OUR
COMMENTS - JULY, 2001
A Setback in the Building of First Mountain Cottage
The last comments added to this column were posted back in mid-March, when First Mountain was still buried under heavy snow. We continued snowshoeing on the mountain through the middle of April, when we did our last snowshoe climb to the summit for the season. The last of the snow finally melted at the beginning of May, and fortunately the melting snow balanced an unusually dry spring. The surviving deer have dispersed from their winter yards on the mountain and the moose have climbed higher into the Mahoosuc Range and are probably now enjoying Gentian and Page Ponds along the Appalachian Trail to the north.
Our cottage building project suffered a setback at the end of March, when we arrived at the cottage to find it full of smoke. Our new boiler had malfunctioned and the fuel nozzle clogged, filling the flue-ways with a gunky soot which in turn filled the house with soot and smoke. It created quite a mess and the house had to be professionally cleaned. The soot and smoke penetrated all of the cabinets and drawers, and even into the freezer compartment of the refrigerator. We had some 12,000 cedar shingles and a lot of pine trim in the basement ready for installation this spring. Each of the shingles had to be individually cleaned with a TSP solution before we could stain them. We spent about six weeks cleaning this spring instead of doing finishing work on the cottage. However, we are now back on track and have nearly finished installing the cedar shingles as siding and expect to have the cottage fully completed by this coming fall. We will finish in two years instead of the anticipated one, but have enjoyed the time spent working there.
Ruffed grouse returned to the same drumming and nesting site this spring and we even had a tom turkey in full mating plumage visit the cottage one morning. The cottage is now surrounded by many volunteer wildflowers that might be considered weeds in another setting, but the added color is appreciated. I discovered several new patches of pink lady-slippers near the cottage this spring and also found a patch of painted trillium just up the hill. I have had just enough free time to keep the lower trails open while walking Willie this summer, but the high trails will need a lot of work to reclaim this fall. It is our goal to make a concerted effort to widen, mark, and map the major trail system before snow falls.
I am sad to report that the citizen's of Shelburne rejected the new forest conservation zone proposed in a revised zoning ordinance at town meeting in March. The proposal lost on a vote of 62 to 49. I had written of my support for the measure, which restricted lots to 30 acres within the zone, in an earlier Owner's Comments column. The planning board continues work on a new zoning ordinance and I am hopeful that a compromise will be reached that will keep the concept of a forest conservation zone. On a related note, census figures reveal that Coos County lost population while the rest of New Hampshire grew significantly. It was reported that the largest percentage drop was in our tiny town of Shelburne, which decreased 13.27% from the 1990 population level. The town's population had decreased from 437 residents to only 379. I am always in fear that the rest of the world will discover Shelburne and begin the steady erosion of a simpler way of life that is now so rare in these United States. The census figures do not really provide much assurance as I have still noted an increase in building lots on our North Road.
I will report more on the natural world around our mountain and in the surrounding Androscoggin River Valley as I have more time to enjoy that part of our life. For now, the goal is to finish the cottage.
Larry
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