Fit for a King...

...or a Queen.

Can't wait to hold court.

Riding Out the Storm...

Saturday and Sunday were spectacular days at Shambhala.  Gabriel and I set up the bed frame and queen size bed in Columbia.  We were treated to an awesome thunder and lightning storm.  We hunkered down at Shambhala and rode out the storm.  The videos of the fun we had are below.

On a less pleasant note, we had a trespasser riding his motorcycle across Jones Mountain.  It appears that he rode past Shambhala on his way to the top and back down.  A neighbor and I confronted him when he returned to the street.  He denied knowing that the mountain was private property.  Following the motorcycle tracks up the mountain, it is clear that he raised and went under the wire rope at the exact location of the No Trespassing sign.  If anyone should see this miscreant again, please let me know so that I can notify the local authorities and/or plan a hunting accident.

 

Columbia Has Landed...

Perched at the edge of my cliff, 6,300 feet in the air, Columbia is the primary tent in use at Shambhala.  The name is subject to change, like everything in nature. 

Spacious living, pristine air -- able to look down on birds in flight like a hawk ready to strike from above the unsuspecting prey below.  Solar powered Pandora supply whispers from Michael Franks, Bebel Gilberto, Phoebe Snow, and Sade on cool breezes in the shade as I lay in my hammock. 

Columbia is the last of the structural building that I plan to do. The deck plan is 10'x12'.  I have completed 10'x10' so far.  This is just large enough for Columbia to be setup.  I'll complete the rest of the deck as time permits.

The few remaining items to complete include:
- designing a cold food storage system (bear and critter resistant)
- kitchen remodel, moved from original location to keep bear and critters out of camp
- bathroom privacy and facility setup
- trash and waste disposal plan
- semi-permanent airgun and archery range
- cinema location; in camp or at the rock amphitheater

The Mountain Man Potluck is this weekend at my neighbor's property.  The family owns Deep Creek Lake, but unfortunately the lake is dry.  I recall days when my oldest son went swimming with his friend at the lake and played in the waterfall on the backside of the dam.  The drought and strained relationships have made times like that a very distant memory. As I stated, everything in nature is subject to change. 

I'm planning to stay at Shambhala over the weekend.  I'm hoping to use my new kitchen.  I should have a running water system designed by this weekend to make things more convenient.  Once the design and fabrication are done, all that I'll need is water!

As I reviewed Shambhala's progress, I noticed that I designed the kitchen directly in the middle of the camp area.  That's not a great idea unless I planned to have bear and other critters sitting around the campfire roasting smores with me.  So, I relocated the kitchen just outside of camp.  There is a solar powered, motion sensor 60 LED High Intensity Flood Light right above the area.  At night, this setup will allow me to see anything milling around the kitchen area, while blinding it to my presence.  This provides ample opportunity to take steps to scare the critter away from camp.

I have not yet named the Guest Tent.  I'm open to suggestions.  However, keep in mind that the name is subject to change; as is the case for most things in nature.

Shambhala Gets Cable...!

...as in Zip Line Cable, Baby!

It's been rumored and now it's a reality -- Shambhala has a Zip Line. It's approximately 150 feet from start to finish.  I have not measured or calculated the angle of descent, but let's just say it is pretty damned ginormous.  Launch site is 20 feet from base to tie-off on an 11-inch diameter pine tree; in Zip Lining, size does matter.  The pine tree rests on a 30 foot high boulder precipice.  This is a great activity to find out if you have really good health insurance coverage that includes Life-Flight.

Before you can experience the thrill of watching the Maiden Run of the Zip Line, you are required to view the safety features that I've integrated into my Zip Line design.

Cable:  
3/16 inch Galvanized Aircraft Cable 
4200 lbs Breaking Strength
Safe Working Load 840 lbs for a Factor of Safety of 5

Connections:
Launch area - Cable wrap around 11 inch pine tree with no other connections
Landing area - double cable connections to cradle cable secured by stainless steel padlock and steel carabiner around 24 inch pine tree (see picture below)

Trolley Kit:
Trolley is aluminum construction, steel wheels, and pressure brake near handles
Adjustable harness
Maximum Load 275 pounds

Brake:
Plastic Impact Block
1/2 inch Bungee Shock Cord
As noted above, Trolley has pressure brake pad that can be applied by victim, I mean rider

Backstop:
17 inch automobile tire
Big Ass Tree

Now that you know my meticulous safety preparation, here is the video of the Maiden Run.

To think that my original plan was to stand directly in the path of the oncoming bucket to get the best angle for the video.  Had I not revised my plan, I may have gotten to experience, "...a magnificent central palace radiating a powerful, diamondlike light...", aka cold-cocked.

I made minor adjustments to the braking system after the Maiden Run, duh.  The successful run makes me eager to tweak this puppy completely so that I can enjoy what I've built.  However, I DO recall Newtonian Physics.  The Force with which the Zip Line trolley hit the brake at the end of the run is equal to the Mass of the trolley and bucket of water combined, multiplied by the acceleration of the Zip Line trolley, Force is equal to Mass times Acceleration (F=MA).  Wow, and I remembered that without going to Google.  So, that means that my fat ass will increase the Mass, thereby generating a greater Force on the brake at the end of the run.  I'm not sure if the brake will be able to stop the trolley with the additional Force.  

My approach to solving the problem relies on applying scientific principles and methodology; I'll sit Gabriel on the bucket.  The Mass will increase, but not by very much.  It he doesn't go SPLAT all over the tree, I think I'll try it.  I'll wear a leather glove so that I can drag my hand along the cable to slow my acceleration.  By reducing the Acceleration, you reduce the Force.  However, if the glove does not fit, I will not commit.

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Now that I've successfully created the Shambhala Zip Line engineering marvel,  I am sharing my talents with the world.  Below is a video of one of the world's most intriguing engineering conundrums and I've been asked to consult.  Many of the greatest scientific minds from around the world resigned themselves to allow the Cray Super computer to choose The Most Interesting Man in the World who could make this XX problem manageable.  The Cray concluded that the bridge and I have something in common.  Yes, I know it...