It's been about 10 years since we started this cabin build. It's been a real challenge due to multiple shady and unethical contractors through the years. We have had to do a lot of the work since dry-in ourselves, learning along the way. Budget has also been an ongoing issue. In the last few years, we have made a big push to try to get this cabin completed. We will be retiring next year and want to spend part of the year living at the cabin. We have made good progress in the interior; getting the kitchen done, wood floors upstairs, lower bedroom and living room, the lower bathroom, tong-and grove on the walls and ceiling, windows trimmed, and a propane furnace installed. On the exterior, we have added a covered back deck, added log railings and got a 1,000-gallon propane tank installed. This spring we are finally going to get a well drilled. The last remaining items will be a tankless water heater, stair railings, finish the upstairs bath, some interior and exterior finish work and some landscaping.
The cabin has definitely gone from minimal, to livable space. Now that I have the propane installed, the last item on our power system will be to install an automatic generator start (AGS), this will keep the battery bank charged in the winter when the solar system isn't providing enough power to keep the battery bank charged. Once we have this in place, we will no longer have to drain the water lines and winterize the cabin.
While we never dreamed it would take us this long to finish the cabin and how much we underestimated the cost, we truly love the serenity and beauty of the cabin. It is very serene and peaceful; we love to sit on the porch and admire the wildlife and scenery. Don't know if we will be able to stay at the cabin during the winter due to access issues, but we will enjoy all the time we get to spend here.
Here are some pictures of our most recent additions:
