8/8-10/16 I went up to Camp Serendipity for 3 days: Monday through Wednesday.

My schedule was bumped up one day this week so I could be home for cataract surgery on Thursday. The weather was rainy all the way up but it stopped just as I arrived at 11:38. That made it nice for moving my gear in and hoisting the flag. After lunch, it started raining again so I took my usual nap.

When I got up I fetched the next tread blank from the woodshed and brought it down to work on it. I did the planing on the blank and then mounted it for scribing. In the process I had to dismantle the outer gauge rail because it interfered with the positioning of the blank. This was the last tread so the gauge rail was no longer needed.

On Tuesday I changed the batteries in all three smoke detectors after hearing one of them chirping. Then I called Robert to touch bases. I asked about the big fir that had fallen across the Sequoia grove a few years ago and he said that it probably was no longer any good and I should cut it up for firewood. The big pine log might be sound, though, and he said he was going to scrape off some bark and see. He said he would try to come over the next morning.

It was raining again when I went out to work but since I was under the eaves, it was no problem. I scribed and notched the tread and stringers and got the tread to fit perfectly. I drilled it, sprayed it, and then went in for a nap. When I came back out, I stained the tread and bolted it into the staircase. That was the last tread in the last staircase—a major milestone.

On Wednesday morning, Dave called and we had a nice conversation. After breakfast, I put away most of the tools I had been using to build the staircases and I cleaned up most of the chip mess.

The rain had stopped so I went to check on the snag that I want Robert to cut down. I expected him to show up any time. The trail I had cleared to the snag was still clear. I checked on Paul and the dirt around it was nice and moist.

Then I took a spud into the woods to check out the fallen fir and pine. The fir was definitely no good so I will buck it up for firewood. When I went deeper into the woods to check on the pine, I discovered that another tree had fallen across the trail so it was hard to find a way around it.

I did find my way to the pine and I spudded some of the bark off of it. It was infested with tiny ants but the wood itself seemed to be sound. I'll let Robert decide whether or not it is still good.

After I came back out of the woods, I made some more measurements for the porch railing systems. Robert never did show up.

I left for home at 12:35 glad to have the staircases done and ready to take on the next projects.