Tuesday, April 21, 2009

Rock On, Dude ...

... or ... On Rock, Jude

This is what we saw when we arrived to babysit for a little while this afternoon: big holes, big rocks.



All the kids want to do is fence in the place so that Nikki Dee and Zachary (when he's ready) can play outside safely. But the bedrock is close to the surface here — to say the least. The fence guys started with a big auger yesterday but had to augment that with a drill. Then they went back for a bigger drill, but it still wasn't enough.



So the backhoe arrived today, and was busy digging out huge holes for little fence posts ... because that's the only way they could dig out and move the rocks that you see in the next two photos.





Is that crazy or what?! It took two guys to pivot the rock in the next picture into the bucket because the backhoe wasn't able to get a proper purchase. Big sucker, eh?



Fortunately, the kids back onto a wooded area, so it was easy to dispose of the rocks, and that's what's going on in the next two photos.





In Sarnia, we had about a million feet of clay before you got the bedrock (enough to build a railway tunnel through the clay under the St Clair River anyway) but here in Eastern Ontario it's right below the surface in many places.

I have been enjoying a partial break from blogging and commenting so far this week, but I had to take a break from my break to show and tell you this little story.

17 comments:

KGMom said...

Rock on indeed. I bet that wasn't what they had in mind when they first decided to put in a fence.
But it provided a day's entertainment, no doubt.

Amanda said...

It's amazing that a simple enough job has turned into a much bigger one!
My kids would have enjoyed watching the digger all day!

Ruth said...

We fenced in our yard when our children came along and put in a sandbox and swings. But they always wanted to be out in the front yard and on the sidewalk where they could meet other people. The backyard was like a "time-out" spot. Many new subdivisions have sidewalks just on one side of the road now.
Have a good week.

Ghazala Khan said...

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The Pakistani Spectator
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Mary said...

AC,

Wow! And I thought our yard was rocky, but it has nothing like these huge boulders. It is just small rocks, but are still very hard to dig. We did find one big one and have it in the side flower bed. It was quite unique in shape and had many little holes in it. Reminded me of a fossil, so I kept it for decoration.

We don't have a fenced yard. We are on a corner and have very little backyard...side and front yard only and not too much of that either.

The fence will be well worth it, as the kids will be able to play outdoors. Thanks for sharing. This is amazing.
Blessings,
Mary

Donna said...

That's a BIG job!! And some big rocks!! Happy break!!hughugs

Garnetrose said...

I am glad our yard is not that rocky. Looks like quite a job they are doing there. *s*

We all have to take a break in blogging at times. As long as it is not a really long one like my one break was. I am trying not to take that long again. *s*

MARY G said...

We spent a day sounding for a rockless spot to set a post for a clothesline.
Ah, the joys of Eastern Ontario.
Glad to see your post.

ChrisB said...

Wow those are some rocks -good job they didn't have to be moved far after all the effort to dig them out.

Tossing Pebbles in the Stream said...

I hope you give an interview to The Pakistan Spectator.

I would have only dug posts in at the corners. The one's in between I would just leave on the ground in those precast blocks that hold the bottom of the post. It looks like it is going to be an expensive job.

Lorna said...

Uncharacteristically for me, I could only think how expensive that fence was going to be...

Pearl said...

not a lawn ornament of them huh?

good thing to have petrol-muscle now and then.

Mara said...

Well, if they would have wanted a rock garden, it shouldn't be too hard (or too expensive...)

Woman in a Window said...

THAT is some serious rock. We've a clay base. I think my husband will appreciate that more right now as he put the posts in.

Enjoy your break!

PBS said...

Rock can certainly be an obstacle to fences and mailbox posts, too! Interesting pictures of the equipment.

mreddie said...

Interesting story - looks like enough rock to build a fence with. We mostly have sand or clay around here - it is said that our area was an ancient sea bed. ec

dabrah said...

I will never complain about our heavy clay soil again. What a huge job, just to put in some fence posts!