Winter Makes a Statement

Originally, the Lodge was open only during the summer months. My dad and a helper or two would head up in May to do all the preparation necessary to open the cabins, store, and dining room for our summer guests. Surprisingly, for all the years our family owned the place, little damage occurred while it sat unoccupied through the winter.

But 1969 was different. It was a year of record snowfall, and my dad arrived to find that the unusually deep, heavy snow had caved in the roofs of the kitchen/dining room and my parents' cabin. This would require a bit more work than expected! But with the help of Uncle Bob Clark, the buildings were quickly repaired and life went on as usual. (I should note that someone had the wisdom to use metal roofing that would better shed the snow in the future.) I recently ran across these photos of the damage:

the dining room side

the kitchen side

ripped the cabin apart!

P.S.  I thought this was amusing when I was talking to my dad about this recently... apparently someone from the Forest Service informed him that our buildings had been damaged. His response was that he was well aware of that fact because he had already repaired them! Were they seriously thinking they were being helpful? Or were they hoping to hear that we would not rebuild?