First up was the rowboat. Here? Maybe here? A few feet to the left? Turn it around? Phewww, finally it's in the right place. I took the cedar logs from the unfinished stairway to heaven and repurposed them as supports for the rowboat raising it to just the right height for sweetie to plant and care for her garden without having to squat or bend over. Fill it full of earth and voila, the first one is ready. Next was a canoe. "Hmm, that rock is in the way." No problem, I'll just push it over with the tractor. "I think we should have the boats fan out" sweetie said. No problem, just a minor adjustment and there it is. Looks good? Great, I'll get two more cedar posts and we'll support the canoe on those. I load up the boys (dogs) into the truck and off we go. All those cedar logs I had cut a few years ago are slowly being used up. "What's that, the canoe is too low"? No problem, back in the truck I go with the boys (they sure like riding in the truck). I'm smart this time and I cut two extra supports because we know what happens next.
So, the canoe gets moved, the two support logs get lifted and two cedar spacers get put underneath. The canoe goes back on, gets levelled and then filled with dirt. Great job! Except now the row boat is too low. How the H do you lift a rowboat full of earth??? Empty it is an obvious place to start but I'm feeling technically challendged here and with all my heavy duty lifint equipment I am sure I can rig something.
And so I do. A block between the ends of the cedar supports to keep them from closing in, a strap under the logs and canoe (a bit of cursing as I have to dig under the poles first), the tractor bucket turned so I can hook up the straps and up she goes. Isn't hydraulics wonderful! One extra cedar spacer goes under and back down the boat goes. Hurray, one end done. Now I can't get the tractor to the back of the boat (damm canoe is in the way now) but I know my backhoe will reach so it's turn the tractor around, rig an extra long strap under the supports and boat and up she goes. Err maybe not. the sides of the boat are further out than the cedar poles so the sides of the boat start to buckle in before the boat lifts. I take her as far as I can but the boat isn't lifting. I don't think my hydraulics are strong enough. Just as well I suppose as I probably would have broken the rowboat. Next idea, put a 4x4 under the back end and lift that. The sides will be clear but I don't think I have enough lifting power. Plan B? two jacks under the support logs and slowly jack the end up until I can get that last log underneath.
Well plan B didn't work! Three jacks later finally finding one that a) works and b) has enough power and c) has enough height, I got one log lifted high enough when the soft ground shifted enough for the jack to roll over moving the log out as it collapsed. Luckily the support log stayed under the rowboat but it got shifted about 6 inches outwards. Oh yes, the jack seems to have jammed and won't go down now.
Plan C goes into effect. Remove the compost bins from between the rowboat and the chicken coop, run the tractor close to the rowboat, sling the back of the rowboat and lift with the bucket. Success!!! and the compost got macerated by the tractor tires as a bonus!