Fall Clean-Up on Haven Hill

This last weekends' Sunday work party (October 12) included a visit to the Haven Hill Gatehouse, a review of the Edsel Ford Barn, and some productive clean-up on the hill at the circle in front of the Haven Hill Lodge ruins.

Above, members of the Friends of Highland Recreation Area (FOHRA) enjoy a clean-up day on Haven Hill in front of the ruins of Edsel Ford's Lodge. The group cleared overgrowth, removed piles of storm-damaged tree limbs, and raked and shoveled there way through the afternoon. It was a nice day (70's to near 80 degrees), and the group was visited by 10 - 12 people hiking the Haven Hill in the great weather.

The location on the hill inside of the Highland Recreation Area is a wonderful place to hike and enjoy the fall color. If you can make some time available for a good cause, come on out and join us in helping our local recreation area on the 2nd and 4th Sundays of each month! Look for the FOHRA gang.

REMINDER: Click on the pics to see the full-sized images. Have a great day!

January 13, 2008 Work Day

The day was cloudy but the spirits of the volunteers were "sunny" to say the least. Brooms, shovels, waste cans, tools, and other supplies all seemed to emerge from nowhere as everyone arrived and began a full day of work. This old barn seems to be yearning for help. This last Sunday was my 1st day in the building, and I was excited and optimistic about the project despite the sorry state of affairs inside.

Water damage has affected most of the interior. I'm no barn renovation expert, but I think the good news is that the major support beams (the "bones") appear to be in fairly good condition.

Above: Edsel Ford Haven Hill barn renovation activity. January 13, 2008.

Below you can see an interior photo with what appears to be the old boarded-up animal doors on the right. I assume they were the sheep paddock openings that allowed the animals to move in and out. The bundles on the floor are some of the tarps being used for the roof repairs.

Thanks for reading... I'll post again with a picture each day or so...

Work Party Entry

On January 13, 2008 we had a great group of volunteers come out to the Highland Recreation Area and work on the Edsel Ford Haven Hill barn. More large tarps were put on the roof to stop water and snow damage, and lots of interior cleanup was accomplished as well. It was my 1st time inside of the barn.

Believe it or not, the photo above is a picture of the SECOND FLOOR... the barn is huge! Click on the image to see a larger photo.

All of the volunteers had a great time and the weather cooperated (snow and rain were in the forecast but none fell). Keep in touch... a more extensive post will be coming soon...