Captain's Log 2024 - Site Development

 Captains Log 2025

sunset across Havana Channel over East Cracroft Island 

TLDR - another fantastic year in life, so many dreams coming real.

Summary:

It's impossible to capture and communicate all that happened on Hull Island this year.  Over the summer 20 different people participated in many different ways and together achieved a massive amount of work with ZERO accidents requiring pro medical help and only a few minor falls, scrapes, cuts and bruises.  

About two acres of land was cleared, roads developed, 4 barges deliveries of materials, 36 concrete foundations poured and 3 building shells almost done;  a 20' by 50' longhouse with bathroom, mudroom, full kitchen and living area plus a 10' covered deck and two separate 20' by 24' cabins with bedrooms and bathrooms. In total about 2000 square feet of living space. 

Our builder, Ben Freitag put in a huge effort on all aspects of construction, plus handled all logistics, operations, business transactions, etc.  Working with other pro's from Vancouver Island and the neighborhood, they got a ton accomplished and the overall quality and results are much better than I expected. What a relief! Thank you.

On earthworks; Paul, Anna and Vicki continue to make Hull Island ever more beautiful.  The roads and trails, clearings, the rocks, grading and gravel make my day every day.  In addition, Anna was a powerhouse on construction and played a key role in getting the foundations done and keeping the site in order.  Thanks you guys!  

Thanks to all the friends and family for everything you did to make Hull Island even better than ever.  The food you brought, the meals you prepared, the clean-ups, the construction work, landscaping, rocks, fires, fishing, exploring, the stories, laughing and hanging out with you made the journey so much better.  

Captains Log 2025: April 18 - 23rd 

We left Whistler/Blackcomb with Audrey, had lunch in Vancouver then dropped her off at airport. Heidi and I caught the Twsassen ferry to Nanaimo and spent the night at the Comfort Inn in Campbell River.  The next morning we took the boat taxi from Eve River to Hull.  More of that story on an earlier blog post.

April 26th

I bought a one way ferry trip to Nanaimo, spent one night in Campbell River, then the next night at the Dalewood Inn in Port McNeill. I used the extra time to stock up on materials, food and supplies, clean up 2BRNR and have one last night in town before the long summer ahead. 

May 1st, the first of four barges 

April 29th

Today major construction began. I met Ben, Tyler 1 and Tyler 2 in the afternoon at Eve River where we loaded up a couple of tons of materials, tools, equipment, camping gear, food supplies.  After unloading and setting up camp, the construction began in the late afternoon.  Ben was highly effective at directing the action and paying attention to every detail.  With Paul and Anna helping, we had 6 people to lay out the foundation locations and using the excavator, shovels, blowers, vacuum cleaners, brushes, brooms, scrapers and other sharp objects we cleared the dirt from every nook and cranny down to clean rock so that the concrete piers had good adhesion.  

The next day, on the May 1st, the first barge arrived with construction materials.  Included in the first delivery were water and septic tanks, massive glulam beams, 14 one yard bags on navijack, a couple pallets of 80 lb bags of concrete, plenty of rebar, and about half the wood we would need, but plenty to get us started. It took about 5 hours for MarineLink to unload all the materials and using a large 4 wheel drive forklift, take them uphill to the construction site.

one of two posts for tarp covered work area

unloading glulam beams - 10 1/2" by 24" cross section, one 36' long and three 28' long

Anna, Ben and T1 clearing rock for longhouse footings. Stone cairn marks the location

First came the forms.  We started on the 18 longhouse footings.  For each one a square box was built from 2" by 10" or 12" wide planks.  Boxes varied in size from about 4' to 5'  squares.  Once the boxes were leveled like a sandbox frame, we infilled the sides down to the rock below with wood carefully cut to form against the rock.  Some of the base forms were up to 5 feet deep.    Rebar was cut and tied together for each base, then towers of rebar were made for each post. Next the forms were made for the concrete posts that rise above the bases. The forms were all leveled and aligned with lasers, then braced together to hold tight for pouring concrete.  

Concrete mixing, moving, pouring, filling and leveling was a huge amount of work that followed a very standard practice.  To Ben's portable electric mixer add a bit of water to wet the drum, then 5 shovels of navijack (gravel and sand mixture) and one equally size shovel of concrete.  Add water and mix, then repeat the cycle two or three more times. 5 scoops, 1 scoop, then water.   Getting just the right amount of water at the end was the key to a good mix.  Wet but not too wet, not too dry.

Once the concrete was mixed it was dumped into a wheelbarrow and rolled to each footing.  The mixer portion size matched the wheelbarrow capacity.  A well balanced operation that was repeated hundreds of times and from multiple locations where moved the operations to reduce wheel barrow travel.  We poured about 4 forms a day although it was dependent on their volume, shapes and locations.  In most of the concrete pillars, using a clever and effective locating jig that Ben built, along with lasers, levels and shims we added metal knife plates, or metal saddles to attach the posts and beams later.  After curing for a few days the huge task of stripping the forms got underway.  Thousands of screws, nails, bracing and forms were taken apart, sorted and stacked for reuse or recycling.  The amount of wood and debris was staggering.

From start to finish of the 36 total footings for all three buildings took about 10 weeks.  A huge thanks to Ben, Paul, Anna, Tyler1, Tyler2, and Liz for all your effort!  

June 4th,  Ben and Dave raise the first wood post on SW corner of the longhouse

June 18th, foundations poured for Stone House.   

Gangplank to move full wheelbarrow of wet concrete over to forms.

we nicknamed this footing the "swimming pool".  it took 6 hours to mix and pour

Liz stripping forms. 

In one day,  Anna shoveled and moved 6 yards of crushed rock 

rebar towers and forms on east end of Cedar Suite cabin.

July 14th. Anna stripping Cedar Suite forms and a sea of wood to be sorted and stacked for reuse

As Ben was leading the effort on foundations, Dave and Robert from Great West Timber Frames (GWTF) in Coombs on Vancouver Island arrived. Their first task was to cut the wood posts to length, notch them for the knife plates then raise the posts,.  Once the posts were all in,  Ben and team built the floors with  3/4" plywood over 2" by 12" joists attached with hangers to 3 or 4,  2" by 12" boards nailed together to make very sturdy floor beams.   

After the floors were in the timber frame was completed.   The 8" by 12" by 14' rafters were precut and notched in The GWTF shop before shipping to hull.  On site Dave and Robert cut and notched the glulam ridge beams, then using either a small portable crane or the uniloader started to raise the structures.  The posts are bolted to the knife plates in the foundations, then joined to the rafters with long screws, long bolts and metal straps. Before installation, each post, beam and purlins were carefully sanded, edge routed and sealed with a protective coating, and once raised, covered in either tyvek or plastic to add further protection from the sun and rain.  The timber frame wood, fit and finish are fantastic and I am super happy how everything is coming together.  Exterior walls are 2" by 6" thick and sheeted in 1/2 exterior plywood. Above the timber frame are 2" by 12" roof rafters covered in 1/2 exterior ply, the gable and facia trim are full dimension 2" by 10" or 12" nearly clear cedar. At this time two of the three roofs are covered with a "peel and stick" membrane that should last through the winter, one building has a tightly fastened tarp covering it. will ahve to watch this one!

Amy hauling lumber, her positive attitude is contagious

Amy Whiston a friend from Cracroft Island was eager to learn more about timber framing and volunteered to join the effort for a couple of days to start her apprenticeship. It was a pleasure to watch Amy work and she seemed to love the experience.  I look forward to seeing the post and beam dog house she wants to build.

Chad, another friend from Cracroft island also got involved and worked a week or so on Hull helping Paul and Anna with landscaping, clearing rocks, and raking. In exchange for his effort, I'm lending Chad my excavator for work at his place.  

At one point we had a 9 people all pitching in on the project.  What a team!  Daily lunches together were fun.  

Robert's meatball chili - delicious

Robert the Timber Frame Man

protective covers on posts in foreground and plastic covering purlins on longhouse

microwave cured Douglas fir post, beams and rafter installation

Dave and Amy sanding the ridge beam

Liz making tyvek sleeves to protect the timber posts from sun and rain. 

stainless steel bolts through hidden steel knife plates

DIY lunch time!  L to R. Robert, Dave, T1, Anna, Ben, Paul, Amy, me, Chad

plastic cover and vapor barrier on timbers

August 2nd.

For the first time ever all three of our children got together on Hull. Phil, Audrey, Catherine and her boyfriend Sean Carlo, Heidi and me. We missed Christen, Harley and Cora so talked all about how wonderful they are.  Everyone worked really well together, had fun carrying lumber (?), building, designing, hiking, fishing and especially cooking and eating.  Catherine and Sean Carlo painted and decorated the outhouse and Audrey made pickled kelp and sweet salal berry mash that was tasty in martinis, so fresh and colorful!  Heidi spent time laying out floor plans and getting input from others, and what started as a one bedroom cabin 3, is now a two bedroom one bath. Much better for more guests.  

One day we invited neighbors for hot pot filled with locally caught fish.  Audrey cooked one spicy, one mild and both were as good any restaurant, full of fish and veggies and flavors.  The logs were tough to get going but eventually we prevailed and the fires burned well. 

One day we hiked to the top of Hull. After two previously failed attempts with others, this group found a way. What a relief as I thought I was losing my sense of direction., of course it's pretty easy to get lost in the woods here.

We have a great fishing story, about the first time 2BRNR left the dock without me on board.  I can't say more on line as it might further alarm the watchers, and yes we did learn a lot... names and numbers on each crab trap, no barbed hooks for salmon, licenses on board, measure each crab.

Sean Carlo sorting fasteners

Audrey hard at it

Catherine working on purlins

Sean Carlo after the boat was loaded... still have to unload it!

North end of longhouse, photo by Sean Carlo

first dinner in the Stone House

dual hot pots - Heidi photo

Camille has the floor - Heidi photo

Jeff from WA on his 3rd trip and Rod from AZ on his 2nd met in Woodinville and navigated to our rendezvous in Port McNeill.  After stocking up we took a beautiful evening cruise to Hull. Such a pleasure with two great friends.  Very reassuring.

Rod spent hours working on the wood table he started last year and another smaller version this year.  Two Rod Taylor originals.  Peeled, custom cut, and highly sanded fir rounds. Rod lightly finished the tops with what little butcher block oil we had on hand.  I hope Rod comes back again for a second coat.

Both Jeff and Rod were eager to do real work on the buildings.  After checking the drawings and confirming the braces matched the pictures we nailed all 6 metal straps above and below the window cutouts.  Each strap used about 60, 3" galvanized nails that had to be hammered in by hand while standing on step ladders.  It was a huge arm and upper body workout and took us about 4 hours.  

Later that day I called Ben to let him know we needed more metal straps as we had nailed on all that we could find.

Ben: "you didn't do what I thought you did"

Jon: "yeah, I thought you said we should nail on the straps?"

B; "not those straps, the longer ones that extend further.  Look on the drawings"

J; "I did look.. the ones we used matched the picture"

B; "the picture?  read the notes on the drawings and look on other pages for the dimensions"

J; "oh...   well there's no way we pulling out all those nails, not be happening, no way."

That evening, kinda sick to my stomach over this situation, I tested hitting the side of the head of the installed nails with a stone chisel and hammer.  After 4 or 5 hits, the nail raised just enough to be able to use first a nail puller, then a 18" crowbar to pull them out.

The next day...  we spent another 4 hours pulling nails and undoing entirely our previous day's work.  I  really appreciated we were able to take it in stride and still had fun working outdoors together.

Camp Chef Rod cooking for the crew

more sanding!

Jeff and his stack of well cut braces. Note reuse of wood.

Jeff pounding nails fed by Rod

metal strapping around windows on shear wall

in the right places - metal straps spanning the ridge beam and securing the rafters.

On the 19th of August after dropping off Jeff and Rod in Port McNeill, I drove 30 minutes to the Port Hardy airport, left my truck and flew to Vancouver Island on a ~ 20 person prop jet, then on 737 to Seattle where I changed planes on my way to San Diego.  I was on a one week family beach vacation taking time off from Hull.  After almost 3 months sleeping on a cot in the shed, the soft beds, pillows, refrigerators full of food, restaurants nearby and best of all Heidi our children and grandchildren all together, were pure bliss.  

dinner out - photo credit Frank

Julia Patridge her parents, John and Denise and Tommy G. took a road trip from Portland Oregon explore Vancouver Island and drop off the kids in Port McNeill.  After loading up on supplies and some chit chat over coffee and scones at MugZ2, we said goodbye to the parents and set off for Hull.  This was Julia's first visit and #2 for Tom.  It's always fun to have younger people around, so much energy and life.  They went swimming everyday, cooked delicious meals, helped a lot on construction, kayaked, hiked and built the first and only Hull Island Library.  The small library is made from cedar lumber for the door and walls, and from hand split cedar shingles.  It was fun to watch Julia and Tom working together on the library,  discussing options, looking for locations and building.  

T-Man hammering home the correct straps

Julia sanding the cedar trim boards

Julia using a froe to make shingles

  Read, Rest, Relax, Repeat 

Liz and Chris joined forces for the third year in a row to help shut down Hull for the winter.  This year I'm blessed that the stayed for two weeks and I'm ecstatic we're still so close and happy to spend precious time together.  

With help from Anna and Paul, Chris took charge of finding and moving tons of rocks, clearing brush from the woods and burning the slash.  From the outhouse to the hillside above the houses and all in between the Chris and team transformed the site.  It looks outstanding.  

Liz cleared a new trail that goes through the woods, up the steep hill from the dock to the longhouse.  Liz was sure that grandchildren wouldn't take the long route so a new shortcut was needed.  While it's very usable for adults,  we look forward to the grandchildren testing it.  Liz was a huge help cooking for the crew, making fires, stacking wood and driving us all forward.  Such a pleasure to have her helping hands. 

Alert Bay - definitely worth the visit

After a week or so of working we took a boat ride Alert Bay on Comorant Island to check out the native art, resupply and see a new port.  On the way in Blackfish sound we came across 4 or 5 humpback whales feeding in the tide rips.  We watched for a while but had to press on in the interest of time.  On the way back to Hull we stopped in the same area once again.  It's always hard to count how many whales there are as they surface at different times in different places.  I  estimate there were 8 within a 1/4 mile from our boat. We cut the engines and enjoyed the spectacle of giant whales surfacing, blowing and swimming around close by.  One whale came so close that when it blew out we got covered with whale mist.  Several times we held tight as the whales seemed to swim under our boat and we feared getting capsized.  We had such a good time we stayed and hour or two.  Eventually more boats showed up and we moved on.

On September 23rd we invited the neighbors over for a construction tour and dinner.  Ben, Brody, Paul, Anna, Dick and Elaine, Dave and Amy, Chris, Liz and I had a wonderful evening eating, drinking and telling stories.  Amy brought pizza, we served spaghetti, spaghetti, Elaine brought appetizers, Paul brought10 Dungeness crab and Dick's broke out his special under house hooch.  The neighborhood feast was a very fitting end to a long summer.

Overflow parking for 8 boats with one more on the way.

plenty of fresh crab - thank you Paul !

closing day 

Scott from Aussie Diesel hauled 2BRNR out if the water at around 9:00 am in the morning of the 26th for winter storage in the yard at ShopRite Marine.  A very pleasant drive back and 5 months after it all started I was home in Woodinville once again.

The end.