Session G: Day 4 - Beach Day (full version)
We can't believe it's already day 4; this week is flying by! We gather into our groups after breakfast and come up with a plan for the morning.
Kablooi's tree fort platform is coming along well, but they decide it could use some reinforcements. With a basket full of gussets, they begin to make more triangles.
Ryker makes some angle cuts for the "web" of the tree fort.
Piki's bridge bottom is nearly finished. Ben is really enjoying cutting holes into the boards.
Nooi's bridge platform is chugging along as well. Caden makes some angled cuts for the supports of the bridge, under Gever's ever-watchful eye.
Some of the gussets for the tree fort aren't fitting because the paracord compression belt is in the way. Junior Collaborator Yoel holds one while CoopDogg marks where it needs to be cut.
The tree fort is finally starting to look like something, and Nooi's bridge is making steady progress in the background.
Portrait of a Tinkerer: Zyla puts together the Nooi bridge platform.
A rare sighting! Collaborator Daniel out from behind the camera.
With the water set to rise this afternoon, Piki starts getting their bridge connected to high ground.
Caden picks out the right screw for the job he's working on with Junior Collaborator Zach, while Swiss Warrior waits to drill the next hole.
Ava and Martha work on connecting the web on the tree fort.
In order for Piki's bridge to work, they need to anchor the bridge into the ground. Collaborator Miles makes holes in the deck of the windmill tower while Lilly screws the bridge temporarily in place.
Lilly also shows off her knot-tying mastery. The figure-eight knot is one of our favorites at Tinkering School, and she uses it here to tie the bridge on.
With the outer ring finished, it's time for preliminary safety testing of the tree fort. They discover there is some lateral twisting to fix, but the vertical strength is solid when Collaborator Caroline climbs up on it. The triangles slip very slightly on the tree, so the team needs to discuss additional ground supports.
Piki hoists the bridge up to the carousel next. Their teamwork is a marvel to us all.
During our clean-up, we find another thing to add to our workshop museum.
As is Wednesday tradition, we make our way to the beach. It's a tricky climb down, but well worth it.
One of our favorite parts of this beach is all the friendly dogs. This particular dog captures our hearts.
Lucas has a special bond with him as well. Everybody loves this dog!
Well, almost everyone.
It was a cold day, but it was still refreshing to hop in the water for some of us.
For others, finding the mysterious things the ocean brings to the beach is interesting enough. Erving and Aya have found some kelp!
The soft cliffs make it easy to make little caves with warm, rich sand.
And no trip to this beach would be complete without a trip to the tide pools. Unfortunately, our camera died before we got fully into that adventure.
When we get back and all go through the showers, we get cozy and have hot chocolate, courtesy of Mukluk and Erving tonight.
We finish our tiring day with a showing of The Princess Bride while we sip from our mugs. We settle in to dream about our projects.
Blog written by Caroline.