Weeks of 100 degree temps have kept me indoors with a simmering case of summer cabin fever. Today was finally cool enough (mid-80’s) to work outside and I fired up the weed whacker.
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Squirrel!
Sticker burrs
We have some wicked sticker burrs on the property and I got into a patch yesterday. Easier to toss the socks than try to pick these off. I’ve been wearing knee-hight rubber boots but found they didn’t always protect me from chiggers. Knew there had to be a better way and ordered these.
I’ll hose these down with permethrin and see if they’ll protect from chiggers, ticks and burrs. Stay tuned.
Winch comes in handy again
The wood chipper got a much needed cleaning and service and two young guys put it in the pickup but did not come home with me to unload. It’s a heavy mother so rolling down my ramps would be iffy. Instead I used the electric winch to lower it to the ground. If you look close you can see the Gator-Jaw soft shackle holding a lot of weight.
Cairn base complete (?)
Danger! Ticks, chiggers, poison ivy
Powerful chemicals help protect against ticks and chiggers, but poison ivy demands constant vigilance.
Rock sled
Much of our ten acres is covered with rocks. Lots of rocks. A few really big ones…and a whole bunch of smaller ones. I’ve spent countless hours moving rocks for various reasons.
I’ve found there’s no easy way to move rocks. In the end, you have to pick one up…carry it to where you want it…and put it down. I’ve used a wheelbarrow from time to time but now trying something different. I built a rock sled.
With a pry bar you can lever a pretty big rock onto a 6 inch high sled. Then it’s just a matter of putting the pickup or Jeep in 4WD and dragging the sled where you want the rocks (see below). A while back I purchased a Jet Sled. A good tool for getting rocks down the hill but not that great for dragging with the truck. 
The rock sled won’t be much help down in the woods but should do nicely for collecting larger (too heavy to lift/carry) rocks around the property.
Cairns
Updates to this project will be added to the bottom of this post.
The hiking trail is finished (whatever that means). Still lots of dead limbs to chip up but the trail is as complete as I’m inclined to make it. But what to do with all those rocks?
“A cairn is a man-made pile (or stack) of stones raised for a purpose, usually as a marker or as a burial mound. Cairns have been and are used for a broad variety of purposes. In prehistory, they were raised as markers, as memorials and as burial monuments (some of which contained chambers). In the modern era, cairns are often raised as landmarks, especially to mark the summits of mountains. Cairns are also used as trail markers. They vary in size from small stone markers to entire artificial hills, and in complexity from loose conical rock piles to elaborate megalithic structures. Cairns may be painted or otherwise decorated, whether for increased visibility or for religious reasons.” (Wikipedia)
The Wikipedia article will tell you everything you might want to know about cairns but it piqued my curiosity so I’m reading a tiny book titled
I chose a small natural clearing for my first effort. I immediately figured out the larger circle below would require way too many stones. The small circle is about six feet in diameter. The next photo down provides a better view. Continue reading
Hiking Trail Finished
Or as finished as projects like get. This was the toughest section of entire trail (a loop with switchbacks) because it was so rocky and many of them had to be dug up.And the rocks larger than for other sections. Watch this space for news of next project.
Flames from chipper motor?
Probably just some dry leaves ignited by hot engine but I’ve been using the the chipper a lot in the ten months I’ve had it so time for service. Problem is, not many folks work on small engines these days. (I’m told most push lawn mowers are considered “throw away” because it’s difficult to find parts are anyone to work on them.) I think I found a guy but won’t know until he gets a look at the chipper engine.
Getting it up from the woods was easier than I expected but getting it into the back of the pickup would have been impossible (for me) without the winch. 
The hiking trail is nearly complete (more to follow) but still need the chipper for dead cedar limbs and such.