That Thing We Are Doing- Beginnings

We were landowners! It took the rural county a couple weeks for us to get the title work done but it was official. We owned five acres of forest land. Summer was winding down when we made our maiden voyage to our property in late September. With our dog, a picnic lunch, a card table and a coupe folding chairs, we headed out on a sunny Saturday.

Our first goal was to scope out the land and decide where we might build. There was no access road into the property, so we parked on the edge of the graveled area. Taking a twenty-foot string and the map of the property, we probably looked ridiculous trying to figure out the length and width of the edges of our land. The back end was a bit of a jungle. I’m not sure we made it all the way back. It was exhausting just trying to walk all the way around it.

We did meet a neighbor from down the road walking his dog. He inform us we needed a fence asap to help keep the wildlife out and to told us about the mama bear and her cub that had been seen from time to time roaming the area. He bid us good day in his deep southern drawl after telling us that he had an arsenal of weapons.

By noon, Jer carried the card table and chairs to what looked like a clearing near the middle of our forest, while I brought the rest and our little dog, who wasn’t happy we had left her in the car for the several hours our first venture took. Five acres is bigger than you think. After eating, we decided to go back to look at a couple clearings but there were so many downed branches. It made travel difficult in all directions.

One area I wanted to recheck was the back jungle like portion of the property but as we neared it, I heard something growling. All I could think of was mama bear. Jer didn’t hear it but that didn’t matter. I was already booking it back to our base camp. Although, Jer didn’t appear concerned, when I looked back, he wasn’t far behind with his hand on his gun in a ready to draw position.

We slumped down in our chairs not sure what to do next and that was only half of our first day. We felt a little like Abraham and Sarah heading out into who knows what!

But wait, there is more. The second half of the day was even more eventful.