The Devil went down to Georgia…leastwise that was the appearance & feeling this past weekend, when the temperature hit 108 degrees & the air was dry & dusty. KI4TZ & I were in Dawsonville to put the elevated earth anchors & 45G tower base in for low power FM WLTS. The holes were not done according to my supplied drawings, but we forged ahead anyway, doing the best we could under the circumstances. Hardest work of all was actually getting the 8-inch gas pipe moved over to & then INTO the holes! Once the largest pipe (the 16-footer!) was in the ground (six feet down), it became necessary to center it & lift it up onto some concrete blocks. The pipe weighed close to 600 lbs. That was an interesting & serious piece of maneuvering. It was even hotter down in the hole. But I persevered & all went well. We pumped concrete to that hole yesterday & set the base & the other anchor posts as well. In a few weeks, we’ll be back to install/build the tower.
First time ever at or on a jobsite I found it necessary to kill something–in this case, a 4-5 ft copperhead! Once I spotted it, the area cleared out pretty fast. He was coiled up near one of the anchor post holes, snoozing in the heat. Alas, I was not about to just toss him over the fence or study him Steve Irwin-style…
Hope all readers have a safe & happy 4th of July! Next up, back to Aiken, then back on the road to MO/IL/IN!
stay tuned…
