Monday, August 28, 2006

August 27th - Hiking & Plumbing

We woke to a beautiful day and the entire day was spectacular, perfect weather in every way…and you guessed it, no rain. I believe it is the first day I have been here without some kind of precipitation.

Lynn, Max and I drove up to the old mill, parked the truck, walked around the mill and mines and then started hiking up the old 4WD road above the mill. We walked for over an hour and saw some beautiful country up toward the headwaters of Silver Creek. The trail keeps going up to Hermosa Divide, another 5 miles uphill and connects with the famed Colorado Trail. We never saw another soul the whole time we were gone. Max, our Maltese Terrier, was ecstatic about being off the leash and never stopped running the entire time. Between Max and the beautiful scenery we were entertained nicely. We had such a nice morning and this was really the first time I have done anything different than working…what a nice change.

Today after our walk, I am remembering why I love Colorado so much. We came back down the mountain and I showed Lynn the old Van Winkle Mine shaft and tower just a block and ½ above our place. They have recently replaced some of the huge timbers on the tower and work is in progress to keep the old structure original and part of historical Rico.

We end the morning with a great brunch at the Argentine Grill in the Rico Hotel. My friend Timmy is one of the chefs and along with Aiman(sp?) the head chef, they do a great job. It has to be one of the best restaurants we’ve ever eaten at. Both these guys are 5-star chefs and every meal we’ve eaten there has been superb! Enjoy it when you come to town.

After lunch Lynn and I went back to the cabin. While Lynn stretched out in a lawn chair with a book in the sun, I headed for the crawl space where I spent the next several hours plumbing. I am installing the drain lines using the white PVC pipe. I have my heavy duty rubber gloves on and my good respirator as the glue and primer for the pipe and fittings is extremely toxic. Luckily I can’t smell it and by the end of the day I have completed about ½ of the plumbing drain lines in the basement.

I enjoy plumbing (except for the glue) and I especially like figuring out how and where the drains and vents will go. You have to have a clear vision of how the house goes together to make decisions on where to drill and install pipe. It’s especially challenging with some solid log walls and exposed ceilings on the first floor where drains can’t be hidden in ceilings and walls like most homes. I feel like I have a good handle on the situation especially as many hours as I have spent pouring over the details on my set of house plans.


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