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

B.E.L. # 124

Before the cleaning blitz kicked off, I slipped away to the shop to take care of the leftover woody bits from the gate project and a handful of smaller tasks that had been waiting patiently. There’s something satisfying about tidying up the aftermath of a build—turning what looks like chaos into something useful again. By the time I was done, the area in front of and around the shop felt open and clear.

All that processing paid off—I completely filled up the classroom’s firewood rack, stacking it full and leaving the smaller pieces neatly beside it. Nothing wasted, everything with a purpose.

Then it was time to switch gears.

The cleaning blitz turned out to be way more fun than expected—Melissa and I found ourselves laughing through it, making the work feel light and easy. It’s funny how the right company can turn even a big clean into something you actually enjoy.

Once that wrapped up, I drifted back into the shop and picked up where I left off on the coffee table. This part felt a bit more personal. I grabbed the router and carved my name—and Chapito’s—into the surface. After that, I torched the lettering to blacken it, then sanded everything down smooth. The contrast came out really nice—simple, but meaningful.

From there, it was back to the structure. I cut the leg pieces to length, shaped the tenons, and fit them into the top. Everything seated just right—one of those rare moments where it all goes exactly how you hoped. I added two horizontal support pieces and fastened them down, bringing the whole piece closer to completion. Just two more supports to go.

I wrapped up the day in a quieter way—reading, and spending some time with my dog. A good balance after a full day of building, cleaning, and creating.

B.E.L. Post # 125

This morning at the daily gathering, I was tasked with running point on the Cooper Cabin gate install—a responsibility I was excited to take on. With that, Country Skillet (Seth) and I got right to it, gathering all the tools we’d need before heading up to the Abbey with the crew.

Once on site, Seth and I got to work. The first order of business was removing the old gate and digging out a hole between the two vertical support posts. With the space prepped, we laid down about 3 inches of gravel to create a solid drainage base. From there, we cut a log to size for the footer, drilling a hole for the hinge—but we didn’t stop there. We drilled all the way through the log to allow drainage above the hinge, a small detail that should go a long way in extending the life of the setup.

After staging the log on top of the gravel foundation, we backfilled the hole with more gravel, using the gravel sock method to promote drainage and stability. We then removed the top piece that had been fastened between the two posts—right about the time lunch rolled around.

After lunch, we grabbed the gate frame from the classroom and made our way back up to the Abbey to finish what we started. Before setting the gate, we applied white lithium grease to both hinges to keep everything moving smoothly. Then came the moment of truth—we set the gate in place and fastened the top piece back between the posts. Everything lined up beautifully, and the gate came together just right.

With that project wrapped up, we shifted gears and joined Stephen in laying hay over the berms—these were the same berms that Country Skillet and I had seeded with cover crop earlier, so it felt good to see that layer of protection go in. After that, we headed to the sawmill site to work on a log piece, putting in a bit more hands-on time before the workday came to a close.

After boot time, I spent some time on a personal project—the coffee table for the solarium. I made the final two support pieces and installed them into the legs. Once everything was in place, I fitted it to the tabletop, and it all came together with a nice, snug fit. To finish it off, I drawbored each connection point, locking everything in tight.

All in all, a full and satisfying day—good teamwork, solid progress, and a few more pieces of craftsmanship taking shape.

B.E.L. Post # 126

After the morning meeting, we all made our way to the lab to kick off the day. Melissa split off with Stephen to head to Dogstar, while Seth and I made our way over to the woodshed at Cooper Cabin. Once there, we got to work clearing everything out from inside. With the space emptied, we took a good look at the skids and realized they weren’t quite in a position to be relocated just yet—sometimes the land (and the lumber) tells you to wait.

After wrapping things up there, we headed back to basecamp. While Stephen was in a meeting with Paul, the three of us—Seth, Melissa, and I—kept the momentum going by processing the woody bits we had hauled back from the Cooper Cabin woodshed. It felt good turning a messy pile into something more useful and orderly.

Before long, we were back at the lab again, this time at the pond site. We gathered up more 9-foot sections of metal fencing and staged them for future work. Bit by bit, that project is coming together.

After lunch, the three of us shifted gears and went over to the sawmill site, where we processed two logs. There’s something deeply satisfying about seeing raw logs transformed—each cut bringing them closer to their next purpose.

I wrapped up the workday heading out with Stephen to fell trees for the Ant Village gate rebuild. It was a solid end to a full day of hands-on work.

Later in the evening, I spent some time on my coffee table build—and I’m happy to say, I completed it. A pretty great feeling to close out the day with something finished.

B.E.L. Post # 127

After the morning meeting, we launched into the day like a well-organized (and slightly caffeinated) swarm of beavers. The mission: tackle a large fallen tree and convince it to become future lumber.

We hit the shop first, gathering all the necessary tools for delimbing and bucking—aka, turning one big tree into many more manageable, less intimidating pieces. Once we made it to the lab, it was game on. Branches were flying (in a controlled and safety-conscious manner), and the trunk was bucked down to size with sawdust steadily marking our progress like woodland confetti.

With Phase “Tree vs Humans” complete, we pivoted to the pond, wrangled up some cattle fencing, and hauled it over to the Abbey to stage it like pros. Then, to round out the morning, we shifted gears into what I can only describe as extreme landscaping: adding more hay over the seeded berms. Nothing says “land stewardship” quite like carefully tucking in seeds with a cozy blanket of hay.

After lunch, Seth and I split forces at the shop. Seth went full craftsman mode rebuilding a picnic bench (future lunch spot secured), while I handled the noble task of processing scrap woody bits from the sawmill site—aka, turning chaos into slightly more organized chaos. I then wrapped up debarking the two trees that Stephen and I felled yesterday. They’re now officially naked and ready for their next chapter in life.

With that done, Seth hooked up the log carrier to Toots (our trusty steel steed), and we rolled over to the boneyard to stage it for a likely tomorrow’s operation. The plan: Seth will hook it to the tractor and start hauling the big logs over to the sawmill. Big wood is about to meet big destiny.

We capped off the day with a quick trip to the gas station to fuel up Toots—because tomorrow we ride, and Sunday we’re getting reinforcements. Three additional boots will be joining us, which means more hands, more progress, and statistically speaking… more dirt getting played in.

All in all, a solid day of turning trees into timber, fields into future growth, and plans into action. Stay tuned—things are about to get even more logistically exciting.

B.E.L. Post # 128

After the morning meeting, we kicked things into gear and loaded up the RAV4 with everything we thought we’d need for the day—always a bit of a gamble, but today we actually nailed it.

We rolled out to the boneyard, and right as we turned onto the path… boom—nature had left us a gift. A junkpole-sized tree leaning perfectly into our route like it wanted to be noticed. Turns out, it was a blessing in disguise. The diameter and height were just about perfect for a shovel handle to match a head Seth and I had rescued while clearing out the old sawmill structure by Cooper Cabin. And not just that—there was enough there for the two lonely hatchet heads sitting in the shop waiting for their comeback story.

While Seth was getting the log carrier hooked up to the tractor, I went ahead and dropped that tree, delimbed it, and cut a clean 48” section for the future shovel restoration project (this weekend’s “fun” 😏), plus another piece for the hatchets. Loaded those up into the work rig—future tools secured.

Then Melissa and I headed over near the sawmill site where the big fallen tree from yesterday’s group effort was waiting. Once Seth rolled in with the tractor, we got to work staging those hefty logs near the mill, setting things up for future cutting. Always satisfying seeing chaos turn into neat, intentional piles.

Next stop: the pond. We pulled six T-posts out of the ground (a little unplanned treasure hunt), then brought those—plus four more from the bermshed earlier—to the Abbey. There, we started setting up protection for the little apple trees: hammering in T-posts, wrapping cattle fencing into cylinder cones, and tying everything off. Deer defense system: activated.

After lunch, it was back to the Abbey for a bit of deconstruction-meets-reconstruction. We took down the old fort-style fencing and began converting it into the junkpole-style vision that had been brewing. Lots of horizontal pieces going in, slowly transforming the structure into something sturdier, cleaner, and more in line with the original idea.

We kept at it until the end of the day—tools in hand, sawdust in the air, and a solid mix of progress, problem-solving, and a little bit of “hey, that worked better than expected.”