The Unturned Stone

The sidewalk around the pool completed, we have started the steps that lead into the depths. We are using the same material, but being even more deliberate with the arrangement of stone, to make them comfortable and safe for walking. The pool lining will be black and will make a stunning contrast against the gray stones, accenting the sleek shape of the steps.

Today we began the small wall that sits on the paving and follows the perimeter of the pool. This a narrow veneer that will be capped with another round of paving stones, to serve as a walkway and as pool coping.

Jonathan received employee of the day honors today for finding this tree frog under a step stone that hadn’t been mortared into place yet.

We spent all of last week (#5) setting the submerged sidewalk around the perimeter of the swimming pool. We made a final push on Friday morning as the skies opened. Note that the joints are recessed. We will grout them later.

Due to a chaotic schedule of construction on the front of and inside the house, we abandoned the posts in the reflecting pool at midweek. Progress had slowed some as we worked around the deck sleepers.

The first two posts as we left them on Wednesday. Note the pink insulation on the temporary plywood decking. In addition to prividing a staging area, the plywood and insulation creates a small indentation into the wall that will allow the decking to be ‘plugged’ into the stone work, minimizing the need for painstaking cutting by the crew laying the deck.

We moved around to the back, to a real pool. Meant to look more like a swimming hole than a standard pool, there’s a paved walkway around the entire perimeter. The walkway will be submerged under about eighteen inches of water, so a comfortable, fairly level surface is paramount.
The second day in the pool found us laying out edge stones. The back edge will be hidden under a small wall, but the frontside will be exposed. After the walkway is fully set, we will grind the edges to relative smoothness, to prevent round the sharp edges of the Hooper’s Creek stone being used for the paving.

In 2001 the Appalachian Trail Conservancy (ATC) and the Nature Conservancy purchased a tract of land in Johnson County, Tennessee called the Osborne Farm. The property is known for its beautiful vistas, rolling fields and a cranberry bog.
Development of the Osborne Tract has focused on accessibility. It’s location at a trailhead, its gently rolling fields and stunning views make it a perfect place for a wider, flatter trail that allows people with mobility concerns to enjoy the AT.
The Unturned Stone is developing a 2800 foot section of the trail to be wheelchair accessible. Winding its way through rolling meadows, the trail can have no more than a five percent incline and must include wider areas for passing traffic and rest stops at regular intervals. The accessible section of the trail culminates in a cul-de-sac with a scenic vista of Mount Rogers, the highest peak in Virginia.

Wolff Alterman digs out the trail track. The trail bed will be lined with a geo-textile fabric and covered with crusher run, a gravel and sand mixture that can be packed to a firm and stable surface. The accessible section of the Osborne Tract will be completed by May 2006.