Memorial Day dawned clear and cool and some intrepid Harts-Millers – Randy, Paul, Anthony – were on the land by mid-morning to mow and weed-whack. After lunch Katy arrived at the Frazier Road entrance and along with Anthony, Rita and Semion, cleared out some of the underbrush in front of Kim’s house and post-holed and installed a line of posts and rope to demarcate Kim’s drive and protect the large tree on the corner. (We finished one side; Anthony will return to the other once we’ve had some rain to loosen up the soil a little.) Alana and Diego helped Paul add layers of mulch to the potato garden, and then checked out the trails (for running!). A number of new Exploratory members and other friends came for tours and then joined the big cookout in the later afternoon, grilling all manner of food on the fire, closing out with a great lemony cheesecake Rita brought for her birthday (Happy 25th, Rita!). Amy and Catherine and Wren, along with Anthony, stayed into the night to watch the trees come alive with fireflies under the stars!
Memorial Day Workday and Cookout Report
Potato Planting Workday March 2015
It was another beautiful day on the land. Paul and Randy showed up early with an abundance of chopped up spuds waiting to be planted in the garden. They got to work tilling and building raised beds. Rita joined them with shovel and hoe. Peter swung by with some salvaged windows that could be part of a future greenhouse or cold frame(s). Hope filled out the roster. Taters were planted, muscles worked, a gate hung, and community glue built through an honest days work, the promise of potato salad, and much good will and hearty conversation.
Accomplishments Timeline- 2014
Paul created this beautiful timeline describing all of the meetings, workdays, and other accomplishments of 2014. Take a look!
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MLK Day 2015 Workday Report
January’s workday got us from scratch to an almost-ready-to-go garden, thanks to Randy’s thorough planning and preparation and a lot of good work through the day by Randy, Paul, Geri, Susie, Anthony, Rachel, Matt, and Donna. Tall cedar corner posts were dug into the ground and cross-braced; metal posts driven in between; fence and wire mounted high and low; soil tilled and compost carted in. Along the way we even had Hart’s Mill’s first Iwo Jima moment, as you can see from the attached photo. By potluck time the crowds had thinned, but some of us still shared a fire and food and welcomed the stars, along with Catherine, Terry, and Wrenn, before decamping for warmer places. Thanks to all!
November 2014 Workday Report
Dear Hartsmiling friends:
Thanks for everyone who could make it for a fine workday yesterday! Many people worked hard, mostly all day: Randy, Paul, Kyle, Colleen, Joe (Colleen’s cousin), Rita, Sheffa, Rachel, Peter, Ann-Michelle, and me; with Hope and Amy and Molly (our daughter) able to join for potluck and fire time. Our BIG accomplishment was to finish the Far Field Connector Trail (which is #3 on the attached map pdf — the same one I sent before, but with the completed section now marked over in purple — yay!!). Indeed we took it from a mere blazed route to a usable trail! I also put together some footbridges out of planks, and Rita and Rachel nailed on some mesh fencing for traction and set them into place — a photo of one over the outlet stream (which really needs a name) is attached too. Then a fine fire and fellowship. Beautiful weather too!
Right on — let’s do it again!
Anthony
October 2014 Workday Gratitude
Many thanks to everyone who showed up for the workday, tours, potluck, camping, etc. on Sunday 10/26! Seventeen people took part total over the course of the day, including two potential members on the tour. Paul and Anthony started the day with mowing, mower maintenance, and weed-whacking to get the main areas ready. When Stephen and Andrea and Donna arrived, we moved over to the newly-tilled wildflower field and started sowing (mix of the bee-forage wildflower mix and leftover clover seed from last year) while also carrying down the kayak and starting to plumb the pond. Stephen did a quick till to till in the seeds. Hope and Ann-Michelle arrived; we adjourned for lunch and then they headed off to work on HM admin on-line. Rachel and Matt arrived and went out on the water for more measurements. Johanna joined us and took on the fertilizing of the wildflower field using the seeder. Miriam arrived, and soon after her friends Marcela and Nico for a tour; then Peter, who joined Rachel and Matt and Johanna and Ann-Michelle and Anthony as we located and marked the next section of trail (from the Creek Connector Trail to the SW edge of the tobacco field). Amy arrived; it was potluck time; later Linda arrived with Lylah… more dinner, big fire, gradually folks peeling off as they needed to until Linda and Lylah and Anthony were left watching the stars and fanning the flames and eventually retreating to our tents to sleep through a night that got so cold that there were even a few patches of frost in the fields at dawn. Gorgeous sliver Moon at dusk, wonderful and welcome orange sun at dawn.
It was great to get the wildflower field done — great also to finally measure the depth of the pond (average depth is 4′, deepest about 6′: we have enough measurements for a decent topo when I get a moment) — and wonderful to blaze the route for a next big link of trail (trail-building will be much easier for this segment —it’s much more open country with many fewer brambles). Major accomplishments! Plus much good fellowship and many new faces!
Fall Equinox 2014 Workday Report
On Sunday 9/21 the morning commenced with a mowing-and-clearing crew of Randy, Stephen, Paul and Anthony, with Hope joining in early afternoon to help tour a new and promising group of interested folks – Amy joining later for dinner, with Catherine and Wren, at 4 no longer the youngest kid, as Felipe and 2-year-old Michaela joined at dusk. Equinox rounds were sung in honor of the turn of season, and Paul and Anthony closed down the day watching the embers and the stars as darkness fell. Lots of loop trail hiking, tree-clearing, tennis-balls-for-dog throwing, and the like – and meeting new prospective members — a good day!
Heading into Fall 2014
Late summer work on the land has continued!
The main meadows have been mowed; a topological survey to the 2-foot level has been completed and passed along to our engineer; and Land Stewards have continued work on trail building (opening of the first loop is VERY close now!) and clearing the dam.
Over our last several General Circle meetings, the community explored and consensed on a village layout plan detailed enough that our engineer can begin drawing and planning for roads, septic, and other infrastructure, and that work is underway now as we look forward to a late Fall submission to the County Planning Commission.
As we head into September, our first big event will be an extended Facilitation Workshop from Sept. 11-14th, in Durham. Planning is also underway for a workday, tours, and Equinox party on the land on Sunday the 21st — open to all, mark your calendars! — and an Elon University Environmental Studies class will visit the land on Monday the 29th for tours, a class session, and a campout to follow.
More information on the Equinox Celebration will follow soon.
July 2014 Workday – A Great Day on the Land
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Six hard workers spent much of the day Saturday braving the heat but enjoying a sunny day on the land to make some summery progress on trail-building and dam-clearing, as well as keeping paths and open areas mowed to allow easy access to the Pavilion and Fire Circle area as well as dam and trailhead. We shared a nice lunch at the Pavilion as well. Participants were Linda, Randy, Rita, Hope, Paul, and Anthony.
The first major trail loop (from Pavilion down to stream, then through the woods on the far bank up to and across the dam and back through the meadow to the Pavilion) is within another workday or two of being passable, and tentatively we plan to resume work next Sunday afternoon (7/20). Watch here for more — all welcome!
First Trail Cleared!
On Friday 11 April and Saturday 12 April we had a lovely evening campout and information and work sessions with Elon University’s Student Sierra Club. Anthony and Johanna hosted and stayed over and Amy and Alana joined for part of the time. Hart’s Mill s first tent city sprang up in the shadow of the big oak; we had a nice big fire for a long time while we ate and talked and played Cranium, then some of us sat and just watched the coals, with the Moon and Jupiter and Mars to keep us company. Saturday morning we introduced the project, had a walkabout from the pond to the beaver dams, and then a work session in which we were able to clear a trail all the way down to the stream from a point just east of the fire circle area — the first leg of HM’s first trail!
