Mammal Castle
Here is a view of our tarp shelter at Roundrock. It’s not fancy, but it has been surprisingly durable through the years.
L and I have cherished many hours in the chairs under this tarp. It’s here we usually have our lunch, our snacks, our bottles of water, an occasional ceegar for Pablo, and long, lingering conversations about everything and nothing.
We’ve come to the shelter on winter days to find it sagging under the weight of snow atop it. We’ve sat under it, snug and dry, during heavy rain storms. We’ve hidden from the August sun here. And we’ve looked down from here onto Lake Marguerite to watch the sparkling water as many times as we can contrive.
Construction is simple. We ran a stout rope between the trees as high as we could reach to serve as the ridge line. I used taut line hitches at each end so we could tighten the rope periodically. Then we tied the four corners to various nearby trees to stretch the tarp. This took a little experimentation as we found just the right way to pull at the corners to prevent bowls from forming in the fabric.
Coincidentally, (and I hope it is only coincidence) several of the trees we’ve tied the tarp to have since died. The two closest in the photo are dead. And the two we’d tied to at the back not only died but uprooted under the tension from the tarp. So I sunk a few steel fence posts in their places, and they serve just fine.
The tarp itself is beginning to show its age. We can see pinpoints of light through it as we sit under it, but they do not leak water when it rains. Maybe there are a few more years in it yet.
It’s our plan to erect a small, one-room cabin where the shelter sits. We’ve already picked out the one we want.
There is a small concern in town that makes these to order and sets them up at their destination. The builder hires local Amish youth as his carpenters, and without exception, the area Amish are admired for their craft and thoroughness.
Should this dream ever come to pass, count on Roundrock Journal to document it for you.
August 31st, 2005 at 4:15 am
Hope those dead trees don’t turn into snags that’ll spike your tarp.
August 31st, 2005 at 9:45 am
Well, if you’d had bulldozers moving over that area you might have had some effect on those trees, but I think that nothing you did was responsible.
As for the one-room cabin, what a marvelous idea. DO IT!! And as someone who prefers to hire repair folks, or purchase locally, what a great idea to do it in such a way as to benefit those in your community!
August 31st, 2005 at 9:57 am
Just to add… since you have excellent carpenters, what about a treehouse cabin?
I haven’t pursued this since becoming fascinated with the idea a few months ago, but I was extremely impressed with some of the possibilities.
August 31st, 2005 at 10:53 am
The cabin you picked out looks like a fine place to sit and smoke your occasional ceegar. I like one-room cabins– what are the dimensions of the one you are considering.
A treehouse cabin is a very cool idea, especially if you like to watch birds.
August 31st, 2005 at 6:08 pm
the tarp is great. i have used tarps to great advantage in the same manner. it’s nice to try a spot with a temporary shelter to get the feel of it. the very act of using it repeatedly does also give it “momentum,” which may add to the feel.
it is nice to have walls. be careful. “stuff” accrues at an alarming rate.
August 31st, 2005 at 7:42 pm
Ahhh, a real cabin. I am always amazed at the log mansions in real estate adds that are described as cozy cabins. Your choice is the real thing. Good luck with this dream. I would imagine that owning Roundrock was just a dream once also.
August 31st, 2005 at 8:39 pm
I like the look of the cabin, but I think I would greatly miss the simplicity of the tarp. Air flows sooo nicely through the tarp area. It gives just the right amount of shelter.
September 1st, 2005 at 11:25 am
I’m sure we could get the same breeze on the porch of a cabin. Plus, we’d have a discreet place to undress when we go skinnydipping.