Saturday, November 2, 2013

Before and After: Barn

When we bought Oak Creek Ranch, there were pens and paddocks everywhere.  I'm sure they were all put to good use in its years as a riding school and boarding facility but we sure didn't need a million pens -- and it looked like a cluttered mess next to the barn.

First step, shortly after moving in, was taking down the pens.

We thought the area would be perfect for tacking up the horses since there is a door directly into the tack room along the barn wall and a nice deep area under the eaves.  Brett started digging post holes for the tie rails but it was slow going.  The ground is very hard with a road base type layer around the barn.  After chipping away at the holes for weeks, he got them dug and the posts installed.  He needed a small chain saw to finish the job -- he wanted to notch out the poles to complete the tie rails.  Guess what he got for Christmas (early):

While I was at work, he was busy working on the tie rails.


After completing construction of the tie rails, he brought in a load of decomposed granite and spread it out, leveling the ground a bit.  Then he put down stall mats and, voila, we have an awesome area to groom and tack up the horses.  Does he do exceptional work or what?








11 comments:

  1. Awesome isn't the word for it - amazing! Love the last picture - you're both dynamos.

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  2. Kudos to Brett. He's not kidding about working 12 hours a day!

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  3. Love the hitching posts! Much better than those sorry looking paddocks.

    What a beautiful place you have :)

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  4. That's what they tied their horses to in the old West. I don't remember them from my horse days in Sweden, but they are so functional.

    Your header photo looks like it was taken with the same dark skies and brilliant sunlight as mine. How funny!

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  5. Hurray !
    Love the hitching posts , we have one very similar made of cedar. My Mountain man made it.
    Feels good getting your own dreams done doesn't it ...one more cheer ~
    Hurray !

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  6. Wow! You guys are doing a phenomenal job on your new farm! I'm actually quite abit jealous! I've been bugging my hubby for a tie out area for years now to no avail! Not I'm going to have to really set my foot down!!!

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  7. I love it -- and love learning more about your place. So interesting -- the history behind where you live.

    Big thumbs up to a job well done. And good choice on the chain saw! :)

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  8. That looks fantastic!! Great job Brett!

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  9. The whole place will be unrecognisable by the time you guys are finished!

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  10. You guys inspire me! Well done - enjoy!!!!

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Thanks so much for commenting!