Well it could have been this big if I had a larger shovel. You can say it isn't a lake if you choose. My ducks and I know differently. We’ve known we needed one for years. We also knew it was expensive.
When some lowlife ran over our geese while they were walking back from their special swimming hole it was time.
The little story about the swimming hole can be found on this site under "improving the gene pool". I knew I had to do something. I guess there are a lot of things that could be done. There is no hunting season for lowlifes in Texas (darn) so I just got a shovel.
When some lowlife ran over our geese while they were walking back from their special swimming hole it was time.
The little story about the swimming hole can be found on this site under "improving the gene pool". I knew I had to do something. I guess there are a lot of things that could be done. There is no hunting season for lowlifes in Texas (darn) so I just got a shovel.
If you think the first picture was silly this is probably really tough to take. I knew that I could dig something that would work and that would be small enough to fill with a hose. I had only been working on this lake for a few minutes when I took the time to take this picture. It's wet because the digging is easier if you keep it that way. Dry clay may not be tough as concrete but it's high on the list of things I don't care to dig.
I had done a percolation test and I knew the places to avoid and where it was good to dig. A perc test consists of digging a posthole and filling it with water. If the water soaks in you have ground that is heavy on soil. If it holds the water your ground is heavy on clay. I knew we had clay and after reading about pond liners I knew I didn't want to do that if I could help it. I thought we should roll with clay. It held the water pretty well.
This was about the point I decided that I could use a nap, or something. It was pretty hot out. The wheelbarrow and the shovel give some idea how large it was in one day. It was about 18 inches deep.
I decided that this might take a little bit of time. I know I'm old but I figured I had time enough to dig and to take naps. All systems go!
I decided that this might take a little bit of time. I know I'm old but I figured I had time enough to dig and to take naps. All systems go!
A little blurry perhaps but this was on the second day. I was not surprised that we didn’t have a bunch of ducks.
I thought the clay in the water resembled sewage. Why would a duck like it?
I thought the clay in the water resembled sewage. Why would a duck like it?
The brown pole with the white dots is eight feet long. By this point the pond was about 20 feet long and perhaps two deep. It was about that time that I knew I could make something big enough for the ducks to enjoy yet small enough to fill with a hose. The best part was going to be that it was cheaper exercise than the gym. This water came from a rain, not a hose. That was good news because it meant the yard was going to drain to the pond. My goal was about twice this size and I knew it was attainable.
Then I invited my bride out to look. She knew what I was doing but I had never asked for her opinion. Perhaps I didn't really want it after all. I thought I wanted it until I had it.
To say that she was unappreciative might not be fair. I think she did appreciate the effort but it is totally fair to say that she did not concur with the direction we were going.
We had a frank discussion and progress was madeI. I believe that is enough diplomatic speak for one story. We decided that we would give the subject a rest and I decided that I wasn’t going to dig any more until we agreed.
Then I invited my bride out to look. She knew what I was doing but I had never asked for her opinion. Perhaps I didn't really want it after all. I thought I wanted it until I had it.
To say that she was unappreciative might not be fair. I think she did appreciate the effort but it is totally fair to say that she did not concur with the direction we were going.
We had a frank discussion and progress was madeI. I believe that is enough diplomatic speak for one story. We decided that we would give the subject a rest and I decided that I wasn’t going to dig any more until we agreed.
We had just gone to town and were returning when she spotted the sign. Ponds dug, it said among other things. The number was a local exchange so we wrote it down. Lets call them and see what they say says she. I agreed with a sinking feeling as I knew I was going to be outnumbered here. She wanted a lot bigger pond and I knew that these guys were going to want to dig it. In other words: I wanted a swimming hole for the ducks and they all wanted Lake Wilcox.
Well they came and sure enough, I was conquered. I gave up on having a small manageable pond. What I really gave up on was getting my way. I knew that a large pond was going to sit smack dab in the middle of Wilcox Boulevard. That is a small road that I had built to get to the back pasture.
Well they came and sure enough, I was conquered. I gave up on having a small manageable pond. What I really gave up on was getting my way. I knew that a large pond was going to sit smack dab in the middle of Wilcox Boulevard. That is a small road that I had built to get to the back pasture.
Well the results of all this discussion was that the guys came back about two weeks later and in one day built a pond much larger than anything I was capable of doing.
It also made my son in law very happy. I had a couple fences running through the narrow pasture there. They were constructed the day a jealous Eeyore tried to chew up a gelding named feathers. I had to pull these down and planned to reinstall in a different spot when the pond was dug.
When I went out to put in the new fencing I found stakes in the ground and white marker paint. My son in law had marked off a 40 yard archery range. The white bag which is just visible on the left side of the dirt pile is a target. He has been sighting in his new compound bow. If he sees a deer he will hit it. I think he's pretty good.
The tracks on this side of the pile are the start of the new road to the pasture. It needs to be packed in better but, good news, I drive this road with a four wheel drive vehicle now.
It also made my son in law very happy. I had a couple fences running through the narrow pasture there. They were constructed the day a jealous Eeyore tried to chew up a gelding named feathers. I had to pull these down and planned to reinstall in a different spot when the pond was dug.
When I went out to put in the new fencing I found stakes in the ground and white marker paint. My son in law had marked off a 40 yard archery range. The white bag which is just visible on the left side of the dirt pile is a target. He has been sighting in his new compound bow. If he sees a deer he will hit it. I think he's pretty good.
The tracks on this side of the pile are the start of the new road to the pasture. It needs to be packed in better but, good news, I drive this road with a four wheel drive vehicle now.
I think the garden cart in the background gives some indication of the size of the trees and, therefore, the pond. That is not sewage. That is what clay looks like when you suddenly suspend it in a lot of water. I think it was the day after they dug that we got a real gully washer here. It proved they had done a good job with the drainage aspect of the pond. The ruts are because there was no chance for it to set. The ruts are beneficial in one way though. They tell me where most of the water draining to the pond comes from. I may slow the erosion with a little concrete.
I lose track of time (a benefit of retirement) but I think this has held for about two weeks. You can see the convection if you watch and that makes me believe that this minimal loss is due to evaporation. I heard a frog jump in today so it’s attracting something. I intend to take a few buckets of pond water from my neighbors established pond once the water settles and clears a little bit.
I lose track of time (a benefit of retirement) but I think this has held for about two weeks. You can see the convection if you watch and that makes me believe that this minimal loss is due to evaporation. I heard a frog jump in today so it’s attracting something. I intend to take a few buckets of pond water from my neighbors established pond once the water settles and clears a little bit.
This is a view of the whole pond. As you can see there are some areas where the drainage into the pond was heavy and others where it was minimal.
This was the first activity that told me anyone was interested in the pond. It took over two weeks before the ducks discovered this large body of water. Now they are starting to like it.
The slide show tells me it's time to go get another knothead.
The slide show tells me it's time to go get another knothead.
10-29-13
It rained two days ago and this is how it looked. You cannot see the pond for the flooded yard. It is under there and the llama knows exactly where it is. He won't go there.
It rained two days ago and this is how it looked. You cannot see the pond for the flooded yard. It is under there and the llama knows exactly where it is. He won't go there.
By today it looked like this. Seems as though it's holding the water good. Sometimes it pays to have clay. That won't stop the eventual evaporation but it looks like they did a good job.
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