Fire Side Chat

The Hole In The Wall Gazebo
is once again, operational and available for
Fireside Chats

Although, we have yet to see our first "frost" and the roses
are still in bloom, the new fire pit has been completed
for you to bask in the warmth of the fire and
companionship.

After a few more loads of "pea" gravel, we should be in good shape.
To make it easier for the ladies to start the morning
cooking fire, I used a little excess "crete" and poured a
base inside the pit to make the morning chore of removing the ashes
a little easier for them. "Wake me when the coffee is done".

Enjoyed the fall evening with the "first fire" by

burning up some of the construction debris. The pit is now "seasoned".

A very nice fire, while watching the flames the thought occurred
to me that I may have made a slight engineering flaw.
Not having a lot of experience in pouring "crete" and working with metal,
it came to my thoughts that perhaps we will experience some minor cracking
on the surface of the "fire pit". Under our standard policy of having a hot fire going 24 hours a day may create an expansion problem. I did not allow for any heat expansion of the "fire ring", although I did give it a good paint job for temperatures up to 1000 degrees, according to the instructions on the can of paint. As the "fire ring" heats up, it may expand enough to crack
the surface "crete". In the event this happens, I have already filed a mental solution to make repairs in the event that should occur.

Improvements were also made to the "excess water collection site",
volunteer fire department and tanning deck. To qualify for the
Hole In the Wall Volunteer Fire Department
"emergency service grant" funding we had to come into conformity
with their regulations. One of these was that whoever painted
the fire station "red" used the wrong red. In accordance with their regulations fire fighting apparatuses must be painted "flame orange". It was also required to have all flooring painted with 'fire retardant paint". However, while being inspected a very good suggestion was made.
Volunteer "fire departments" can receive additional funding from the Division of Forestry"
if they provide weather service information to track "wildfire" conditions and prognostications. The "weather data" station was installed today on the corner of fire station. The "Buddy Warren" Weather Station" is now operational. The station has the ability to give you the current temperatures, wind direction, precipitation received, wind speed, and the wind chill factor. Currently applying for grant funding from the National Weather Service to make the HITW
a weather reporting station. Upon approval, you will be able to get onto their site on the Internet and get the current weather conditions at the HITW.

~Having Some Fall Fun~

"Fall Fun"

It is really to bad that all of you cannot enjoy the early days of Fall
at the Hole In The Wall. Some call it "Indian Summer".
Although, unusual we have not yet had our first frost of the season.
Late this afternoon, as I was working on a fun project, I heard the inspiring sounds of the
Sand Hill Cranes making their seasonal trip to the south. Within minutes, three large flocks
appeared over the top of the Eagle Nest. Evidently, due to the high winds that were occurring, they came over at tree top level as they crossed into the air space of the Hole In The Wall. A half later, four separate flocks also traversed the same course at the same altitude. Not being able to resist, I let our resident "Bird Chaser" out of the truck to see his reaction. Evidently, he is willing to chase other birds at high altitudes, but seeing this many birds ganged up, he must have decided that the odds were not in his favor, he willingly watched them without a bark.
With heavy rains tonight, the satellite dish is blocked, instead of Fox News tonight, I am content in listening to "Lonesome Dove" ~ Life Is Good.

"Fun Project"
For a good many years, the "Ole Fire Pit" has served us well. A lot of great visiting, harassing, teasing, tall tales, ghost stories, honest fish stories, and many jokes have been told around the pit. Many fond memories. Lots of good food and beverages of all flavors, even a few alcoholic beverages have been enjoyed while watching the flames. If only our elected officials would sit around a camp fire and just talk, perhaps they would solve some of the problems our nation faces. Most of these problems have been discussed at our "Ole Fire Pit" and resolved.

The "Ole Fire Pit" is now history, instead the "Enhanced Fire Pit" is nearly completed with a few minor details.
There were those that were curious as to the condition of the sand after several years of intense heat, it was even speculated that perhaps it had turned to "glass". The sand nearest the fire ring, was red in color turning to orange and fading into a light brown before retaining the original color about three inches from the ring.
So as not to have to move sand several times and spill it onto the gravel, the cleaned out fire pit served as storage area for the original sand. Ironically, the fire ring held the same amount of sand that was originally banking the ring.
Once the sand was moved to the fire ring for storage, the old wooden structure was removed and a new one constructed. This time, the inside walls were reinforced with "hurricane tie downs" and each piece of treated wood received a heavy dose of "gorilla glue"on each seam and end joints then bound together with "Woody Screws".

Due to the new "blueprints, calling for the leveling of the fire ring so our biscuits would not be
lopsided, I quickly discovered that all the sand stowed in the fire ring, although a great strategy, made it impossible to level the ring. Once again, the sand was moved to a "blue tarp" outside the frame for storage. After several hours of leveling, and squaring a round circle in a square box, it was time to once again move the sand from the "blue tarp" back inside the frame. No sand was wasted in these transfers, one wheelbarrow of fresh sand was required to bring the insulation barrier to grade as replacement for the rocks that were in the "old pit" as called for in the blue prints. The sand was then compacted with a "home made compactor" within two inches of the rim of the fire ring.

As per the blueprints, reinforcement wire was then laid on the compacted sand to provide extra strength to the concrete slab that will be poured.

The old burned 2" x 4" frame that surrounded the "ole pit" was been replaced with a 1.5" x 1.5" aluminum angled frame which brings it level with the top of the fire ring and flush with the exterior walls of the new fire pit, as called for in the blueprints.
I now await for first light when the "crete truck" arrives to make the pour.
Until later, you will just have to wait to see how it turns out, it is just to bad that all of you are missing out on all the fun.
Life Is Good.

Labor Day

Took advantage of the "Day of Labor" and laid in a

winter supply of firewood for the Hole In the Wall Recreational Area. Perhaps, in the next couple of days I will find the time to cut the "kindling"stock which is now drying on
the "saw buck" for the final drying stage. At present, a hastily stacked pile of "kindling" awaits the "saw buck". Should have enough "kindling" available to last into Memorial Day Weekend.

The roof of the "Gazebo" has been restored after the initial destruction of the
fire that occurred one week ago. (See Previous Posting) Although, the "Bell Tower" and roof was not restored to original condition. Making good use of the coil nailer,
a new shingle roof was laid. The material from the "lap sided roofing" is neatly stacked and awaiting for some youngster that wants to build a fort or tree house.

After a couple days of cutting a bunch of shingles at an angle, the new
roof was completed and laid to rest. Bull Buffie assisted in installing a new rain gutter system
around the perimeter of the roof line with one drain line which passes
through the rock work and then underground to the "water collection center". From the roof of the "gazebo, we should retain enough water in the cistern to fight any future fires if
they should occur.

At the end of the Labor Day Weekend,
all is quiet at the "Hole In The Wall".
This perhaps, is the only picture ever taken of the HITW
that a vehicle is not in the parking area.
The "Fire Pit" will get a new face lift
over the next several days.
All Is Good.

"Fire In the Hole"

Tragedy struck the "Hole In The Wall Recreational Area" on Sunday evening when a fire contained in the approved fire pit under the Gazebo got out of control. Due to the quick response of the three, highly trained volunteer HITW firefighters, the fire station was activated, hose laid out, and pumps applying water pressure within three minutes. They managed to contain the blaze to "bell tower". The superstructure of the Gazebo was not damaged in the fire due to the automatic activation of the water sprinkler system . Other than the total destruction of the "bell tower" the only damaged occurred to the family collection of "yager" decanters. Seven bottles sat on the wall, five fell down but broke only one. One of the firefighters was heard singing the song, "seven yagers sitting on the wall, one fell down, six bottles of yager sitting on the wall, one fell down, etc.
Although alcohol did not contributed to the accident, several valuable lessons were learned. (1) Gasoline should never be used to start a fire in the Gazebo, especially 2.5 gallons of mixed gasoline for the chain saw. (2) Flames in the fire pit should not exceed the safety altitude of 2.8 feet. (3) To activate the the fire hydrant, the pump must be plugged into shore power. (4) In the event of a fire, all present at the scene are considered "firefighters", lawn chairs should not be removed to the outer perimeter of the gazebo so you can have a comfortable chair to watch the fire. (5) Jumping up and down and screaming "FIRE" has no positive affect in getting the fire under control. (6) Getting a bag of marsh mellows from the cook tent and a roasting fork is not considered humerus. (7) When a fire is raging within the confines of the gazebo, it really does not do any good to continuously "ring that damm bell" all present were acutely aware that a fire was occurring. (8) Running around in a circle in the parking lot while screaming the sounds of a fire truck siren is also not required.
Renovation on the "bell tower" commenced on Monday and expected to be completed within the week, dependent on the quantity of moisture laden cloud formations. The one broken yager bottle will need to be replaced, but the tower bell withstood the heat, although blackened, it continues to beckon the greetings to the HITW.