A
large amount of literature exists that puts great emphasis on the alluring
qualities of the mountain experience, and as a result the more “negative”
aspects are often overlooked. Most
everything you do in daily life will naturally have some negative features
associated with it, and life in these mystical hills is no exception.
Clear
streams from every direction; clean, fresh mountain air; majestic valleys
filled with rich fir trees; and a host of recreational activities through the summer
and winter. This is likely the picture
many of you paint in your minds when you think of the mountains, but what about
the negative? Is there any?
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In our
opinion there are two – the really crazy weather and the gravel county road.
Winds
in the mountains are unlike anything we have ever experienced. To say that the trees dance in the wind is an
understatement. The trees really do flex
and sway from the bottom up to the tips.
You would be amazed to see how far a tree can sway. It takes a while to become accustomed to the
high winds, with gusts over 60 mph. We’ve
gotten used to it now. It’s not such a
negative anymore...until you add rain to the mix.
Rain
really is a good, it keeps everything lush and green and I love the sound of
the rain on the metal roof. Rain turns
into a negative when you’re trying to unload a car full of kids and groceries and
you get absolutely soaked to the bone in the process. Since the winds like to swirl around the
house, the rain comes from every possible direction. After the rain, comes the fog; fog so thick
that you cannot see anything out the windows but white mist. Trying to drive the curvy, narrow mountain
roads when you cannot see past the hood of your car can be a bit unnerving.
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And of
course we cannot forget the snow...which is usually on the ground for at least
six months of the year. Whether it’s a
lot or a little, you will see snow. Some
years we have just a few inches (like 10-36 inches), and other years we have anywhere
from 2-10 feet. Unless you make plans
far in advance of the snowfall, you will be repeatedly inconvenienced by the
snow storms. If you have a steep gravel
driveway, as we do, you will be snowed in several times a season (which can be
fun sometimes). You can plow or blow
gravel, but you lose gravel with each pass.
The snowfall is beautiful, treacherous, and inspiring.
Overall
the weather isn’t sooo bad, mainly because we have gotten used to it.
The county
road on the other hand is a negative year round.
We drive 7 miles (one way) on a gravel/rock/dirt county road that is
poorly (in some areas not at all) maintained.
Most days I drive this road several times – that’s 28 miles or more on a
bad gravel road a day. You can probably
tell this is a sore subject with me and it is!
It is killing our rigs {click here} and putting a huge dent in our wallets – money that
should be going towards the construction of our house.
I don’t
mind gravel roads, really I don’t. I
have even gotten used to swerving from side to side to avoid the numerous boulders
sticking out of the road, the too-many–to-count tire swallowing potholes, or the
metal culvert that is being unearthed. I
have gotten so used to it that it has become normal. I am only reminded of it when we have people
up and they comment on the horrible road conditions... or when my rig breaks
and I almost go off the edge of the narrow road and down the steep hillside
(which is what happened yesterday morning).
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| Here are just a few obstacles... |
That
darn county road is slowly (or maybe not so slowly) killing our rigs. Yesterday morning I was on my down the
mountain heading to take the kids to school, I was coming around a corner
heading into another corner when my brakes and steering locked up. This caused me to almost go off the edge of
the road and down the very steep hillside, but somehow I managed to land in the
ditch instead. Yes, I had to sit there
for a few minutes and calm down – it scared me so bad that I was in tears. There is no cell coverage in that area, so I
started the car just to see if I could make it the rest of the way down the
mountain or if I had to sit there and wait for someone to come by and rescue me. Somehow the kids and I made it down the
mountain where I was able to call Tony, and somehow he was able to understand what
I was trying to say in between sobs.
Handsome, handy husband to the rescue!
I love that man!!!
Over
$400 dollars later (that was supposed to be a bathroom cabinet) my rig is back
up and running.
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This is not normal wear
and tear maintenance; this is flat out abuse from the poorly maintained county
road. Just one more speed bump in our
off-grid mountain life...
