...But then, a text from a neighbor a mile down the road changed everything: “We found your bridge.”
Now What?
When the flood water finally receded our bridge had wound up a mile downstream in our neighbors field. We weighed our options. Was it worth calling it a loss and chainsawing it so we could get it back to our land? Or do we find a way to haul it back in one piece? We decided we put too much work into it already and we would find a way to get it back. There was no time to waste because a snow storm would be coming in just a few days time.
Bridge Recovery
The day we decided to bring the bridge back home had the worst weather imaginable: 35 degrees, rain mixed with snow, and strong winds. Without a tractor or even a truck, we had to figure out how to get this 22-foot bridge onto a tiny trailer without dragging or damaging Joe's 4Runner. Using car jacks, pulley systems, and brute strength, we somehow got it on the trailer and managed to drag it back to the bank of Maxy Brook. This time, we chained it to a tree. We knew we couldn't just put it back the way it was, so we decided to let the bridge sit there until spring and then come up with a better solution.
New Plan- Cribbing
We had all winter to devise a plan, and what we ultimately decided on was building a cribbing system held down by rocks. This would not only weigh the bridge down but also raise it up. We used peeled cedar logs for the cribbing because they're so rot-resistant, and we happened to have a lot of cedar logs lying around. We filled the cribbing with all the massive rocks we could find and, when those ran out, we asked our friends if they had any rocks on their property we could use. We created a cribbing of 8 logs high.
Putting The Bridge Back
Building the cribbing was easy compared to our next task- how do we get the bridge back on and across the brook? Joe set up an elaborate pulley system with a giant crank attached to the biggest tree we could reach on the other side. Crank by crank, the bridge inched toward its new home. There were a couple of close calls with it almost falling off the cribbing into the brook, but despite being time-consuming, the process actually went pretty smoothly.
Ramp
Of course, now we had a bridge three feet off the ground, so we had to build a ramp. We wanted to ensure the angle wasn't too steep so an ATV or snowmobile hauling a load wouldn't have an issue. However, the longer we made it, the more expensive it would become. I think we nailed it (pun intended) by adding another 16 feet to the total expanse of the bridge. The ramp was built just like the bridge, with three stringers made from overgrown Christmas trees.
Finishing Touches
All we had to do now was screw in the stained deck boards, level out the ground around the ramp, and give it a test run.
Success!
Reflecting on this whole journey, it feels incredibly rewarding to see the fruits of our hard labor. We're proud of what we accomplished—building something we never thought possible without the help of big machinery. The experience has taught us the value of perseverance and it’s a testament to what can be achieved with determination and teamwork.
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