Alex Carson
Getting Away From it All
There are some people who want to get away from it all. They want to get away from the noise and pollution of the city and find a beautiful quiet place to go to where they can relax and enjoy life. A retired math teacher named Richard is one of these people. Leading up to his retirement, he looked forward to getting out in nature and enjoying the peace and quiet in log cabin.
The Cabin
When Richard retired, he told everyone that he was going to build a cabin out in the wilderness. His family thought that he was crazy for wanted a place so far out, but he didn’t care. It had always been his dream. When he found his dream house in the remote wilderness, he thought it was a dream come true. His family saw photos of his “dream house,” and they thought that he had lost his mind.
The Cost Of the Cabin
The owner of the cabin was selling it for $100. Many of Richard’s family members thought this was too much money for the cabin. The one-room cabin was literally falling down. Had there been a strong wind, the cabin could have blown to the ground. The inside of the cabin was full of dead trees, animal nests, and huge boulders that were leftover from the broken foundation. It was an absolute mess.
Starting From Scratch
When Richard went to check out his new property, he realized that a large portion of the wood was rotted. The foundation was destroyed, and there was no way that this cabin was habitable. He decided that the best thing to do would be to start building the cabin from scratch. Before he could tear down what was left of the cabin, there was one thing that he had to do first. There was a family of squirrels living in the cabin, so he had to evict them and find them a better place to live in the forest.
Original Wood
When Richard decided to rebuild the cabin from scratch, he decided to salvage as much of the original lumber as possible. A lot of it was rotted, but he managed to save a couple of hundred pieces. He kept a workbook where he logged the materials that he managed to save. He also took dozens of photos of the structure’s shell and design and entered them into his workbook. And he knew it would be a lot of work, but he was up to the task.
The View Of The Log Cabin
People asked Richard often why he would buy a cabin that literally needed to be rebuilt. His response was always the same, the view. The wilderness that surrounded the cabin looked like something off a postcard. Right outside what will be the door of the cabin were giant trees, rolling hills, wide-open wilderness, and clear blue skies. Another huge selling point was that the nearest town was over 50 miles away. It was a dream come true.
Creating a Pond
When Richard was digging near the cabin, he found a natural spring. This gave him an idea. He asked his family for help, and they dug with shovels and a small bulldozer to cut a space for the water to flow into. When they were done, there was a large pond on the property that would be filled by the spring. They even built a dock so that Richard would have easy access to the water.
Bedrock
Richard discovered that there was bedrock a few feet below the surface of the ground. This meant that he would need to lift up the base of the cabin so that it would be above ground level. This decision was going to make it harder for him to retain the cabin’s 1800’s appearance. He knew it would be hard work, but he was sure that it would be worth it in the end.
Progress
After pouring the concrete basement, he added a functional porch, and he made roof shingles from the cedar trees. He wanted to have an old-fashioned fireplace in the cabin, so he installed a Rumford health, which was very common in the early 1800s. It was going to be the focal point of the room. In the woods, a tree had fallen. He used the wood from the tree to create a natural wood staircase that would lead to the upstairs sleeping loft. After adding the finishing touches like the doors, windows, and electricity complete with an old-fashioned chandelier. Finally, the cabin was done.
A Beautiful Getaway
This man bought a log cabin for $100, and what he did with it made everyone jealous. He managed to create a perfect getaway from almost nothing. He knew that it would be a great place to retire.
