Ah, Whitney in October

We had a great time up at the cabin last weekend. It is definitely starting to get cold up there...with the sun going behind the mountain for a good part of the afternoon. We had a fire going in the stove much of the time. Dustin cut some wood from the downed tree and we used some from the basement. If you happen to have a chainsaw it would be great to bring it up and section the tree that is just up from the back of the cabin.

The futon in great! Carolyn tried it out and said it was comfortable. Dustin used the old wood platform upstairs, too. I don't know how you managed to get those things up there?!

There was a board broken in the deck and we fixed it with a board from the side. It still needs some work.

Duplicate keys for the trash bin at the lower campground are on the hook by the back door.

New Tax Bill Is Here!!

Hello everyone,
I wanted to let you all know that the new tax bills came yesterday, and yes they are double what last years was. Last year was $442.00 & this year is $844.00 for the regular tax bill + $381.14 for the what they call an escape assessment for the name change. Total is $1225.44 & we have $1876.58 in the account so we should be ok for now. It's not due until the beginning of December but I just wanted everyone to know. Let me know if you have any questions. Thanks Denise

futon

We moved the blue couch out & the new futon is in, boy was that alot of work! We threw the cushions away & moved the wood boxes that held them upstairs & off to the side, everything that was in the drawers is in a plastic bag, there wasn't alot in the drawers, a canteen a rain coat & some plastic bags. The futon looks really good and is comfortable, we should have changed it years ago. We also took down the copper & had to unstick the salt & pepper shakers from the shelf! yuck! We brought up some throw away salt & pepper shakers, and everyone should always bring up your own paper products everytime because they get used up. We watered alot while we were there because it seemed very dry. We also got a letter from the Forest Service stating that any nonnative plants must be removed by 12-31-09, so that means that Grandpa's lilac bush needs to be dug up. Ryan will try to do it on water turn off weekend, we hope it lives! Have a good time. Denise

Cabin Needs

That's great that you found a futon that will replace one of the couches. Which one are you going to replace first? Thanks for taking care of this - we don't have the means for transporting something like that.
I made a list of items that the cabin needs - not too comprehensive, but a start. I am taking care of the curtains in the bedroom on the left, replacing them with a similar style and material. Greg made duplicates of the key for the trash can bin in the lower campground in the Alabama Hills area. He will leave the duplicates on the shelf near the other keys above the refrigerator.
What do you think about replacing or not having the copper canister set and the copper utensils hanging over the stove? They are very greasy and are difficult to clean. The copper salt and pepper shakers are also very dirty. Should these all be replaced? I can look for inexpensive items that would work better in the environment.
Other needs that I noted: salt, paper towels, and paper plates. Don't bring up any more napkins - there is an abundance!!
Have a wonderful time.
Jocelyn & Greg

Ryan and Natalie,

Glad you are able to go up to do the turn-off. Thanks so much!

We had such a great weekend over Labor Day - the moon was full, the weather was great! We cleaned out the food cupboard and threw away some old food. Also went through the bedroom closets and took out the old clothes, and some of the old scummy pillows. I brought home the curtains from one of the bedrooms and will make some new ones before our next visit. There are other bed pillows that I am not sure if anyone uses. No one from the Mullen/McLintock family has pillows up there, so if we get the go ahead - we will remove the rest. Some seem ancient. There were mice in the attic - as usual - and we left some D-Con that disappeared right away. We will make copies of the key for the trash can at the lower campground.Thanks for the fire extinguishers, too!

Jocelyn

Ryan and Natalie reserving October 16,17,18th

cabin reservation

reserving august 28,29,30 for ryan and natalie

Comments from a skunk

Obviously the blog is not the end all in terms of communication. I thought it would be a good way to fill the gaps between phone calls, meetings, etc. Hopefully it can do that.

By way of explanation, Chris and Debra were the last ones to leave after the July 4th weekend. I suspect they do not have a key to the deadbolt ... or maybe they just forgot. I'm glad the regular lock was locked. Also, since they were headed to Oregon, it didn't make sense for them to take the towels, etc. Sorry you guys had to find them up there. Same for the trash. That should have been taken down ... oops ... don't know how that was missed. Maybe a case of having too many people on hand.

As for paying for nonmembers, I'm not sure what you mean. No one was there without one of us who pay. It was just us going up with the family. Isn't that what we agreed to? I thought the point was for people who are not regular contributors to help cover costs by paying when they go up on their own.

On another note, if you were able to get the lights to brighten up, that's fantastic! We've suffered in the dim light for too long.

How to use the Blog

Hi Denise,
Got your voicemail, and want to prove that the blog does work. Check at the bottom of your blog where it says comments - and you will see that you have more than 1 comment after your blog. I haven't checked the blog since I last wrote, and just saw the fire information. Scarey!!

The Jucksch & Chapman family had a great time at the cabin over the weekend. All the boys enjoyed the great fishing in the pond and the stream. The girls enjoyed the the great weather and the quietness of the boys being gone. We were able to see the wonderful wiled life the cabin has to offer. The big blue Jay's, deer, fish, even a bear encounter on Saturday morning, that was very exiting.
The new valves on the lights work well. We can see again. Thanks Pat and Denise. Both Jucksch & Chapman family paid our nightly cabin fee $5.00 per adult per night to Denise.
We are happy to announce that the Jucksch & Ryan Chapman family will be cabin owners starting 08/09. we have worked out a deal with Ralph Martini to purchase his share. He was more then happy to have family that loved the cabin as much as Debbie and himself. Thanks Uncle Ralph!!!
Regarding the extra stuff in the closets we are not sure who the stuff may belong to. It may have been up their for so long, it could be the cabin's? For everybody to use? Cant wait to make it back!!! James.

Portal Fire July 15th

There was a fire this week in the portal area. Sounds like all is fine now. It started at camp site #39, but I don't know where that camp site is located. Here is info that was sent to us:



From: http://www.ksrw.sierrawave.net/

A cabin-owner in the Whitney Portal area said fire started Tuesday night in Camp spot #39 and spread from there. The Inyo Sheriff's Department logged the report of the fire at about 9:35. The Lone Pine Fire Department almost single handedly put out the potentially damaging blaze.Sheriff's Department spokesman said that when deputies arrived, the fire was burning about a half acre and had the potential of quickly spreading. That kind of fire could have trapped the more than 100 campers in the area, so deputies immediately evacuated all campgrounds, including cabin housing. The Bad Water to Whitney Marathon Run was also interrupted.Some evacuees went to Statham Hall where the county had set up a shelter. Whitney Portal Road remained closed until about 7am Wednesday morning. The cause of the fire is under investigation.We placed calls to the Forest Service for more information on reports that they did not immediately respond to the fire on forest land. We did receive a press release from the USFS. It says that about 40 personnel were assigned to the fire - Lone Pine Volunteer Fire Department, CalFire, BLM and Inyo National Forest. Reports indicated that Lone Pine Fire arrived first and fought alone for a time. We don't know when the other units arrived.

A view of Skunk's Point

In case you don't know what we call Skunk's Point, here it is:

reservation: katie & james for july 24th - 26th

glad to hear everyone had a good time, and happy birthday carolyn. i got a bill from lone pine propane about the regulator & to change the line from pig tail to hog tail. did it improve the quality of light? hope so. also did mark fix the screen door? the pictures were good & is the baby chris & debra's grandson? he is very cute.

Going up again in Sept and Oct

We had a great time over the 4th so we're planning to go up to the cabin over Labor Day weekend (September 3-7) and for the weekend of October 9-12.

July 4th at the Cabin

Hi everyone!!!
When we went to the cabin for the 4th of July there was a total of 18 people at the cabin at one time. 16 people slept there, and it was definitely at it's full capacity. Even Don and Shirley Hughes made it to the cabin for the day on the 3rd.
Couple of things we noticed that need want to bring to all cabin users attention.
When we arrived and turned on the gas, we noticed that the bathroom light had been left on. We didn't notice it until we smelled it. (Could have been dangerous)
Also - the D-con which works great (no critters heard at night) needs to be left in places either up off the floor, or in the fireplace. We were hunting for it to make sure that our dogs did not find it and eat it when we weren't watching, and we did find it in several reachable spaces.
The shower was draining into the basement. There was a pipe not fully connected under the shower. Dustin crawled into the space and fixed it hopefully permanently. We are not sure how long it was draining into the basement.
The bathroom shower is beautiful!!!! Thank-you Ryan.
There was not much room on the shelves behind the kitchen door for food items - there is a lot of stuff there that needs a new home. Also the shelves over the refrigerator/stove.
I have a request - there is a lot of stuff in both closets, and it makes it very difficult to unpack and make yourself at home for the stay in the cabin. I think that if everyone purchases plastic storage containers and pops them upstairs it would be easier for everyone visiting.
Some of the men cut down a tree behind the cabin that was dead. There is plenty of wood to cut up and put under the cabin. We gave it a start - but there is alot left to do.
The cabin is a true testimony to what our parents and grandparents were trying to provide for our families, and our family had a great time last week.

The 2009 Whitney Open

For those who don't know, The 2009 Whitney Open, was a random draw horseshoe tournament that was played July 4th, 2009. There were a total of 12 participants, Chris, Jennifer, Greg, Jocelyn, Marissa, Diana, Mark, Carolyn, Heather, Alex, Andy, and Tina.

At day's end, there were victories...





There were defeats...






And through smiles...

And fierce concentration...

A champion team was determined.

In the end, Heather's toss beat out Andy's by a hair, and she went on to win it all in a last round ringer! The Champion pair were Heather McLintock and Chris Hughes. The runners-up were Jennifer Hughes and Andy Blatchford.

And good times were had by all!

Hi Everyone

Glad to see that a number of you have received the invite to this blog and signed up to be authors. Feel free to add info, entries, pictures, etc. Be sure to enter info about what type of supplies, food staples, work, etc. are needed...or what you did our found at the cabin. This is also a place to share fun/interesting stories about the cabin.

I'm still looking at how to best arrange a calendar for cabin use. I have looked at Google Calendars and that is a possibility, but I need to investigate the features. If you have any suggestions, let me know. One option might be through a wiki but I don't have any experience creating one.

Do you all know why "Skunk's Point?" Photo to follow after the 4th...maybe video.

Entered from the Aarchway Inn in Moab, Utah. Hope you are all well.

(Sorry to hear the sad news about Michael Jackson.)

June 14, 2009 Cabin Meeting

Carolyn volunteered to take notes. Here they are:

In Attendance:
Denise Chapman

Pat Chapman
Ryan Chapman

Natalie Chapman
Katie Juksch

Beverly Jones
Donald Hughes

Shirley Hughes
Greg Mullen

Jocelyn Mullen
Marissa Mullen

Carolyn McLintock
Mark McLintock

Wood for burning - good amount still in basement.
what was used was replenished by Heather McLintock and Alex in June.

Folding chairs for outside use - 6 are in the basement, could use more.

Property was appraised at $71,000.00 - raised from 35,000.00.

Decided to install a day use fee for family members that are not owners.
$5.00 a day per person over the age of 18.
work weekends (major projects) no fee for day use.

Every family should get a plastic bin for air mattresses in attic.
put name on it.

Pat will measure the space in the attic for flooring.
Discussed putting indoor/outdoor carpeting upstairs.

Discussed the guys taking a weekend to work on the upstairs.

There is a plumbing leak in the basement. Pat brought up several different
sizes of PVC (1/2" and 3/4") and will put in plastic containers in basement for
fixing leaks.

There will be a dead wood removal by the forest service during the course
of the year.

Association fees are $80.00 now.

Ralph - needs to either relinquish ownership of the cabin to someone else, pay what he owes,
or gift/sell his share to a family member.

Monthly payments are being raised to $75.00 a month. 4 owner are paying in.
Jocelyn/Greg Mullen
Carolyn/Mark McLintock
Denise/Pat Chapman
Chris/Debra Hughes

Jocelyn has a key to the dumpster - she will make a copy to send to Pat/Denise.
dumpster is located in the lower Lone Pine Campground.

Cabin Blog - Jocelyn/Greg had idea to create a cabin blog - where we can keep a
calendar, let each other know what the cabin needs, what needs to be done, and
keep in touch with each other better.

Gas is needed for the generator. Carolyn/Mark will fill the tank when they go in July.

Regulator needs to be evaluated/replaced on the Propane Tank. Pat/Denise will let the gas
company know to check it next time they fill the tank.

New couches are needed. Discussed wood futons that fold out to beds. Research
futons - post on blog and we can vote on best one.
Couches will be taken to the dump. - Who has a truck?

Screen door needs a new screen. Mark will take care of when we go in July.

Fire Extinguishers need to be charged or replaced. Pat will check expiration next weekend.

Missed the turn?

If you see this

cabin you've gone

too far. Turn around

and trace your steps

back down a ways...

about 11 miles. Have

a pancake or two and then head down another

mile. This time you turn right at the sign, cross

the bridge, down the hill. It's on the right.