Justin Gauthier

Update #3

Access:
The road remains a priority; it's been widened so all of the hazard trees are removed, and most of the "inconvenience trees" have also been removed along with their stumps. Work has begun on water management on the road, several drainage pits have been dug and water levels are lower than before. Some rock work has been done to stabilize one small section, that I alluded to in Update #2's future work section, but more rock work is required.

Future plans:
Source and implement the addition of rock into the base of the road's ruts to abate the deepening of said ruts from continual use. Digging drainage ditches from the drainage pits to further lower the standing water level of the road.

Structures:
The camp has been house wrapped, all except for the gable ends, and where house wrapped has been sided with plastic siding. The camp's back corner has been leveled, the interior ceiling & insulation removed (due to squirrel damage), re-roofed with torch-on-membrane, and a different wood stove installed (the old one had thin walls). The wood shed has been straightened and braced.

Future plans:
Finish the house wrap & siding on the gable ends. Install ceiling insulation & OSB. Replace the antiquated windows & doors for better heat retention. Apply 1/4" hardware cloth to the external eves and any other place mice might be gaining access.

Water:
Began digging a shallow well within the camp, removed 5ft of sand before encountering a compacted layer that will require a mechanical solution (gas/electric augur to turn the hand well drilling rig). Whilst digging the road's drainage pits water was encountered beneath a 1.5-2ft thick clay layer in a sandy clay mixture at a depth of around 5ft from surface. The camp is roughly 2-3 ft above that location so the clay layer is expected at around 5-6 ft deep and is suspected to be the compacted layer encountered while attempting to hand drill the well.

Future plans: Fabricate a coupler device to attach the hand drilling rig to a powered auger to cut through the compacted layer in hopes of reaching ground water at 7ft deep and continue to a depth of possibly 15ft.

Land Scaping:
The backhoe was utilized to excavate & relocate soil for road work as well as the creation of space for vehicles to turn, operate and park. Refuse was sorted and allocated to respective piles for future consideration.

Future plans: Continue to expand cleared area for the introduction of future buildings and garden space.

Salt, Calcium Chloride, used as a de-icer up here in Canada, will absorb so much moisture it will literally dissolve itself into a puddle of goo if left to the atmosphere and it's own devices. Have a pan at the bottom of the barrel that can accommodate the volume of slurry (if there is that much moisture in the air inside of the barrel to get it to that point) and that can also take some heat. If the salt ever gets enough moisture to get all soupy, pull out the tray and heat it (slowly or the trapped moisture might 'spawl' ie explode) then once it's dry salt again just put it back in the barrel and you're good. One small cavoite to consider though is that heat is released as it dissolves, to what degree that would be when it's just exposed to 55 gallons of air i'm unsure, and would require a temp test vs time in comparison to a barrel without the salt added. Also safety note, wear proper PPE as the dried salt will want water from anywhere really really badly and it doesn't care if that's water from your skin, eyes, other mucosae membranes etc so avoid contact with the salt and don't make it into a powder as the dust will also dry out anything it touches causing damage, the wiki also mentions the powder causing internal burns if it gets inside you.

There's also lab grade stuff "Calcium sulfate, Gypsum" under the brand name Drierite that doesn't dissolve in the water it collects, but it's pricey compared to the stuff we just throw on the road to melt ice.
https://www.sigmaaldrich.com/CA/en/substance/drierite136147778189

Same boat, small talk is a nightmare, especially on online dating! I think the ingredients needed are exposure and time, regardless of level of extroversion, and the special sauce is shared interests; something that shifts the focus away from the personal but can be shaded by it.

I've considered classes; as previously mentioned, it suits exposure and time but adult classes lack the "confinement?" and reliance on others that being enrolled in a school program has. Many people are taking the class for a different reason than meeting people as well, often it's for work and they have no personal interest beyond advancing their career or if they do have an interest in the class it's to learn a personal skill. Many of the classes I can imagine don't lend themselves well to encouraging people to work together/rely on each other or their goal doesn't make for a great conversational piece because it's self evident. I'd suggest taking a class if it's something that interests you or you want to acquire the skill, and if you meet someone bonus! For myself, for example, the most likely candidate for a class in which people would work together & share an interest would be either bee keeping or some other permaculture class where i'd have the chance to talk indirectly about myself and my goals through a shared interest topic.

Another avenue would be table top gaming; it too provides an indirect method to talk about interests, and allows for self expression beyond that of small talk. It fulfills quite the niche by allowing a direct conversation in an indirect way with people that are invested in the conversation. It's superbly suited to those who want to dive head first in topics like philosophy in contrast to "nice weather we're having." Akin to this would be a club that is focused on exploring ideas/topics or debating.

My approach to dating has evolved to be "Do you, and see if someone shows up" lol. Just live your life doing the things you want to do, and the person that shows up in that life is the one that wants to be there.    

Update #2

Access:
Acquired a skidder.
The road has been sufficiently widened and maintained so that the truck I have (4x4, 6" lift, 38" tires) can comfortably make it to the camp.

Future plans:
There are some larger trees that I'd like to remove for either "ease of driving" reasons or others that pose a windfall risk to the road.

I plan to cut regular alcoves aside the wet portions of the road to plant white willow; as a water loving tree with vast fibrous  roots, in the hopes that the ground will become firmer in those areas. The white willow will also provide biomaterial for compost.

After several trips with the truck, only one particularly troublesome spot was encountered containing a deep rut and a boulder to which I plan to address in the future, perhaps with the skidder and/or backhoe.  

With the purchase of the skidder, an ice road on the hydro-line for moving things ill suited to the current road becomes a possibility. Examples include: Sheds/Tiny homes, building materials, and large tools like the saw mill.

Structures:
Now that access is passable, more focus can be directed towards the camp and outbuildings.

Future plans:
House wrap the camp to preserve the OSB sheathing, raise the back corner to level, remove mold affected internal OSB sheathing and prepare the camp for overnight weekend accommodation.

Why no Siberian pea? Just curious before I plant the seeds I bought, if doing so would be a mistake...

Hi, I'm interested in Groundnut (Apios americana) as well, any Canadian sources, close to New Brunswick would be ideal, anyone know of?

Whereabouts in Canada are you looking? Also posting in "permaculture singles" here on the forum would be the place to start, although the mods might move the thread there anyhow.
-Justin  

Hey Kitty, you are right about how it could be difficult to pursue this goal without a good source of disposable income. I am fortunate that my parents support my aspirations allowing me to direct a fair amount of my income to this project. I too felt the same as you do while working and came to a crossroads of sorts; "make more money, or reduce the need for it." Ideally doing both would be best, but making more money is not something easily done, and you can only shave off expenses so much, there is a minimum cost associated with living "normally" (rent/mortgage, groceries, utilities, fuel, insurance etc.) This line of reasoning brought about the current project, in which I aim to reduce or eliminate some of the expenses associated with living "normally."
However, when I imagined how the completed project would look, I felt I would feel lonely and unfulfilled if I was all by myself; thus the origin of this thread, as I look for others to join me in my endeavor.    

Update 1.2

Access:
I purchased a used backhoe (1965 John Deere 500, diesel) in excellent working condition. However, I do not have a trailer to move it, so road work will be dependent on availability of transport options until I can either build or buy a trailer capable of moving the machine.

Future plans:

Build or buy a heavy duty trailer.

If still lacking transportation for the machine before the ground freezes, continue with update 1.1's future plans.  

I'm in New Brunswick, but i've managed to get a vague sense of my local permaculture/off-grid community via facebook groups and Youtube channels. Other places to start looking would be local farmers markets, and along the road for produce/chicken egg signs etc.
Our folk might be reclusive but they almost always have a homemade product they'd like to barter, and at the very least a sign at the road that says "Fresh Eggs" lol