The yurt platform

We’ve got a good start into the main project for this trip — getting the yurt installed.

The wood arrived two days after we did from the local woodyard in Coja.

On Saturday we collected some old tyres from Fernando, the local mechanic at Casal de São João (thanks for the help Pete!).

Saturday I got the middle terrace strimmed enough to make space for the platform, and Sunday morning started shifting the materials. Green wood is heavy though — it was one plank at a time. After 40 trips with planks and tyres with the sun rapidly gaining in strength and heat, it was time for the river beach. Then, after some wonderfully spontaneous and serendipitous help materialised from the river beach, the rest of the wood got shifted. And all just in time for karaoke at the local café. (Thanks again to Steve, Diane, João, Clare and Wayne. Not forgetting Django who slept through most of it. You guys are amazing!)

Yesterday we went back to Fernando’s for some old engine oil to be recycled as wood preservative, plus a trip to the local hardware store for linseed oil, to be used on the interior surfaces of the yurt platform.

And today we woke up with the blessing of cooler temperatures and the odd cloud which meant we could devote a whole day to getting to work, preserving the wood and digging a level surface on which to place the tyre pillars which will form the supporting structure for the platform.