Huichol page 19
Hold mouse arrow over pic for caption (must use
microsoft internet explorer)
This trip of April 27th - April 30th focused on finishing the outhouse or
latrine which we did accomplish. I pre-built the sides at home and precut
and labeled all the rest of the boards and parts for assembly on site so we
wouldn't be short of anything and wouldn't waste materials by bringing too much.
We had one 2 x 4 left over. The problem was weight. Each side
weighed over 300 pounds. It took 4 of us just to put each side into the pickup.
It took six to pack them up the hill to the outhouse site. I was erroneously
concerned the boat wouldn't hold it. We WERE able to purchase the 21' boat and
50HP 4 stroke Mercury engine shown on page 14.
It is an awesome machine. I think I could have put everything we took in it in
one trip but didn't want to chance it so split it up. But the boat holds a LOT
of stuff; first trip was half the outhouse, generator, cement mixer, lots of
food and tools and 8 people. Second trip was the other half of the outhouse. The
4 stroke motor is VERY economical on fuel. The guys who were taking us up there
were claiming they were using ten gallons of fuel up and back with their two
strokes; we use about 3.5 gallons of gas for a round trip and no oil mixing
expense.
The first day up we set up the generator and cement mixer and reset the form boards and got the second tier of concrete poured. The next day Pastor Dagoberto came up and worked with me and the others to essentially complete most of the structure. It took six people to pack each of the side halves up to the site. He is tireless. He worked the whole day in the hot sun. The following day I completed the inside and did all the mortar work outside while Librato mixed mortar for me in the cement mixer.
I finally finished the rebar fishgrate for cooking chicken and fish with over the open fire. I forgot the aluminum foil so I could show the women how to wrap the fish in foil, cook it slow, and retain a moist piece of meat when they were done. Dried fish is okay the way they do it, but I like it baked and moist more than seared.
Leaving the dam with the second half of the outhouse in the boat. The width of
the outhouse was 50" and fit inside the seats just right. It's a 5' wide
boat.
That's Alberto driving, Tomos in the middle and Chalio on the right. I'm in the
front taking the picture of course. Wasn't a smooth water day but this boat
handles rough water superbly. De Dios sent this one to us for sure!
Pastor Dagoberto conducting evening sabbath
service at Campamento Agua Fria, which is what they chose to name their new
home.
This is the finished hole inside the latrine, about 4 1/2 feet deep, counting the two 1' foundation pours we made. All the inside parts are easily removeable with screws so when it gets full they will have to remove the seat and floor boards and dig out the waste and take it somewhere remote for a shallow burial. This is not a take apart and take it to a new hole outhouse. Getting a small hole in the ground is a major chore here as you can see by the big rock in the middle at the bottom as well as the one on the backside.
This is the backside of the latrine where it sets up against the large rock behind it. The trick was to make a water seal so water runs away from the latrine and doesn't fill our hole with rainwater. This was done by trimming a board with a sabre saw to fit the curvature of the rock and then cementing it to the rock and then when that is dry we will follow it up with a roof mastic. Extensive mortar work was done on both sides also to channel rainwater flow around the latrine.
I brought my cement mixer for a long visit here. It greatly enhanced the time factor as well made a much better mixture than doing it in a wheelbarrow by hoe.
