80 Acres- Eagle Creek, Oregon

[teg]

Really your road it much wider and better built than what I had graveled... looking good!!!

 

[dstig1]

Very nice. That is a ton of gravel (or rather many hundred tons...)

 

[NWOutlawMX]

Bridge of the gods,,,, you are just down the road from us. beautiful area.

For backup generator, we have been seeing a lot of interest moving toward Musks whole house batteries. Might be something to look at there.

Looking forward to how this process goes for you.

The Stevenson area is great too, we looked at a property in the Corbett area but it was on top of a hill with no protection from the wind. Went up there when the wind was blowing 40-45 mph here in Portland and it was 60 with gusts to 70mph there. You're side of the river is a little more protected I think from those gorge winds, maybe not. It was funny watching the reporters last Feb trying to stand up in 100+ mph winds at Crown Point. Looked at some articles on the Musks and will be doing a little more research on them.

 

[woodlandfarms]

We looked at a cinder cone property on the WA side, outside of Camas. First day we were totally in. Next day, just double checking, we went back and it was a windy day. Nope.

Musks battery system I feel is going to replace generators for those who need that sort of protection (for me right now, A few hours of no electronic gadgets is a godsend).

But, batteries you can't fill back up if you are a prepper (I guess you could with a genertor but now I am in the "you are buying both?" dilema). Also, still not sure it is ready for primetime. If you are doing something LEED then its a great idea, but if you are just building a house, I am on the fence.

 

[NWOutlawMX]

Really your road it much wider and better built than what I had graveled... looking good!!!

During the whole process I just kept in my mind that I had to make sure I could get up and down this with Trailers. The long straight sections are around 10- 14 ft wide and the corners 16-20. I'm pretty certain i can get a full size tractor trailer along the entire length. Before i started the gravel i drove up and down it with the 13ft flail and didn't have any problems. Who knows what kind of equipment and crops I'll end up with in the future.

 

[NWOutlawMX]

Very nice. That is a ton of gravel (or rather many hundred tons...)

590 to be exact, 40 trucks. Any where from 4-12 inches depending what was underneath. Some may think overkill but what I've noticed is when I started the first 500 ft I went 8", then I was thinking that was too much so the next 350' I went 4". After driving over this section for 1 1/2 years I have not had to touch the first 500' but the 350' that was only 4" constantly gets washboarded and rough, the entire 850' is all on the same angle of incline. So the second half is all 8" and on the 350' steeper incline is 12" deep. It should compact and bind to hold well.

 

[TomSeller]

The Stevenson area is great too, we looked at a property in the Corbett area but it was on top of a hill with no protection from the wind. Went up there when the wind was blowing 40-45 mph here in Portland and it was 60 with gusts to 70mph there. You're side of the river is a little more protected I think from those gorge winds, maybe not. It was funny watching the reporters last Feb trying to stand up in 100+ mph winds at Crown Point. Looked at some articles on the Musks and will be doing a little more research on them.

Sounds like you can put up a windmill.

 

[teg]

This was after cutting the outside corner another 8 feet... the 18 wheeler behind him made it fine. Think it was a bit of driver error. Can NOT have it too wide...

View attachment 437784

 

[NWOutlawMX]

Sounds like you can put up a windmill.

The Stevenson area is great too, we looked at a property in the Corbett area but it was on top of a hill with no protection from the wind. Went up there when the wind was blowing 40-45 mph here in Portland and it was 60 with gusts to 70mph there. You're side of the river is a little more protected I think from those gorge winds, maybe not. It was funny watching the reporters last Feb trying to stand up in 100+ mph winds at Crown Point. Looked at some articles on the Musks and will be doing a little more research on them.

Lots of windmill farms further East and into the high desert. They have tried to put some in the Gorge but lots of objections and I happen to agree. There probably are some, you just can't see them. Would you want a bunch of windmills ruining this view? The structure on the cliff is Crown Point.

 

[NWOutlawMX]

I would find it best to get as many of big the root crowns out with the rake on your dozer. I would spray any new shoots with Crossbow once they are around 18" to 24" long and leave them for 3 weeks or so. I would then brush hog and repeat once any new shoots get to the 18" to 24" range again. Every time you should have fewer shoots. Some will be from dormant seed waiting to grow. Some will be from root fragments and some will be from missed root crowns. The ones from the crowns are the hardest to kill since there is so much mass to the root. The ones from the fragments and seed should be easier to kill with the Crossbow since there is less root mass. Mix the Crossbow at the recommended concentration and apply it with surficant so it sticks. The reason I like 18" to 24" length is so there is enough surface area for the herbicide to adhear to and transport itself to the root. Closer to the root is better. I would burn the berry canes over the previous growth area so that you kill any roots there (might as well). I would prepare the soil and seed with grass as soon as possible to help choke out the berries. Crossbow does not kill grass. Keep us posted please. Good luck, you CAN do it. It will take a few years, then forever maintenance spraying, but even that will go down.

I've been following your advise and agree 100% this is the best way to combat them, some areas are now blackberry free. I tried some cheaper products than crossbow but a waste of money, crossbow is the best for blackberries. I have found also it works better on the big crowns when you spray closer to fall and into it when they are pulling nutrients back to the crown after all the berries have dropped. I did end up buying a sprayer that holds 60 gals, has a 12' collapsible width with a pressure gauge and adjustment to control pressure in the tank, and a wand with 30' hose, and the best part is a see through tank so I can see the water level. Usually only run about 30 psi for the bar to get the correct application rate, came with a book that had different pressures with different tips already calculated out - money saver. The wand is awesome cause I can crank the pressure up to 70-80 and this thing will spray close to 100' feet, over if the wind is up. Nice for some of the steeper areas. I also have been using it for a fire watch when open burning is permitted.

Been using the spring for water and it's nice now that the power is in, not having to drag the generator around. The little shack was already there that someone built over a pool they made right where it comes out of the ground. Picked up a submersible pump from Harbor Freight and hung it high enough that it just gets clean water. Eventually I'll make a bigger holding pond so I can pump more in a shorter amount of time. I haven't noticed any drop in volume even during this drought, sticking a 5 gal bucket in the stream fills up in about 10-15 seconds. Must note that the stream is only as wide as the bucket, so i'm not dipping it in standing water, the stream is about 7-8" wide and 3" deep.