About Us
About The Cabin
How it came to be
The cabin was built over several years with our first guests in 2007 - extended family from Norway. The basic frame was completed by Don Seawater's crew at Pacific Access Lumbar and finished by the family. Hours of free labor, blood, sweat, and tears brought it together. The project continues actively, inside and out. The challenging grounds continue to evolve.
Every effort has been made to use native, local materials as much as possible, without veneers or paint. You will note the "native edges" on much of the wood siding, window sills, and frames, countertop, crown molding, etc. Wood types include:
° western cedar for the siding, most interior walls, corner moldings, and porch posts
° pine for the floor and ceiling
° walnut for the baseboard, crown molding, headboard, and backsplash
°Sassafras for the bathroom door, frame, and kitchen cabinet made to match the opposite cupboard.
°Locust for door cross members and cutouts in kids' room wall (locust wood has a natural iridescence and glows under ultraviolet light. Check it out in the bunk room at night.
° Cypress for the countertop.
° California sycamore for the walls in the kids' room. If you look out that window and you will see a big California sycamore, several lining the creek. Also, not the exquisite grain patterns.
° Redwood for the door to the kids' room.
° Oak was used for some selected areas where hardwood was needed. Again if you look outside, you will see the hills covered with live oak trees).
You will note the woodsy smell when you enter the cabin. It's like living in a cedar chest or hope chest. We hope you find it refreshing. If you scratch the sassafras door jam in the bathroom with your fingernail, you'll smell the familiar aroma of sassafras tea. I used to love that smell when cutting small sassafras bushes as a kid in North Carolina for making grandma's sassafrass tea. Unfortunately, disinfectants, cleaning products, and time diminishes the effect and can overwhelm the lovely wood scents.
The design of the cabin was scratched out on a napkin by Larry and friends. Everything is a group effort, and we are grateful for everyone's additions. Of course, alterations were made along the way, and we are still open to improvements. I love building with wood because it has a living, bending, breathing quality that blends with the dynamics of the life we all live. It even competes with us in the aging process. It wins.