Dust In The Wind

Time is flying up on the mountainside. I have already been up here for almost three months. It feels like I should be further along. I spent the first couple of months combining a lot of the junk into one, give or take, big pile of junk. I was originally going to sort everything into piles destined for Goodwill, the dump or a match. I have found that I don’t have the heart to donate this junk so the donate pile has become another dump pile.  The Dump pile is getting pretty big and I don’t have a means to easily get it to the dump. Conveniently, the grass has grown long enough to put it mostly out of sight so it can wait. The burn pile is staying under control since I have been burning as I go.  

Throwing a match into a pile of old dry lumber is a big time commitment. It has been a pretty dry Spring and the grass and ground cover are pretty dry and I don’t have any water available to keep it under control. Instead, I have dug a small trench around each of the burn piles I have created. Once I light one up, though, I have to watch over the area to make sure that I tamp out any  embers that blow out of the pile. It doesn’t take long either, a small ember will grow into a grass fire in seconds. I keep a shovel in hand and scramble around the fire circle and tamp down any smoke where it shouldn’t be.

I am on the dry side of the mountains and now that the summer heat and dry weather has arrived, I have to be extra cautious. Combined with the relentless wind I have experienced, I think my burning days are over for the year.  

I was unaware that the winds would be as consistent as they are on the mountain. Day after day, they just wear you out. I am hoping that it is a seasonal thing caused by the cooler Seattle temperatures fighting with the high desert heat on the eastern side of the state. Being on a mountain pass between the two, the winds just whip through. The weather bureau has predicted winds up to 50 miles per hour more than a couple days. Mostly they have been between 15 and 25 though. Still too high to get a burn pile safely lit up.

Besides avoiding a wild fire, I have had to stop work for a few days at a time building my outhouse because I couldn’t work on the roof or carry the plywood sheets across the yard because I would get blown away. I have also stayed in the trailer longer than I have expected. The site I want to erect my tent has a great view but the wind would be annoying. It has been staying chilly too, in the 30’s at night.

And then there is the fine dust that has coated everything. There is a thick coating on the inside if the car and I pretty much keep it closed up except to air it out after hauling gasoline cans to camp. My clothes shed a cloud of dust when I smack them. Besides the wind chill of taking a shower, it is pretty much a waste of time. Clean is very short lived up here and not worth the water for the momentary feeling that comes with a good scrub.  

While I wait for calmer winds, I continue on the Outhouse and start the shed. Staying as close to the ground as possible.