It was finally time to bring some new material in to the lodge, instead of just ripping out the old. For the first time since we had started working on the place, we were finally adding something. Obviously, we were really happy about it and were being total goofballs as we loaded everything in. Glad our pal @sillysilje was there to help. Once everything made it up top, our local friend Kevin threw down some fresh decking in the “office”. The scent of freshly cut boards had taken over the must of the old building. #renovation #remodeling #oldhouse #logbuilding #logbuildings #historicbuilding #historicrenovation #renovations #loghome #logcabin #theloglodge #lodge #lodges #renovationproject #renovationlife #mthood #mthoodnationalforest #oregon #oregonexplored #exploreoregon #traveloregon #mountainlife #mountainliving #log #pacificnorthwest #pnw #pnwonderland #pnwcollective #forestlife #rhododendron

Back in 2020 we’d reached our first winter up here on the mountain not really knowing what to expect, other than snow. Luckily, Anita comes from Norway so even on a heavy snow day we could still cross country ski over to the local pizza shop. Our neighbors were just sitting on a fully functional food cart, so we thought we’d rent it and Erik run a little coffee business out of it. With the help of our lovely friend @notnotcool (of the glorious @oasiscabinresort), we were able to repurpose the sign from the lodge’s previous incarnation as a Mexican restaurant. The snow sure piled up thick, but we survived! #renovation #remodeling #oldhouse #logbuilding #logbuildings #historicbuilding #historicrenovation #renovations #loghome #logcabin #theloglodge #lodge #lodges #renovationproject #renovationlife #mthood #mthoodnationalforest #oregon #oregonexplored #exploreoregon #traveloregon #mountainlife #mountainliving #log #pacificnorthwest #pnw #pnwonderland #pnwcollective #forestlife #rhododendron

Here are some more shots from our early demolition days. The full Tyvek suits and respirators made us feel like the Beastie Boys and Tusken Raiders, but we were just smashing and slicing up the nasty flooring and old bar finishes. Our air scrubber, affectionately named Helga, was probably the most important piece of equipment that we’ve acquired. She can completely clean the air in a building of our size many times over on the course of a night. #renovation #remodeling #oldhouse #logbuilding #logbuildings #historicbuilding #historicrenovation #renovations #loghome #logcabin #theloglodge #lodge #lodges #renovationproject #renovationlife #mthood #mthoodnationalforest #oregon #oregonexplored #exploreoregon #traveloregon #mountainlife #mountainliving #log #pacificnorthwest #pnw #pnwonderland #pnwcollective #forestlife #rhododendron

The Lodge came with a variety of leftover appliances and odds and ends. Most notably what we called the Fridge of Doom. It got its name after we accidentally opened it once, and just a slight crack released one of the most foul stenches that either of us had experienced. Our minds raced with the potential horrors it contained. We finally got brave one day, masked and suited up, and opened the beast. Turns out it was just some old hot dogs, but they sure were bad smelling. Some problems aren’t as big as they seem, I guess. #renovation #remodeling #oldhouse #logbuilding #logbuildings #historicbuilding #historicrenovation #renovations #loghome #logcabin #theloglodge #lodge #lodges #renovationproject #renovationlife #mthood #mthoodnationalforest #oregon #oregonexplored #exploreoregon #traveloregon #mountainlife #mountainliving #log #pacificnorthwest #pnw #pnwonderland #pnwcollective #forestlife #rhododendron

Fire is important. A source of heat is what turns any house into a home. We’d wanted to have fires at the lodge but there was an antiquated gas system in the fireplace and we had no idea about the state of the chimney. Turned out that we needed to extend the chimney with new masonry and new lining, as well as completely rebuild the firebox. Getting that work done and our new Jutøl wood stove installed felt like our first big win. We celebrated with some fenalår (preserved lamb), crisp bread, some bubbles, and a close friend. #renovation #remodeling #oldhouse #logbuilding #logbuildings #historicbuilding #historicrenovation #renovations #loghome #logcabin #theloglodge #lodge #lodges #renovationproject #renovationlife #mthood #mthoodnationalforest #oregon #oregonexplored #exploreoregon #traveloregon #mountainlife #mountainliving #log #pacificnorthwest #pnw #pnwonderland #pnwcollective #forestlife #rhododendron

2020 had more horrors to offer than just the pandemic. In early September, a massive fire raged to the south of us clogging the air with smoke, and on the seventh the winds picked up in a way neither of us had ever seen. Giant 100 foot trees waved and swayed like thin reeds. We grabbed our friend Erika and her dog and went to shelter the night in the Lodge. The next day we found tree after tree blocking the road and crushing some of the cabins nearby. The wind had died down but the smoke still lingered and the power was cut, so we headed down to a safer spot to wait it out. #renovation #remodeling #oldhouse #logbuilding #logbuildings #historicbuilding #historicrenovation #renovations #loghome #logcabin #theloglodge #lodge #lodges #renovationproject #renovationlife #mthood #mthoodnationalforest #oregon #oregonexplored #exploreoregon #traveloregon #mountainlife #mountainliving #log #pacificnorthwest #pnw #pnwonderland #pnwcollective #forestlife #rhododendron

Every Halloween, Erik gets together with a a group of friends and they form the Candy-Ohs. They cover the hits of the Cars at a few venues around Portland, and during the pandemic The Log Lodge was the only sensible place to practice. Not only could they all stand well away from each other, but having a huge open wood room made everything sound incredible. For the first time in known history, the guitar players were asked to turn up. This led to @thewhitelightningco crossing over the mountain from @oasiscabinresort to flesh out some songs and record scratch tracks and some other random jam nights where we absolutely destroyed T-Rex. I think we all needed it.

After all of the old wood siding, drywall, and flooring had been removed the lodge felt truly livable for the first time. The air scrubber, with its 12 inch thick HEPA filter, had been humming along for weeks and the air was clear. Erik set up a little practice corner and began fumbling through “Whiter Shade of Pale”. We ate hotdogs around the fireplace, which was lit by an old party light. It felt good to use the space in some kind of a normal way. Also, we’ll be looking in to these vandals that defaced our logs. Rest assured they will be caught! 😜 #renovation #remodeling #oldhouse #logbuilding #logbuildings #historicbuilding #historicrenovation #renovations #loghome #logcabin #theloglodge #lodge #lodges #renovationproject #renovationlife #mthood #mthoodnationalforest #oregon #oregonexplored #exploreoregon #traveloregon #mountainlife #mountainliving #log #pacificnorthwest #pnw #pnwonderland #pnwcollective #forestlife #rhododendron

By August of 2020, it had come time to begin dealing with the rest of the interior. The air in the building was thick and every surface had who-knows-how many layers of who-knows-what on it. So we stripped it down to the bones and got all of the nastiness out. We purchased a giant medical grade air filter on wheels, which we affectionately call Bertha, and she’s been running off and on to this day. How’d we do on the American Gothic!? #renovation #remodeling #oldhouse #logbuilding #logbuildings #historicbuilding #historicrenovation #renovations #loghome #logcabin #theloglodge #lodge #lodges #renovationproject #renovationlife #mthood #mthoodnationalforest #oregon #oregonexplored #exploreoregon #traveloregon #mountainlife #mountainliving #log #pacificnorthwest #pnw #pnwonderland #pnwcollective #forestlife #rhododendron

Nancy Spencer ran the Log Lodge with her husband Bob from ‘59-‘66. They also lived there. The crowd were lively and beer drinking. The jukebox blared jazz, sometimes with a talented local playing along on the trombone, and there was dancing out on the floor. Some got drunk and shot holes in the wall. Another group met regularly to read through plays in the back yard. In 1964, a massive flood rolled through the area wiping out several of the old highway bridges. Rhododendron was cut off and isolated accept for a high tension wire with a basket that could ferry people and supplies across the Zig Zag river. Still they kept making sandwiches for folks able to make it in to town. These are just some of the stories and descriptions that we heard when Nancy came to visit us back in 2020. She was 92, but still sharp as a knife with a salty sense of humor. #renovation #remodeling #oldhouse #logbuilding #logbuildings #historicbuilding #historicrenovation #renovations #loghome #logcabin #theloglodge #lodge #lodges #renovationproject #renovationlife #mthood #mthoodnationalforest #oregon #oregonexplored #exploreoregon #traveloregon #mountainlife #mountainliving #log #pacificnorthwest #pnw #pnwonderland #pnwcollective #forestlife #rhododendron