OPERATION SAND-TWISTER
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It ain't always fun and games.....On May 6th and 7th, dedicated, hardcore members of Michigan Militia descended upon The Badlands to raise the berm and refurbish and slightly relocate an already existing outhouse (because someone said building a NEW one would violate some kind of law. The old outhouse hole is not the only thing that was full, if you know what I am saying...)
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It was warm and sunny, and the foliage was in its full green splendor. A couple of us brought our sons out to hang out whilst we dug and hammered and stuff. This was my oldest son's first real overnight camping trip, not counting my Dad's front yard. I think it is good to get the young ones, especially the city-bound young ones, out into the woodline once in a while.
Anyway, Dewey had a good time, me, Frank, Denis, Ken, and Jeff got the outhouse going. We are very glad that Jeff was there. Very, very glad. We used a 35 gallon plastic barrel, with the bottom chopped out, to line the hole. This will take a while to fill, I think....
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With wood and pallets that Frank brought, a rough structure was set up around the seat, which has a lovely, scenic view.
The outhouse was built mostly for the ladies and younger ones, to facilitate them being able to come and stay overnight, without relying too heavily on their entrenching tools.
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Jeff even installed a toilet roll hanger, which we will try to keep full. Though this should not prevent anyone from bringing their own roll or two....
Later that evening more folks arrived, and we just kinda relaxed. Dewey was so exhausted, that he really had no trouble going to sleep, which was kinda nice.
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The next day, Sunday, we worked on clearing any debris from the range, in the hopes that one of the possibly two bulldozers would make it. Some of the railroad ties were kinda heavy (Jesus beams), and there was a slight wasp issue to deal with, but most of the old scrap wood and whatnot were cleared away from the range and disposed of in the fire.
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Then, at last!!! The Macomb Brigade showed up with a bulldozer, and the great raising of the berm began. Big special bonus thanks to Hank from Macomb County, who brought the bulldozer.
The owner of The Badlands says that the facility is now okay to shoot again, and with the new, higher berm, and the new outhouse facilities, let the unloading commence!!!
-Lee
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On Sunday after our fearless leader and Dewey left, we worked on the berm with the tractor, stacking and packing tires throughout the day.
Some storm clouds started to roll in late in the afternoon. Those clouds also brought with them wind- lots of wind... For those of you unfamiliar with the Badlands, it is quite sandy. With the building of the berm being mostly sand - now a large area of highly volatile exposed loose sand - add to that wind gusts in the 50-60 mph velocity, you now have a human sandblaster! Needless to say the blinding effect can be quite painful while trying to hunker down and dive for cover (in a sand pit mind you).
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Meanwhile, back at camp, if your tent was not staked down or tied down to something sturdy, it was seen blowing down range…
The storm clouds passed without much further incident in a relatively short time, although we could have done without the sand-twister. We all survived and went back to finishing the berm.
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By the time the sun was going down, we were done for the day. The berm was raised to the near epic proportions we had all hoped for, in addition to a whole new area on the right side.
Thank you Hank and thank you everyone.
See you next time!
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