Shallow Steps Evolution

2013

2017

In Fall of 2018, the shallows were used for overwinter dock storage, but

in Summertime, toddlers enjoyed the shallows protected by the big log.

October 2018

Some slate steppingstones provided adults a 

tricky approach to the beachy area. The concrete-filled 6" PVC pipe offered a grip. In fall of 2023, a 'gestalt' with railroad ties 

helps to visualize steps to approach the proposed 

'Shallow Steps' (BTW, the unsecured upper beam DID 

float way with springtime flooding)

With low water in off-season, Pressure Treated 4x4s (>6' long) were imbedded with a backhoe in November 2023. This image is March 2024

First crosspieces / PT joists attached to 4x4s

Slate pavers finally installed November 2024

High water in springtime 2025 is still a novelty

Aluminum Swim Float

Replacement of our deteriorating, pressure-treated raft was the consensus of the February ‘24 Annual Meeting.

A contemporary, welded aluminum, cedar deck Swim Float seemed the best choice. Raft had a minor custom modification to fit onto our winter storage system. The Dock Doctors of Vergennes, Vermont offered a discount if we transported the raft ourselves to Green Lake, NY. Above is the new raft, up-side-down on the transport trailer.

Before floating the raft, a new anchor system was needed:

Anchor system consists of the old radiator, with chain, connected to bobber (seen next to Eldric) + a new collection of stainless-steel carabiners, jaw & eye swivels, clamps & thimbles, all laid out. Plus rope. The template for this anchor system is based on the cartoon below (Winter tether not installed yet.)

                      Team effort to handle & position the new Swim Float:

New  ladder is comfy.

Many hands really, really help!

New system will be a huge benefit for autumn chores. 

The chain assembly (secured with the tether) eliminates the need to manipulate an anchor! 

Pulling-up an 80-lb weight, on a tippy raft, after a dip into October's cold Adirondack waters is one of the least favorite chores of Happy Hollow.

Electric Safety

Camp, like many older homes, was built with ungrounded outlets. Over time, some outlets were replaced and have a modern third port, but no ground wire. So, those electric units had none of the protection of grounded circuits.

Without a grounded outlet, the risk of arcing / sparks and electrical fire are dramatically increased. Electricity is like water: it always chooses the path of least resistance. So, with ungrounded outlets, that pathway can fry an appliance, like a computer, or in the worst case, flow through a person.

This June, our engineer friend Ed Greenslit replaced 12 outlets and assured their proper grounding. 

He also worked to convert the old dock light switch to properly illuminate the two outdoor entries. Last year, he did troubleshooting for the spotlights in the parking areas.

Camp has multiple issues with contemporary Code compliance. At least one circuit breaker trips during rainstorms. Some areas lack basics, like a light switch upon entering a room.  Major concerns include unbalanced &/or overloaded circuits: the kitchen area is truly a big issue. Another concern is the water pump, which shares power with other outlets. Electricty is a benefit we easily take for granted.

 We’ll talk more at our next annual meeting.

Staining Project

 

Camp’s exterior received a cleaning-up, with a prep of steel brushing for old paint stripping, plus power washing in September 2021  

Deciding about stain color relied on a paint store  ‘visualizer;’ this helped the sisters in August 2019 to decide color possibilities for camp (given that that Papa Kurt chose a red metal roof in the 90’s).

Contractor Dave Kluska took a spray paint approach for the major stretches. Since fall, other trim was by us. Lattice panels have also gotten an update.

Raft Storage

 Overwinter support for the raft had a renovation in 2020, when a rear axel of a Plymouth Voyager was welded onto our existing 4x10 steel frame. (This was a re-use of Kurt’s old trailer, adapted to support the raft, which occurred in 2010.) 

Just schlepping the revised contraption into the Adirondacks seemed like a major achievement.

Interval step is to flip this steel structure over (so the wheels can roll on the ground). Final step was to get the whole apparatus into the water. Fortunately, this fall’s loading of the raft for winter storage seemed less stressful than previous years.

Forest-side Entry

The history of building a handicapped accessible entry to the cottage started around 2004 when Kurt and Lois had worsening health issues. But finally constructing an improved access from the forest preserve & parking side of the cottage surprisingly took more than a decade to achieve.

Piers were finally ready in November 2018. The first platform was ready in June 2019. But key transition platform-work, with ramp was completed by Jason Corolito’s established craftsmen John & Gary in late 2020.

More unique puzzles will need to be solved before the completion.

Artistic Decorations on Antique Chairs

Camp chairs have enamel sketches on their backing. Some of these sketches are VERY cool.  

In 2016, we'd like to repaint the chairs, but preserve the priceless images.

When Kurt Klingbeil was youth minister at New York’s Calvary Baptist Church, members of his Manhattan youth group painted these images.  Specifically, Sid Couchey completed the image of Carol as a toddler in a dress, holding a teddy bear.  And he signed that painted chair.

 

Sid Couchey was developing as a cartoonist in Manhattan.  He was enrolled in the Cartoonists and Illustrators School (which since 1956 has been called the School of the Visual Arts http://www.sva.edu)

and 

also developed a strong relationship with Kurt.

Couchey worked in New York on print backgrounds for the Lassie, Big Town and Howdy Doody TV tie-in books in the early 1950’s. His first complete work was published in Hoot Gibson #6; several of his illustrated stories appear in Heroic Comics, published by Famous Funnies. You might recall him as a lead artist / principle illustrator for the 1950's Harvey Comics, with characters of Richie Rich, Little Lotta & Little Dot.  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sid_Couchey

https://artlyst.com/news/sid-couchey-little-lotta-and-richie-rich-illustrator-dies-aged-92

Check out the watercolor sketch of Kurt completed by Sid Couchey, perhaps when Kurt was about 25-years-old in 1953.  

It hangs at the staircase at camp.  The time from sketch to our discovery in Kurt & Lois’ basement exceeds fifty years.