This is how Louie gets to his house across the river in the winter time in Mendocino county.
This was last Monday night when Louie, me and Foster Huntington zipped across the river to have a wild duck dinner with homemade red wine.
Louie has been using this contraption for over 50 years now. The seat is a bosun’s chair, and there’s a wooden brake to slow you down if necessary when coming on for the landing.
Louie Frazier’s sauna under construction in Mendocino county. Built on Toyota truck chassis so it can be pulled back from river in winter. Windows at eye level (a technique used by Lloyd House in Canada), that creates feeling of spaciousness in tiny buildings. Siding is cedar 1×6 fence boards from Home Depot. Rafters are staves from old wine barrels.
“…thought you might be interested in this. We’re hosting our first ever Japanese Carpentry Workshop this year. We’re bring out two full-time professional carpenters from Okayama, Japan to lead the class. Kohei and Jon specialize in ishibatate construction. 7 days of Japanese joinery with hand tools to build a timber frame from the ground up. Details here if you’re curious: www.theyearofmud.com/natural-building-workshops/japanese-carpentry-workshop
Still love following your work! I trace back a lot of my building inspiration to your books over these 10 years.”
–Brian “Ziggy” Lioila
Article in Guardian: I didn’t buy any food for a year — and I’m healthier than I’ve ever been
From Maui Surfer
Log cabin with hip roof, central Nevada. Squared-off logs, nice joinery. I shot this in the early ’90s, on one of my 4×4 trips in search of remote hot springs in the American southwest. It was out in the middle of nowhere, making it even more special.
Note tacked-on addition in back. Even with that, the simplicity and beauty of this little building shine through. Note also floor joist tenons routed in to bottom girder/log.
Last night, on the way “over the hill” and back, I saw 5 coyotes and 2 foxes. This guy was by side of road at about 7 this morning. It let me get within 15 feet. Not good. I believe clueless people are feeding them. Bad idea. Makes them beggars instead of hunters. Also a death sentence for some, as they get hit by cars. “A fed coyote is a dead coyote.”
As the Miwok knew, they are special.
This little beauty down a side street in Torrey, Utah, stopped me in my tracks. It’s in our book Home Work. The log work is perfect — a master builder at work. (Check out notched-in log partition in center, and notched-in cross-ties — look at second horizontal log below eave.) Perfect proportions. No architect in sight. Shot in 1989.
At this late stage in life I’ve forsworn acquiring more tchotchkes, but this little computer-generated 3D laser model I picked up at Builders’ Booksource in Berkeley was irresistible. Took a while to snap all the pieces together. Interesting how accurate the tabs and openings are. They have to fit perfectly and snugly to hold everything together. About 8” by 5.” Made by onemanonegarage.com
