16ga.com ~ View topic

Joined: 17 Jan 2014 Posts: 1378 Location: Denver, Colorado

Depart tomorrow for home. Didn't get to hunt as much as I wanted but got the critical things done here to stabilize the place until next spring. The flooding has likely destroyed most of the outbuildings here but the main house will survive. Re-evaluating the long-term plans for everything here, but....it could have been worse.

The real problem here for me is the slow degrading of the hunting and the fishing opportunities. More & more people here all the time means less fun for the rest of us. Need to consider that before making any re-investment in this part of the word.

[url=https://imgur.com/aMu5wrI]

[/url]

Sure missed my 16 the last few weeks...

Joined: 30 Sep 2019 Posts: 145 Location: Colorado

Safe travels, Lloyd. Wish I could tell you it’s better back here. Add to Colorado leading the nation in car theft and top 3 states in inflation, this morning we learn Denver leads the nation in package theft.
So best not send anything home ahead of you and once you get back you probably don’t want to park your truck at a trail head. Neutral

Lloyd3,

Sorry to hear your cabin is in a place where more and more people are coming to live or visit. Glad to hear you stabilized your property, I do hope you had insurance to replace your outing buildings.

I am lucky to have my log cabin in a place where the population is not increasing and our hunting remains solid because of our great habitat. We have always welcomed sportsman from all over the world, here in Potter County, Pa, as long as they hunt legally and behave themselves. We do have a lot of sportsman from NJ, OH, NY, MD, VA and Mass who own cabins and have invested in our community in a big way, for the hunting and fishing here in our mountains. Our population here has actually fallen because some of our old sportsman have passed away leaving their cabins to their wives and children who use the cabins sparingly, compared to the older men.

all the best,

Pine Creek/Dave
L.C. Smith Man

Joined: 17 Jan 2014 Posts: 1378 Location: Denver, Colorado

No. Dave, no insurance, just the school of hard-knocks. We inherited this place in 2020 and it is what it is. Still fun, just not as fun. Thinking about putting up a more-substantial building and some other features but....lots of variables. Time will tell, right?

Joined: 17 Jan 2014 Posts: 1378 Location: Denver, Colorado

That drive gets longer every year. Resting up here today. Some pix from my trip...

[url=https://imgur.com/m1UKfAA]

[/url]

[url=https://imgur.com/QTYptxm]

[/url]

[url=https://imgur.com/MyGAwtx]

[/url]

[url=https://imgur.com/Cmb0Hzq]

[/url]

[url=https://imgur.com/zciM9Cz]

[/url]

[url=https://imgur.com/XWdAfEx]

[/url]

[url=https://imgur.com/K7uH94K]

[/url]

[url=https://imgur.com/KW7hDBx]

[/url]

Lloyd3,

From the looks of your Grouse habitat I would definitely recommend an upgrade.
When I first acquired our cabin it was in pretty bad shape, the owner had been using it for fall turkey hunting only, and never kept up the maintnce on the old building, except for the roof. I restored the old cabin that was built in 1774 the original owner/builder was Dr Wilson who signed the US Constitution with Ben Franklin in Phily. The place means a great deal to me, I upgraded everything to include a real nice generator that runs on natural gas, for when the power lines are damaged by falling trees in the big storms we have here on our mountains.

I wish I had acquired my place many years before I did. Go for it and rebuild your place, having a camp to hunt Grouse from is definitely a plus, especially with how things are going today.

all the best,

Pine creek/Dave
L.C. Smith Man

Nothing beats having your own log cabin in Grouse habitat.

Joined: 17 Jan 2014 Posts: 1378 Location: Denver, Colorado

Thanks Dave. It's not like I'm getting rid of it, it's really how far I/we want to go further to make it more comfortable and arguably, more useful. A 4-season home on the property, along with a garage would be a significant improvement and something we've talked about here for several years now. The biggest challenge for us is getting there (it's 1,200 miles door to door). Having a place to go is wonderful, no doubt, and I've enjoyed it thoroughly now for over 20-years. But...the place needs a complete going-through (including the boat(s), the truck(s), the lawnmowers, etc.) and we only get to use it for a few weeks a year. My father-in-law ran it on a shoestring for a very long time and it was still great, but...the flooding really pointed out it's weaknesses. It's the old story...you want bigger & better until it comes time to pay for it, use it, and then maintain it. Just not sure if that makes sense here. We'll see how this next election goes first...

Lloyd3,

I fully understand 1200 miles is a long way from home and with minimal usage you definitely need to think about the money out lay. If you are near retirement and can spend a lot more time at the camp, then the investment would be worth doing.
I drive 5 hours to my log cabin in Potter/Tioga and I spend massive time there all Grouse, Woodcock and Pheasant season, along with April, May and June for Fly Fishing.
Before my open heart surgery it averaged out to about 7-8 month of the year. I did some heavy investing to bring the old pace back to where I can use it as a 2nd home.

I hope you get to use your camp more! You definitely have a hard decision to make.

all the best,

Pine Creek/Dave
L.C. Smith Man