This weekend Oceana and I came up prepared for another weekend of hard work. Ever since purchasing the house, we’ve wanted to clear out the overgrowth to get back that beautiful lake view. I actually hired a company to do it….but they didn’t. They decided they’d rather go out of business than deal with all those Brazilian pepper trees down by the water. I can’t say I blame them. At least they cleared out the overgrowth down the driveway and at the street.
Getting started Saturday morning 
Mostly cleared out!
After having a few cups of our favorite cowboy coffee, it was time to get started. We handled a few quiet odds and ends around the house first thing before we got out the noisemakers – the chipper and the chainsaw. I finally remembered to bring the replacement gas cap for the chainsaw so I’m looking forward to being able to use it again. As much as I enjoy swinging the machete, the chainsaw is where it’s at for this type of work.
The wheelbarrow tire that I filled up a few weekends ago only held air for one day so I swapped it out for a flat-free tire. What does one do with an old wheelbarrow tire? Make a discharge chute for the wood chipper, of course. This should help keep the chips in one smaller area rather than spread over a 15′ long area. It will also deflect projectiles shot out of the wood chipper which makes it safer to be around if you wind up downrange.
The old wheelbarrow tire 
Discharge chute complete
After about 8:30 or so, we fired up the equipment. I hadn’t been running the chainsaw but for a few minutes when I see the neighbor backing the dump trailer down the street. That’s awesome. We chatted for a bit while practicing social distancing and he was on his way. Oceana loaded the trailer with leaves from the banyan tree while I cut down the brush at the lake. We loaded the trailer up past the top with leaves before starting to load up the heavy stuff.
Since we were able to use the dump trailer, we separated the cut trees into groups – logs, long skinny branches, and branches to be chipped. If we loaded all of the branches onto the dump trailer, we’d fill it up 5-6 times with how much we cut down. It made more sense to chip the easy stuff (smaller than 1 1/2″ diameter) and then make stacks of the larger logs to toss on the top to weigh down the leaves.
The overgrowth at the lake. I’m hiding in the trees down there. They’re tall! 
These branches were so intertwined. Each one was a fight to get out.
Selfie!!
Oceana ran the chipper all day while I cut, fought, and drug the intertwined branches out of the lake. We cleared out most of the north side of the dock on Saturday just in time for the sunset. On Sunday, we focused on the south side of the dock and were successful in getting it cleared out. There’s still a handful of branches to be dealt with on the north side but we ran out of time this weekend. We had to be back home by 4pm today to meet the cable man. Before we came up on Friday, we saw a tractor trailer backing down our street and he took out our cable line. I’m still not sure why we had to be there, he didn’t need to get inside to do anything. Regardless, we worked as much as we could on Sunday and then made the drive back.
Tubing on the lake. That looks like fun! 
South side all cleared out 
A nice panoramic of the new lake view.
While working outside on Sunday, we met nearly all of the neighbors around the lake. We were blown away by how nice of a community this is. Many of the neighbors have history at the lake that goes back decades. One of our neighbors even baked us a loaf of banana nut bread and brought it over to us still hot from the oven! That was so nice of them. When the work on the house is complete, I look forward to throwing a BBQ party for the neighborhood to invite everyone over.
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That banana nut bread was delish!
As usual….you guys accomplished a lot in a short amount of time. Using the old tire as a discharge chute for the chipper was a very novel idea. Were there any critters down by the water as you cleared there? The pictures are absolutely beautiful…especially the panorama ones. Very nice gesture to get a warm loaf of banana nut bread from the neighbors; must be a friendly community. You two will fit right in nicely!!
I didn’t find any critters in the water. I was surprised that I didn’t. The neighbor found and killed a water moccasin the other day so there are critters around.
WOW What a gorgeous view. You guys are doing a great job!!!
Thanks!! It really is a beautiful view. It’s nice to be able to see it again
I LOVE that y’all have created this blog. Especially since we didn’t get to make our usual visit from UT during spring break this year due to COVID-19. I grew up on 13 Lake Byrd, where my parents still reside, with my maternal grandparents next door on 15 Lake Byrd. My mother grew up on 15 Lake Byrd as well. We have a lot of family history on the lake dating back many years. My grandfather planted palm trees around the lake years & years & years ago. A few are left. I look forward to meeting you both;-)
I have always LOVED this house & I’m happy to see that it won’t be torn down. I have found memories of the couple who lived there while I was growing up. Ironically, I shared a relating story with my son before bed 4 nights ago. An owl story. I’ll have to stop back by when I can spend more time & share it. THANK YOU!!!!
P.S. I ran across many of snakes over the year & an occasional alligator passing through. I learned to keep my eyes peeled. Fortunately the clear water makes it easier to decipher what you might see when swimming.
Snorkel around the lake sometime. It’s pretty cool. Taking my horse for a swim was one of the most memorable lake activities I ever enjoyed. Along with skiing, tubing, paddling & fishing. I only loaded up my tabby cat in the canoe & took a trolling fishing trip. He wasn’t fond but allowed it.
Thanks for commenting Tiffany! Too bad that you couldn’t make it down but I’m glad that you found our blog. I can’t believe the amount of history around this lake. I’m looking forward to meeting you and getting a chance to hear some of your stories. Cheers!