HIGH COUNTRY JOURNEY: Getting Started

      Rick and I have spent parts of the past year looking at various properties on the west side of Baker Valley with the hopes of eventually moving out of the city (2 blocks from Main Street) and to a quieter lifestyle 'out in the country'!  We have looked at homes with gorgeous views, but multiple levels, inadequate space, etc.  We have looked at homes that would work (perhaps with a little remodeling!) but views that were less than our dream.  We wanted 2-3 acres, but realized soon that most of the lots outside of town were 5 acre minimums.  We weren't in a hurry, but.....

The lot and shop we DIDN'T take.   Same great view!

       Before leaving for Kalispell we were seriously considering a lot out in High Country Estates right across the 'street' from good friends Jim and Mary Tomlinson.  The property already had a shop on it (a HUGE shop).  Rick spent much of April making contacts with the septic and water to determine the feasibility of building a home.  We didn't like what we discovered and decided not to pursue the lot.  
        But....there was another 5 acres a little further up the road 

Indeed, the owner is
willing to sell! 

that was bare land.  We knew the owner and our realtor was fairly certain she was up for a sale.  While in Kalispell we debated upon the merits of this property.  And so the journey began....A 'High Country' Journey.  

May 30: We Make an Offer     

Toward the Wallowas - end of April

When we returned from Kalispell's CAV Build the end of May, we had made the decision to make an offer on Lot 10 of High Country Estates.  The owner was asking for $90,000.  We met with our realtor, MaryJo, and made an offer of $80,000, accepting the counter offer of $85,000 a day later.  This was exactly the price we had figured we would have to pay!  Closing was set was June 20.  We put down $500 in earnest money.

A cloudy day, but the mountains are there!  Elkhorn is hiding.

     The lot was covered with high grass, weeds, and plenty of thistles!  We made a contingency on the offer to have the seller mow the property before closing.  She agreed.  

June 4 to 16:  Bandon Decisions
We spent time while in Bandon brainstorming various house ideas, as well as lining up the financing for the property purchase.  We were fortunate to have some brokerage funds available that we could transfer to the checking account for the necessary Cashier's Check for closing.  We negotiated this transfer by phone and the blessings of email with Matt Cunningham.  

June 19 - Closing on the property
We are officially scheduled to close on the property today!  We walk down to the title company with our Cashier's check in hand for purchase price plus closing costs.  Our appointment is at 1pm and the seller will come in at 4 to receive her funds and sign her papers.  We sign document upon document, I finding it difficult each time to pen Virginia rather than Ginger!  

June 20 - Closing Visit!!
First order of business - a trip out to our new land to REALLY check things over!  

View to the south from the road.  Of the two trees that stick up above the mountain, the one on the left is OURS!  A beautiful tall Ponderosa pine.  The other pine sits just a few feet south of the property line.  'Almost' ours.  :)

The house to the west of us belongs to Phil and Sheryl.  Photo is taken from out near the road at the far north end of the property.  

Truck is parked on the road, view looking north toward our neighbors Kim and Rebecca.  Former owners of this house planted clusters of aspens in front.  

Looking northeast toward the Wallowa Mountains.  

Looking southwest.  

This is the irrigation ditch that runs just inside the property line on south end of the land.  During spring run-off we could get water in the ditch.  There are wild roses growing in the ditch in places.  'OUR' tree is on the left.  

Irrigation ditch looking west, as Rick talks with neighbor Phil.  Phil came over to talk with us as soon as he saw our truck pull up.  Neighbors already knew the lot had sold because Shannon Downing also works at Grove Real Estate and she lives on High Country as well! 

Adjacent to the southwest corner of the lot is a pond that when full in the spring will send overflow through a culvert and into our irrigation ditch.  The rest of the year it is a magnet for wildlife.  

'OUR' ponderosa pine tree, the ONLY tree on the lot. 

View to the east from the south end of the property looking toward the Cyr household - Linda and Isaac.  We met Isaac as he was working on their chicken coop! 

An old water channel cuts across the property near the 2006 DEQ test holes.  Elkhorn Peak in the center of photo.  

Hunt Mountain to the northwest, plus a fine crop of thistles!!  The lot had not been mowed yet when we visited, but by a day later, Cora Downing had taken care of it.  

Closeup view of Elkhorn Peak from Lot 10. 

View to the southeast and Baker City.  Washington Gulch is the green patch on the right hand side of photo.  Our Ponderosa (I think I need to name it!) is on right side also.  

June 25-26 - A Visit with the architect

I think I will name my Ponderosa Pine 'Pete' - no special reason! 

I could get theological and said he is named for Simon Peter

 - the Rock, a strong individual.  

But no, Pete sounded better than saying PP! 

Rick and Larry talk over plans near Pete.

We have our initial meeting with Larry Abell as our architect.  Larry will help guide us through the permits and utility requirements, creating a site plan.  We also gave him a list of what we would like to see in the house, etc.  Tuesday morning Larry visited our current home to get a feel for who we are and how we live.  Then we drove back out to the property!

A view of the adjacent pond from over the fence.  It is pretty full at the moment. 

I find lupine growing in one of the old ditches.  It could use a little water. 

This is why we are buying this property.  What a view of Elkhorn peak! Below gives a closeup! 

A panorama of the property west side.  Hunt Mt. on the right.  Neighbors Phil and Sheryl's house in the middle. 

June 28 - Luke gets an initial look-see!

One of the highlights of the drive out to our property is we pass this classic old barn enroute.  I love its cupola!

Luke flies in from Boise for Zach and Savanah's wedding weekend.  Naturally a first order of business is a trek out to the High Country!  Evening casts a very different light on the mountains to the west.  It is incredibly peaceful in the evenings out here. 

Sunlight and clouds and Elkhorn Peak.

July 4 - Our first block party! 

Luke and Jed enjoy watching the fireworks,
along with drinks and snow cones! 

A glorious sunset as we drive
 out  to the party

Jed and Luke are home for the holiday!  We have been invited out to the Downings for a neighbor party for ground fireworks and a viewing of the Haines show from afar!   We meet other neighbors, including Kim, the home inspector from across the 'street'.  Then we take the truck out to the property, park, and watch from the lot.  Afterwards, Jed leads a brief family astronomy class as the stars are spectacular!

July 23 - Getting Hinkles 'stamp of approval'
Our close Habitat friends Tom and Diane Hinkle visit from Prineville, so of course we have to stop at the property enroute to a day at Anthony Lakes!   They give their stamp of approval!  

We talk over siting plans and the future with Tom and Diane.

July 25 - Staking out the driveway
Following another meeting with Larry, we have found that we must put a stake along the road on the property where we anticipate the right hand side of the driveway to be.  Two whacks with the hammer and Rick has split the top of the stake!  Oh well, duct tape to the rescue!  It doesn't have to be pretty! 

August 4 - We have an address!

Beautiful stormy skies!

We drove Gretchen, Shawn, Tucker, and Tyler out to the property this afternoon.  Upon getting out of the truck we smelled moisture in the air , and booms of thunder rolling through the sky.  Hurray!!  In spite of the very dry, stickery grass, we walk clear to the back to the ditch.  Gretchen takes a picture of me hugging my tree.  (To be included later)  When leaving, we suddenly realize there is another white stake next to our Rembold post.  WE HAVE AN ADDRESS!!!  We shall officially be 15844 High Country Lane!  Perhaps we shall build our mail box from the scraps of the house!  

August 9 - Arranging for a mortgage
For the record....we met with Trevor Taylor at Banner Bank today to learn the ins and outs of a construction loan as opposed to a regular home mortgage.  It is complicated!  But the information is helpful as we move on to a meeting with the contractor, Dave Hays.  We will have 9 months from the loan closing to complete the house, so we won't actually get it rolling until the first of the year.  Anything we do this fall is on our own funding!  

August 13 - Leveling the Ditches
Rick meets Bob McKim (Dr Bob!) out at the property this morning to do a little leveling on the ditches.  Bob brings his tractor, rigged with a blade, to pull and push dirt around.  They also pull up some of the rabbit brush bushes near the driveway entrance.  Bob seemed to have a fun time.  I met the two of them at the Inland Cafe for lunch, and then they were back at it for another hour.  Rick didn't have much turn-around time when he got home, because....

Dr. Bob is having too good a time! 

Moving dirt and chopping up the grass! 

Action with both the claw back and the blade.

It almost looks like a real road!

A pile of rabbitbrush to deal with! 

We had an appointment to meet with our contractor, Dave Hays, out in Medical Springs where he just finished building his new home.  He is using the home as a demo home in a way....a 'here's what we can do' type of thing.  We had a fun time, spending nearly 2 hours out there visiting.  They have a great room concept with tall windows (probably taller than we would want).  We left with a tentative time to meet Dave out at the property tomorrow afternoon.  


August 14 - Contractor at Property

You can't even see the mountains!  Dave and Rick talk over
Shop placement.

So much for the afternoon appointment!  Dave called at 7:15 this morning to see if we could meet him now!  So...quickly dressed and by 8 we are on site!  Smoke from the wildfires has drifted into the valley and we couldn't even see the mountains from Highway 30.  Yuck!  You can just BARELY make out the outline from the property.  

We talk over possibilities from
this set of plans David is using
for another house. 

Dave brought a set of plans for a different house he is building, but it was a good starter point.  We discussed lots of ideas, etc.  It sounds like Dave will take over for us from Larry at some point soon, working up the final plans, and pursuing the DEQ permit.  He will arrange for the well, etc. while we are gone in September. 

August 22 - Contractor and Well-Driller

Rick, Jeremy, his assistant, and Dave after we hammer in
the stake marking the well site. 

We meet this morning out at the property with Jeremy from Elkhorn Drilling and David Hays.  Time to select a site for the well (we make sure we are 100' from the neighbor Cyr well) and put a stake in the ground.  The drilling company roughly figures they are about three weeks out, so the well should be done by the time we get back.  I won't be posting the drill pictures.
:(  

This will be the view from our master bedroom.  Elkhorn Peak.

Then Dave, Rick, and I pull out a rough plan outline and put in some stakes.  Then we move some and shift again.  We are trying to just get a rough idea of the house location and orientation, so that Dave can have the driveway road in place while we are gone.  We gotta know where the house is going first!  We need a circle eventually to satisfy the fire codes (so far off the main road, you have to have a turnaround).  Where to put the barn/shop....decisions!  Decisions!  Oops, can't get too close to the intended septic area (which is somewhat flexible)!  

The stake in the foreground marks the
proposed middle peak of the great room roof.  

I found wooley mullein
on the property!

Two hours later we have it marked and Dave paints the tops of the stakes with first white, then blue, paint.  (He couldn't see the white easily!)  We give Dave an advanced payment to cover the DEQ permit (over a thousand) and a couple other permits he must obtain.  I have been instructed to get a 'rough' idea plan of house layout to Dave before we leave, but I am going to wait until after we meet with Larry tomorrow. 



August 23   Final Meeting with Larry 
Well, as things turn out, this isn't our 'final' meeting with Larry.  Since we made so many changes to our perceived layout after yesterday, the initial rough sketch that Larry had done was pretty much mute!  Guess that's what happens when you don't communicate for nearly a month!  Larry felt committed to giving us plans that reflected our new concepts, so we are meeting him again tomorrow morning out at the property.  Once these alterations are completed and Larry has a rough sketch for us, we will turn everything over to our contractor David.  

August 24    More meetings with Larry and David!! 
This morning we met Larry out at the property with his new set of rough floor plans for the house.  We liked what we saw overall!  Still a little too big in terms of square footage, which we later shaved down a bit when working with David.  But in general we liked the way the garage fit, the layout for the guest bedroom wing, and the kitchen with views!  We rotated the house to a 235 SW angle; and moved it further to the east 25' from the stakes we put in the ground on Wednesday.  

Then a 1pm appointment out in Medical Springs to meet with Dave and play around with the design even more!  Roof lines, shrinking from 2250 square feet to closer to 2000, etc.  David just kept making more copies of Larry's plans as we scribbled all over them!  Now to just leave it in capable hands while we are gone!!  

October 2
We arrive back in Baker Valley today from our trip to Europe.  We can't refrain from looping through Haines to check out the lot before heading home.  Sadly, we find it exactly as we left it.  No well yet, no driveway.  Patience!!  

October 5:  We took the Jay Feather out to the property after
winterizing it.  

October 11
A drive out to Medical Springs to meet again with David!  He explains the well driller got tied up in Cove with a job, but we are on the schedule soon.  We go over plans again, as in the meantime I have drawn up ANOTHER rendition after Rick and I discussed cutting down to one bedroom and moving my workshop over to the Master Suite wing of the house.  It tightens things up a little.  We also met with Jim Kauth yesterday who gave us more suggestions - especially to open up the kitchen a few more feet!  

After the meeting we drive straight out to the property, cutting across Chandler Lane from the freeway -- my first time in 35 years of living in Baker Co to take that road!  We think through locations more prior to our meeting with Dave next Tuesday......

October 16

My job was to spray paint the stakes once we had them in the right spot!  

for stakes!!  With a fairly firm set of plans in hand, we move the stakes and add more to outline the house and barn.  The most time is spent figuring on where to put the popsicle loop driveway, but eventually we get it lined out.  Dave plans to have the driveway and hopefully the well in before we return on Nov 1.  


November 1 - A WELL!  WATER! 

The well is being drilled!!  Yesterday, while driving home from NM, we received a text message from Dave letting us know that Elkhorn Drilling was on the property and getting started on our well.  Hurray!  So today Rick and I drove out to see what was happening (I had to get well pictures, of course!)  Jeremy was already at the 160' level, so we watched him drill and place the metal casing pipe for two sections, each 20' long.  We started to leave, but his assistant came running over and said, 'Jeremy says we are going to hit water on the next section if you want to stay and watch!'  So we did and saw the amount of muddy water increase.  He went a little deeper to hit the gravel - we could hear it hitting the shovel he placed in front of the pipe.  Tomorrow he will clear it out more and finish up.  Exciting!!  

The drill spouts muddy water!

Short break to turn around and marvel at the dancing clouds and mountains. 

Well driller Jeremy checks for amount of rocks.  

Also of note....Dave said the driveway road should be coming any time!  (It is contracted out so not exactly within his control.)

November 5
A DRIVEWAY!!

Rick and I drove out today with Darrell and Cherrie (Cherrie had said something at church yesterday about not seeing our little piece of heaven yet!)  We wanted to see if the driveway man had been in as rumored last week.  

Success!!!  The grader is still parked at the corner of the lot, but a popsicle shaped gravel lane leads the way from the road to the center of the property...right up to the garage stakes!  

We look around, talk with Phil, talk with the driveway guy who came back while we were there to pick up the grader, and in general admire the views.  Clouds are swirling, but the mountains are visible!  

I have my camera, but forget to take any pictures!  

November 7
Trailer Wrap-Up

Rick went out earlier today to move the trailer into 'the garage' (in between the stakes!).  He put down a tarp, then the wood planks, and backed the trailer in.  All ready for our afternoon jaunt to wrap 'er up!  

All wrapped up and lonely. 

Antifreeze in the pipes and john, a final check inside, and the cover goes on and is securely tied down.  Then the brown tarp on the top.  While Rick is making the final connections, I walked over to Phil's to give him our phone numbers, just in case he looks out and sees something amiss!  

Hopefully this is the last winter the Jay Feather will have to sit out in the elements...next winter, an RV barn!!  

Our driveway....from the garage area.

February 26, 2019Wow!  Where did the winter go and have we done anything in the past few months!  Well, YES!  But you can't really see it!  

We are in the wait process - waiting for the snow to melt, waiting for the bank to approve our construction loan, waiting for an appraisal on the planned home that hopefully meets the planned costs so the bank will say YES!  We should have those answers by the 5th of March.  

In the meantime, we have met with our builder, David Hayes, multiple times, met with Jim Kauth, a good friend who is drawing up the actual plans, and visited Next Step Carpet and Flooring and Millers Lumber making countless decisions in regards to carpet, floors, cabinets, countertops, tile, etc. etc.  Boggles the mind!!!  We THINK we know what we are doing and it is slowly coming together!  

What we have so far - foreground is main floor for Great Room, hickory cabinets, a black and brown granite countertop, and black hardware on cabinets.   Floor is from Next Step, rest from Millers. 

The construction costs estimate for the house came in higher than we had hoped, but it doesn't include any of our work input.  And we are researching for more cost effective options in terms of cabinetry, etc.  But it is a give and take, because for the H-VAC system we are probably going to go with a higher bid to get a better quality heat pump.  

Rick made a trip to New Mexico in January as his mom was in the hospital and needed his attention.  I drove out to the property on a clear cold day and took a few pictures 'from my kitchen window'....sorta!  

View of Elkhorns as you drive out Wingville Road toward property. 

Telephoto view from kitchen window

View west from property. 

March 21, 2019
We closed on our loan yesterday, signing millions of pieces of paper and indebiting ourselves to eternity (well, maybe not quite that long!)  Hopefully the loan will look MUCH better when it transfer from construction to regular mortgage and we have some money from our house sale to put into it!  

So...today we drove out to the property to take the cover off the trailer and let things start to dry out.  Still a bit of snow, but it seems to be melting fairly quickly with recent rains.  In a few days we will move the trailer out to the corner of the lot, out of the way of construction machinery!  

 










March 30, 2019

Rick and I drove the truck out to the property today, unloaded our bikes from the back, and took an 8 mile ride around the surrounding dirt roads.  It was a beautiful day, and while these pictures aren't of OUR place, they do show what a beautiful area it is!  

Further down Brown Road, some goats greeted us from their little domain of a hill!  

A pond east of Brown Lane with Elkhorn reflections

A classic red barn along Pole Creek Road

Trailer is moved out of the way as we wait to get started! 

April 9, 2019  JUST ABOUT READY TO START!! 
We got the news from our contractor that he is picking up the final permits necessary this week and we hope to break ground next Monday, April 15.  So...hopefully not too many more posts to 'Getting Started'!!  

In the meantime, Rick found an old cupboard door buried under the back deck from our bathroom remodel in the late 1990's.  A sturdy piece of wood, so I cleaned it up, repainted it, and we will post this next to the address pillar on the property....gotta make sure all the construction crew knows where to go!