Why OwlCrest

OwlCrest is 40 acres of granite laden beautiful woods atop a mountain in Brattelboro, Vermont. I purchased the land with the intent of making it a retreat where my children, families, and their families could re-connect with the most primitive elements of life. OwlCrest is a place to discover our hidden talents and pursue dreams without complexity or judgement. OwlCrest is a place just to be.....

At dusk, if you sit quietly long enough at the crest of the land and listen, you will hear the rhythms of the forest. Owls calling out their names and asking who else is there. I'm here and who are you? We are just a visitor here, a temporary custodian of something that will soon be forgotten. I lived and worked here once. It was my privilege.

Friday, August 22, 2025

Rebuild of Back Deck

The back deck was taken out by heavy snow this last winter falling off the upper roof.    It totally destroyed the deck.   Seth and I have spent the week creating a new deck with a roof to deflect the snow.   Super reinforced and tripled stringers.  Men plan and god laughs....  We re-used some of the logs left over from building the cabin and pressure treated for the deck. 





Monday, December 5, 2022

Interior Work

 Its been a long time since a post as we have been fighting the contractors and weather.  The wring is finished as well as the propane hookup.  The plumbing should be done in a few weeks.   The interior is mostly finished with the exception of the the first floor flooring.  Below are some pictures of the stairs and loft.

 





 

Monday, July 11, 2022

Stairs and Studding

 All the internal studding is finished and stairs are in.  Pictures of the studding look like a maze but the stairs make a good photo.  Seth and I had to use block and tackle to get the stair bolsters in place.    They look amazing. 




Sunday, June 19, 2022

More Progress with Foors and Windows

 The floor is a lot of hard work from our land.   Seth hand planed the boards.    Two inches thick and heavy but absolutely beautiful when you look up!



Back dormer windows have been framed.


A close look at the hand hewing. 




Papa providing some size perspective. 






Tuesday, June 7, 2022

The Log Cabin has Arrived!!!

Trucks had a tough time getting into the site, but were finally successful.   Three in total.  Everything arrived intact.  They used $2000+ in diesel fuel costs if you can believe that.   Unloaded most of beams including two 36 foot 10x8 carying beam.




Sunday, June 5, 2022

Electric Service is Installed

 The hardest job so far next to digging the cellar hole was installing and burying the conduit for the electrical service.   The cable alone weighed 350 pounds and was all Seth and I could do to drag it in place.  We laid the cable and then slid and glued the conduit over it.  Glad that this job is behind us.



Stairs to Cellar Are Finished

 A neat little job. 




Thursday, May 19, 2022

Two Hundred Feet and No Ledge!

 Just finished 200 feet of ditch for the electric, cable, and serial lines.    No obstructing ledge!




Sunday, October 3, 2021

Sill is on and Carrying Beam Up!

Seth and I put a double plated pressure treated sill and carrying beam up this weekend.





Our Logging Equipment

The mill houses the the woodmizer, planer, and tractor.  Its a 24' by 16' cantilevered design to hold up the roof using 4 10" posts. .  

                                           


This is an Oliver 550 where we reverse engineered the hydraulics and made a tap (prototyped using 3d printing) so we could attach a log grapple to the bucket.   It works a little better than we had expected. 




This is the woodmizer sawmill.  We can sut up to 21' foot log lengths. 



This is the planer, the blades are out and new belts being created (out of Pennsylvania).  It was created at the height of mechanical engineering.  



This is what makes this planer special, it has a track roller consisting of sections that weight 50 lbs each.  It can plane a 27" by 27" beam that reaquires this type of friction to push it through.