OwlCrest - A Journey To Reconnect

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.

Sunday, May 30, 2021

Road Improvements to Entrance

This is the first pass at the road base for the entrance driveway.

Sunday, October 4, 2020

Clearing Land for Log Cabin

Here are before and after pictures of clearing land by the driveway and the crew that made it happen! Cleared an acre in one day.

Left to right: Nick Demuz, John Bernardi, Isabella Bernardi, Seth Couturier, Chris Stevenson, Darshan Gencarelle, Patrick Johnstone, Andrey Iesiev, John Krone.

Before...

After....

Thursday, September 3, 2020

Lane Planer Nearing Completion

All shafts have been cleared and reconditioned for the Lane Planer. Rollers and elevation gears also restored to working condition. Need to install blades, traveling bed, belts, and bed pulley.

Saturday, June 27, 2020

Midway Through Restoring 1912 Lane 24 PLaner

The 1912 Lane 24 planer has been dis-assembled and needed repair identified. We found a cracked flywheel and broken bearing cradle that are being brazed locally. Two shafts are still seized but should have them relaxed next time time we work on it. The machine weighs over 3000 lbs. and was built to last hundreds of years. The last owner took care of it and had installed anti-seize paste for most of the bolts.

Below is a picture of the planer in a catalog.