trip to paddy flats

Tomorrow we are going to a friends mountain cabin.

We will go with the original owner and his new wife, to meet the current owners. We are all good friends. The current owners are Ray and Betty who we have known for 35 years or so. And the first owner is the David I have been working with on the church remodel.

The cabin is located up on the edge of the big roadless center of Idaho 2 ½ hours from where we live. There is no electricity, no phone and no cell coverage. But it is otherwise a very comfortable place. It is well insulated and easily heated with a big wood stove downstairs. There is running water, a flush toilet and a shower, all 12 volt. The kitchen has a propane refrigerator, a propane stove and a wood cooking stove, along with some nice cabinets.

The electrical system is powered mostly by photovoltaic cells. If more power is needed, they have a noisy generator. All of this was designed by David, who is an engineer by education.

He built the cabin some years ago for his wife who had MS. Cool weather suited her, so he built this cabin so they could spend time there where she was more comfortable. Even when she was quite sick he would take her there, and in the winter he sometimes took her in on a snowmobile (the road is plowed about ten miles back, so snowmobile are the winter transportation).

David took very good care of her right to the end of her way too short life. I have known his new wife since she was a college student I the 60’s. Her husband, also a friend, died a few years ago of cancer.

It is a bit hard for David to go back to the cabin. He is filled with memories of the time he and his wife spent there.

We will take a duffel full of coats and hats and mittens and such. There is not any snow up there yet, but this is late October and snow can happen any time. And to save our hosts laundry, we will take our sleeping bags and pillows.

We are going along just for fun! We have plenty of work to do at home, in the garden and in the shop, but when David insisted we go, I decided that it would be a good trip.

Maybe we will have a late winter this year!