Haylu Shelter

Both Brad and I love hiking. Brad is Highpointer which means he is hoping to summit the highest point in all 50 states. An admirable feat! He's at 27, I think. My first love is long distance hiking, in particular on the Appalachian Trail, a 2169 mile footpath that runs from Springer Mountain, GA to Mount Katahdin, ME passing through 14 states.

I attempted a thru-hike in 2006 but was forced off the trail in Central Virginia due to a fire at home. I hiked the Long Trail as a consolation prize. Not a bad option.

At any rate, the A.T. is truly my "hiking home" and will always hold my heart. I'm surrounded by the glorious peaks of the Rocky Mountains but I very much miss the rolling green hills of the Appalachians. So, when faced with what to build for our active little daughters for a playhouse, there was really only one answer. We had to build an A.T. Shelter. This is where the "Haylu" name originated in the summer of 2010.

My poor husband never argued with me. Instead, he created a beautiful little Adirondack style shelter for our girls.

The base.

Framing

Framing from the front

Getting those walls up!

Hayden & Lucy checking Daddy's work

Lucy making sure he's doing it right.

Shelter done! Chairs for the girls & Momma!

Trailhead sign and Shelter sign

closer view

YEA! A whiteblaze!!!

 I love my husband for many, many reasons and this one is definitely on the list! I am probably 10 times more excited about this project than the girls are. I'm ready to have our first overnight and sleep in the shelter. I thought this is where it would end, but we had a few more additions that made this the BEST. PLAYHOUSE. EVER.

The rocks are a dry creekbed.

TA-DA! Bridge over the creek bed. :)

Test run.

My little climber chick.

The picnic table set away from the Shelter.

Haylu Shelter

Hayden signing the Shelter Register

Lucy signing the Shelter register.

We are going to have a lot of fun playing out here this year. The girls already love it, as do I. My husband is the front runner for Husband of the Year 2011! Ha!