!! In the quiet hours of the bootcamp grind, I found myself: Esteban's Bootcamp Experience

B.E.L. Post # 224

   Today I started by tasking Leo and Matt to continue work up at Lightning Hill. Meanwhile, Jesse kept filling in the junkpole panels along the drive and she's doing great. Melissa and I installed two tree cages at Raspberry Rock, then did chop and drop. After that, we started irrigation between the garden gate and Apricot Alley, working toward each other.

   In the afternoon, I sent Leo, Jesse, and Melissa to the Abbey for irrigation, fencing, and more chop and drop mulching. Matt and I continued chop and drop, processed aluminum cans and finished the day with chainsaw maintenance. I walked Matt through the process so he could get more hands-on experience. It felt like another satisfying day of steady land work, maintenance, and learning.

B.E.L. Post # 225

This morning I had Jesse continue filling in the junkpole fence panels while Leo and Matt focused on rebuilding the fence panels up at Lightning Hill. Meanwhile, Melissa joined me at the Turtle Berm where we widened the trails along the roadside. As we worked, we also did plenty of chop-and-drop to clear the area before finishing everything off with a fresh layer of mulch.

During the second half of the day, our attention shifted to the Abbey. We continued filling in the junkpole fence panels, spent more time doing chop-and-drop to keep the area tidy and productive, and finished the day by working on irrigation to help keep everything thriving.

It was another productive day with everyone making steady progress on multiple projects across the Lab.

B.E.L. Post # 225

Today started with the morning meeting, where I shared how impressed I was with the junkpole panels Leo has been building out at Lightning Hill. They are turning out really nice, and you can tell he’s putting a lot of thought and care into the work.

Because of that, I decided to make Leo the point person for that project. He’s very meticulous, analytical, and has a real passion for what he’s doing. I know he has the drive to finish the paddocks and help set the bar for future boots who will learn this skill down the road.

So I unleashed Leo and Melissa on the project while I spent some time showing Jesse how I handle my irrigation schedule. I walked her through my process and how I keep track of what needs attention and when.

After that, Jesse and I did some maintenance on a couple of chainsaws to keep them ready for the work ahead. Once we finished with that, she went back to fitting in junkpoles while I worked on some chop-and-drop.

After lunch, we headed over to the Abbey. Jesse and I continued working on junkpoles while everyone else was busy with irrigation and mulching.

Yesterday (7/21) began with more work on irrigation, chop-and-drop, and trail building. It's rewarding seeing these systems continue to improve, knowing they'll benefit both the landscape and future visitors.

Around the lab, everyone was tackling different projects. Harry was giving the picnic table a much-needed refresh, while Melissa and Leo continued making progress on the junkpole fencing. I joined them for a bit to help fell a tree that will be bucked into usable material for the fence—a great reminder of how much of our building material comes directly from the land.

After lunch, we all headed over to the Abbey. Jesse and I continued building the junkpole fence while the rest of the team worked on expanding the irrigation system. Once that was complete, everyone pitched in with mulching to help retain moisture and support the newly established plantings.

B.E.L. Post # 226

We started off the morning with me redirecting Leo on the junkpole panel rebuild up at Lightning Hill, moving the focus toward the house paddock. Harry and Melissa assisted him with the work. They had already started making progress by disassembling the panel closest to the house and removing the gate before I made my last round over there.

While that was underway, I was busy keeping several other projects moving. I set up sprinklers at Lightning Hill, did some trail maintenance on the streetside of the Turtle Lot berm, continued with chop and drop, and assisted Jesse with filling in more junkpoles along the drive.

After lunch at the Abbey, we all headed up there to continue improving the space. Jesse and I kept working on the junkpole fencing, while Harry, Melissa, and Leo focused on irrigation, chop and drop, and making sure the surrounding areas were getting the attention they needed.

B.E.L. Post # 227

This morning we started the day by heading up to the Abbey. Jesse and I continued working on the junkpole fencing, while everyone else focused on irrigation, chop-and-drop, and mulching around the property.

After lunch, Harry and Leo continued working in the house paddock before switching over to the firewood rack project. Jesse stayed at the Abbey, filling in the junkpole panel along the driveway, and later switched over to chainsaw maintenance.

Meanwhile, Melissa and I continued refreshing the picnic table before moving on to chop-and-drop and checking irrigation. Once those tasks were complete, we headed back up to the Abbey, where Melissa joined me in framing the next section of junkpole fence panels. We made solid progress by getting another section framed and ready for the next stage of the build.

B.E.L. Post # 228

This morning we started our day by heading over to the Abbey. Jesse joined me in framing up another section of the junkpole panels, while Harry, Melissa, and Leo focused on the irrigation work.

After lunch, I had Leo, Melissa, and Jesse remain at Basecamp to continue working on the irrigation, the house paddock, transporting potatoes for replanting, and tackling some chainsaw maintenance.

Meanwhile, Harry and I headed over to the Lab to install a new water pump at the pump house. After a bit of troubleshooting and teamwork, we successfully got the water flowing again at the Lab. It was a satisfying way to wrap up the day, knowing we had restored an important part of the site's infrastructure.

B.E.L. Post # 229

Today we started off our morning at the Abbey.

Leo joined Steven’s team, and they focused on irrigating the back half of the Abbey, watering the baby trees, and taking care of several other tasks.

My team consisted of Jesse, Melissa, and me. Melissa focused on irrigating the front berms, chop-and-drop, and other projects, while Jesse and I worked on building the framing for the junk pole fence panels.

After lunch, I paired Leo and Melissa together to repair and rebuild junk pole panels at the house paddock. From there, they moved on to some hugel berm work, the firewood rack project, and other tasks.

Jesse and I started the afternoon by setting up irrigation lines. Jesse continued working on a junk pole panel along the drive, while I handled some chainsaw maintenance, trail building, and chop-and-drop work.

Before heading back to the Abbey, we also irrigated Raspberry Rock.

We wrapped up the day back at the Abbey, continuing work on the junk pole fencing.