Let the Cleanup Begin

Anyone having to deal with fall cleanup knows this......what a pain!

I've been using my new back pack blower.  I like it.  It's easier on the arms to not have to hand carry a blower that will get progressively heavier as the day gets long.  It takes some getting used to as to how you need to walk and herd leaves.  But overall it makes the work a lot easier and it goes faster.

Both my neighbors have made overtures about borrowing it.  One not so direct, the other just asked outright with a 'pretty please' attached.  Nope.

So far I've spent about 12 hours over the last week or so and then about 8 hours on New Years Eve day blowing leaves into a huge 40'x40' area in hopes of eventually burning it down to a small pile of ash.  I'm still only a third the way through what needs to be cleaned up.  Who knew there could be so many leaves and debris compacted down to the soil?? 

Looking up from the channel

Looking down towards the channel
Just barely started the cleanup.

My neighbor across the road has mentioned twice I could just mow it all away.....and I've responded twice I can't (and won't) until I know and remove damaging obstacles lying in wait under the years of leaves.   Why ruin a perfectly good lawn mower?  I also want to get down to the ground anyway so I can eventually lay out a new layer of grass seed.

At about 4:30pm New Years Eve I drug up a chair and started a fire to get rid of a combined pile of underbrush I had cleaned out the week before and the new leaves.

I've got enough leaves and other debris left over for several more burnings!

Happy News Years!