Breaking (digital) Ground

So, someday I hope to look back on this initial blog post, smile and say: Look how far we've come.

We're putting our mind to building an improvement on our Virginia mountaintop land.  We've owned this nice little lot for several years, but have yet to build.  At first it was purely budget driven (lack of budget) then it was having 3 wonderful kids that occupied all of our free time.  We still have these 3 rugrats, but they're now old enough to enjoy camping, hiking and are eager to spend time up here.  So, let's strike while the iron is hot! (aka: before they become teenagers and want nothing to do with us)

Goals:

• A weekend retreat for now,
• Safe, warm, and comfortable for short stints for 2-5 humans and some 4 legged family members as well, 
• Maximize the site's benefits: the view and hanging with the hawks gliding on the breeze, and
• Minimize impact on resources.   This is a tough one as we have varying things at play here, some in conflict: our budget/money is one resource; embodied energy of the materials is another; site impact, aka: erosion, flaura/fauna disruption; and possibly the most finite: our time (viz the overall speed of different construction methods).   For example, if we outsource labor to save time, we increase costs.  If we use the site's stones to build with Slipforms (minimizing impact and a strong play on embodied energy), we add a lot of time and effort.

Challenges:

• A difficult approach to the building site via non paved road.  There are two pitches with 75% grades (yes, 37 degrees) of over 100' in length, so a running start isn't enough to clear those pitches, slow and low it goes.   If there's snow, you're not getting out. Period (ask me how I know this).

the bottom of one such stretch, it gets steeper as you go up:

• Owners of neighboring lots have hauled in building materials (2x lumber, corrugated steel roofing) with mixed success; namely: chains on tires needed even in dry weather when pulling material trailers.  In another case a dozen sheets of the roofing were too much on one pitch for their pickup truck's tailgate, and it blew out destroying the latch and their sheets went back down the hill like Satan's sled run. They had to carry by hand the sheet's over a quarter mile that day until they repaired their truck... that was frustrating.
• Water: some neighbors below us do have wells, but we're at the top of the mountain, so I assume we'll have more rock to go through than them. Since the initial and operating costs of a well are proportional to the depth, that does give us pause. 
• Power: other lots to the north of us do have utility power, and years ago the power company had a decent program if one was to go full-time on site (they would cover the capital costs of the poles, site work, and lines to get to you, and add it to your bill over 20 years).  That program is no more, so I've heard.  So alternative power it is.

Even with these challenges, the view and tranquility once up there are a huge draw.  Here is our view to the East, there's about 1100' of drop to the valley below:

All for now.  Next Up more about what we're working with.