. Every time we make a trip, something goes wrong, or maybe not wrong, but just not the way I intended. Maybe it’s the Good Lord’s way of keeping me humble… or maybe it’s His way of helping me learn and grow… After all, they say the surest way to make God laugh, is to tell Him your plans.
When Josh and I got to the beginning of the trail that is supposed to be our driveway, we did the only thing we could; break out the chainsaw and get to work. After about an hour and a half, I put the truck into “park” next to the cabin. With a sense of accomplishment, I took a photo of my truck and sent it to Katie in a text.
After clearing the driveway wide enough to drive in, Josh and I busied ourselves unpacking, preparing a snack, and getting to bed. The next morning, Josh made a fire in the stove while I got the coffee on. After breakfast, it was time to get to work.
One of the first tasks at hand was locating a spot for the outhouse. I also wanted to clear out a parking area that would not only give ample space for several vehicles, but would provide a good buffer zone in case a forest fire might come through. I decided having the outhouse in the corner of the parking area opposite of the cabin would work well. Just a hundred foot or so walk wouldn’t be too bad in the winter night. As I felled trees with the chainsaw, Josh moved the cut logs to a location where we would split them for firewood, and he also began to pile brush and limbs to burn.
I directed Josh to pile brush in a specific location, and start a fire to burn it. Josh immediately turned and started to walk away. I called to him and asked where he was headed? He responded “to go find some birch bark to start the fire.” I told him that we had a gas can by the shed and he could use it. In retrospect, I learned a few things; 1. My memory must be failing, because I don’t remember making poor decisions as a 14 yr old. 2. I pride myself on being calm in stressful situations, but a massive fireball will send me into a panic. 3. When a 14 yr old tells you he plans to start a fire using birch bark… just let him.
After things calmed down a bit and we got the area cleared, it was time to dig the hole for the outhouse. This particular operation is where 14 yr olds really come in handy. Josh began digging and I leveled off the area surrounding the hole… after all, no one likes to poop with a list. Luckily, we didn’t encounter any boulders, or shallow bedrock, as is common in the area. I remember telling Josh after he asked me what we would do if we hit rock, “We’ll keep digging holes until we find a spot deep enough”. In reality, the hole wasn’t but 28″ deep. I made a decision after talking to the county, that we would only install “vault privies” at Rustic Pines. We’d have to have them pumped by a septic service, but it would keep the groundwater cleaner.
With the hole dug, we placed our vault (A 55 gallon plastic barrel) and filled the soil around it. Two days before, I had built the base of the house, to save some time, so it was ready to be positioned over the barrel and leveled. Since I “cheated” and designed the outhouse on my CAD software at home, I had full blueprints with cut lists, which made the construction of the walls and roof a snap. By nightfall on Friday, only the door was left to install. Katie arrived that evening, and we celebrated with a campfire and drinks.
Saturday started with a trip into Two Harbors for some hardware, lumber, Ice, and of course, with Josh on hand… more food. By mid afternoon, I had the door hung and the latch installed. Our outhouse was almost complete. Only the metal roofing is left to install. Josh spent a good part of the day building a campsite deep in the woods for himself. I was proud of the trail he cleared, both in the size, and the placement… it will be a great place to enjoy. When we realized that we had left our rake at home, Josh stepped up with his lashing skills and made Katie a rake from branches. It worked quite well!
While I worked on finishing up the door, Katie spent time clearing more trails, shaving more bark, and exploring the property. I’ve mentioned before that there is a bit of trash laying around. Katie keeps finding more and more. Sooner or later, I’ll have to schedule a clean-up weekend, where devoted friends might help load a trailer or 20, and get the place cleaned up.
Saturday afternoon was met with a little disappointment, as our ATV broke down (Katie brought up the keys with her on Friday). Things will break, that’s part of life. Lessons were learned, and that’s the important part. After recovering the broken ATV, we all walked up the road to meet our neighbors. We were happy to learn that they were close in age to Katie and I. Our hope is that a friendship forms… it would be fun to have people to get together with every once and a while. Saturday evening ended early for me… I was pooped (pardon the pun). I went to bed early, while Josh and Katie stayed up to play cribbage. Josh won all weekend I guess. He may want to learn a different strategy if he wants to come up again. One exciting thing I missed while sleeping was wolves. Katie and Josh paused a heated cribbage game to listen to the wolves in the not so far distance, take down some sort of prey. I wish I could describe it for you, but when I got the story, I was barely awake and only part way through my first cup of coffee.
The rain came in on Sunday, so we decided to pack up early and head home. Once home, we proudly posted a photo of our new outhouse on Facebook so our friends could see. It’s important to me that they see it, because inviting them up now comes with the promise of certain accommodations that without, may have made a few shy away. This land is a gift, a gift we intend to share with those around us, and having an outhouse just makes it that much easier. We did share it in an awesome group on FB, and the response blew us away! 5 Acre Living is a 35k strong group of people etching out a life in a simpler way, or at least hoping to. We posted a simple photo of our outhouse with the caption “we got out outhouse finished!” and within 24 hours, over 1,000 people liked our post, and many of them commented. Katie and I get a ton of support and information from them, so if you have a chance, acreage owner or not, stop by and check it out.
Our next trip has yet to be filled with plans… there is so much to do, we just haven’t settled on what to do next. Whatever plans we make, they will surely be interrupted by our newest discovery: Wild Blueberries! They’re growing everywhere!
Until next time, Happy Pooping!
-john
Fabulous! I really was waiting for a place to tinkle… Now, where’s my own cabin? 😀 No really, so proud of everything y’all are doing. <3