My Home away from Home!

   A lot of people ask me why I like "roughing it", and stay in a tent (lodge) in the woods so much.  I seldom go into details as to how comfortable I really am.......;)  After as many years as I have been to Rendezvous and just plain camped for the fun of it, I have learned the more comfortable you are, the more fun it is.  Yep, I have to have a wagon train to get it all moved in, and I seldom set up camp, unless I am going to stay for at least a week.  I have had my lodge up for as long as three months at one time.  The lodge is now 10 years old, and this is my third.  It is still in pretty good shape, with a few repairs here and there.

    This is standing in one end, looking at the bed I made in my not so neat and clean, cramped basement wood working shop at my other home.  It all comes apart and breaks down with only 4 carriage bolts.

    This box serves several purposes.  It is made of knotty pine with an Oak top that opens.  It has a Red Cedar tray in the top of the box.  In the bottom is where I store my bedding and wool items.  The Red Cedar keeps any Moths out, and the tray holds many small items of value and use at Rendezvous.   As you see, it also serves as my bedside table.  It has a leather and wood handle on each end, that you cannot see in the picture.  It is built on two small skids, so that when I pack it , I can easily drag it to load it, without ever having to pick it up.

    On the back lodge pole are two wooden hangers that I made that tie around the pole with leather straps.  This is where I hang my war bags, etc....  To the left is my "Closet".  This is a folding rack that I made that I hang all my Rendezvous clothes on.  I forgot to straighten it up before I took the picture!  You can see the top of my sheep skin "easy chair" that also knocks down.

    On the ridge pole, I have these hooks that I made to hang my guns up to keep them out of the way.  I also use it as a hat rack as you can see.

    This is a pantry or "bar" if you like, that attaches to the foot of my bed.  It folds up and closes up and hold my "silverware", snakebite medicine, some cookware, and you name it.  The box on top is a first aid kit that I made long ago.  It contains everything from a small cut medicine to hangover medicine!

    This is my wash stand that I made to serve several purposes.  It all knocks down and folds, as does everything else.  There are four Oak post that attach to the bottom box.  There are two towel racks, one at each end that attach to the four Oak post.   The top is one piece of yellow pine with a hold cut for the metal wash basin.  The top is cut so that I spring the post apart, and the top is held in place by laying on the towel rack braces and the tension from the Oak post.  The bottom box contains my moccasins, buckskin pants and shirt, and no tell what all else.  The box sitting on top of it is full of "good junk" that usually stays under my bed, but I had it out plundering just before I took this shot, and it ended up on top of the other box.