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.