10/4-6/19 I went up to Camp Serendipity for 3 days: Friday through Sunday.

Again, there was no answer when I called and left a message for Earl, so I didn't stop to visit him. I arrived at Camp Serendipity at 1:00 after a beautiful drive over the mountains. The temperature was 50° outside and the ground was very damp when I arrived. I brought my gear up to the cabin, hoisted the flag, built a fire in the stove and was delighted to find no trace of mice. I am beginning to think I have won the rodent wars.

After having my lunch, I went into the woods and found that the ram pump was still pumping away but the outflow at the tree was only a trickle. I suspect that some animal has bitten into the hose and it is losing pressure because of the leaks. I decided not to look into it since the trickle was enough for the tree, especially this late in the season.

When I returned to the cabin, I took my usual nap. Then I took all the 2x6s out onto the front porch and sanded them to prepare them for their second coat of Varathane.

In the evening I got a call from Earl. He explained that he had used the wrong number when he tried to return my calls. He told me that he was not going to leave the area but stay through the winter this year. Patty had just moved into a new place nearby, so he was all set with help. I told him I would try to visit next week.

On Saturday after breakfast, I brushed the dust off the 2x6s and brought them back inside the cabin. I stood them up in the Grid E3 corner of the living room. Then I took the two newel posts and the new tread out onto the porch and sanded them. After brushing the dust off them, I brought them back inside the cabin to await varnishing.

Since the temperature was just about freezing overnight, I figured it was time to winterize the irrigation system. I disconnected and drained the porch hose that feeds the main irrigation hoses, and then I went into the woods and disconnected the ram pump from the supply pipe and from the delivery hose and unlashed it from the old iron pipe. I left those in place and took the pump back with me and stored it in the old privy after draining as much water as I could from the expansion tank.

Back in the cabin I set to work repairing my paintbrush by replacing the small brads with brass screws. In the process, I jammed the small screwdriver pretty deep into the end of my left middle finger. Pretty dumb. I knew better but I was just careless. I fixed it up with a band-aid and it only hurt for a little while. A small nuisance.

After having my lunch and a nap, I spent the rest of the day splitting and stacking firewood.

On Sunday morning, after warming the place up with a nice fire, and after having my breakfast, I set everything up in order to varnish all the pieces. Then I proceeded to apply the second coat on all the pieces just as I had done before. The process worked very well so I didn't change anything. When I finished, I cleaned out my brush, took my respirator off, had my lunch and left for home at about 1:00. I felt pretty good about the progress and the reduced chances of another mouse invasion. I left all the traps set, though, just in case I'm wrong again.