Kitchen+Bath – Socked Fox Ranch

IN PROGRESS/EVOLVING!!

Our next building project will be a combined kitchen + shower with a 12′ x 12′ footprint with a 4′ deck extension. This will be built about 20-40′ behind the bunkhouse and connected with a walkway (deck or stone paved?).

We can cook most meals with our microwave, charcoal grill, and 2 burner camp on a table under the solar panels but we are still limited in what we can cook and remain exposed to the elements. We decided we want a kitchen with a small propane stove top, small dishwasher, 2 basin sink, and plenty of countertop space. Storage for cooking utensils will open up space inside the bunkhouse and make things more accessible. A 6 by 12 kitchen area should be enough for us to work in but we are also adding a small deck to the kitchen side so a bar top can be added. My plans include making a separate roof for the bar and deck area that is hinged and can be closed down over the front of the kitchen area, closing it off from the elements and securing it while we are gone.

We are both fine with the current outdoor composting toilet but a shower is a necessity after a few days in the desert. Right now the closest shower is at the Bad Rabbit lodge pool which is a 40 minute drive from our place or 60 minutes to the ghost town where we have a friend with an awesome bathhouse. We will be using half of the building for the bath area so it will be a large open shower format with a built in bench. It will also include a sink for handwashing and a small wood burning stove to turn the entire room into a sauna. We have a significant amount of salvaged, high-end marble tile as well as boxes of remnants from tile jobs in the Austin house.

Build Trip#1 – October 13-20, 2024

I broke ground to start building the kitchen and bath. Jude was working back in Austin so I was solo but was easily able to get the piers and beam foundation complete. The next trip during Thanksgiving week should see decking and some of the walls go up. The plans are evolving from what is above but mostly the same. The big change is we are shrinking the shower to a 6×8 (changing to 5×8) room. This will allow for extra space in the kitchen which I am closing off with sliding glass doors and a mini split heatpump. This will allow for the room to pull double duty and host a guest on a cot if they wanted to sleep out of the elements.

After selecting the exact building site for the kitchen & shower, I first had to move all of the left over building supplies that were stored there. Digging 9 x 18″ deep holes was suprisingly easy with a shovel and breaker bar.

6 – 8″ diameter cedar posts were set in a 12′ x 12′ square then string leveled and checked for square before being cemented in.

A 60 mile drive to Alpine for lumber and then I was able to confirm my posts were cemented perfectly. All beams sit securely on each post and only 1 post needed a 1/4″ trim with the chainsaw.

I used all of the 2x6s I had and then painted the lumber and urethaned the posts to protect them long term.

Build Trip #2 – November 24 – 31, 2024

This is how far I got while still working my real job 3 of those days plus Thanksgiving holiday where it was crazy cold and I was stuffed. One big change we made is spinning the building 90 degrees so the 2 x 60×80 sliding glass doors will face the mountain and the best view. The decking has been glued, screwed, and urethaned to protect it until I get the room dried in. The left wall is built for one 36×36 window and will have the water collection tank, water filtration/pumps/heater, and mini split AC behind it. The right wall will have the sliding barn door entry to the shower and a 20×48 leaded glass window reclaimed from my parents home. The new shower room foot print is shown on the decking and is 5′ x 8’and will allow for a nice little lounge area to be built to the back of the kitchen side. The next build trip will hopefully be in December to get the remaining walls up including the 2 sliding glass doors on a beefy 2×6 since there is only 28″ of wall space.

Build Trip #3 – March 10-15, 2025

I trailered the lumber for the front wall, side wall, plus 1 of 2 sliding glass doors and window but somehow still needed to make a run for more lumber in Alpine. The build work went smoothly but I had to get my neighbor, Kyle, to help me lift the front wall since its 2×6 lumber instead of 2×4 like the other walls. With most of that wall being sliding glass doors, I wanted to over engineer that wall. Next trip I hope to get the doors, windows and siding installed and possibly start on the roof.

My progress for this trip. Not too bad!

My neighbor Kyle after helping me raise the front wall.

I am in the process of adding the headers in the front wall. Normally those would have been installed before lifting the wall but it already had ~ 150 board feet of 2×6 lumber in it and the tripled up 2×6 headers add about 50 more.

Build Trip #4 – April 11-18, 2025

Jude and I came down for the week but I really only got one full build day in. We were both busy with work during the day but it was still a great week. I did manage to get the first sliding glass door installed, another window, and 1/3 of the house wrap and paneling. I didnt bring door #2 this trip because I was worried about out road conditions being too bumpy. By next trip the worst ruts should be smoothed out better and I wont have to worry.

One other bit of progress was the replacement of our 50 gallon water collection barrel with a 300 gallon IBC tote. I managed to transfer 30 of the 50 gallons from the last storm so with the next rain we should have plenty of water for concrete and plant and animal watering.

Build Trip #5 – May 24-30, 2025

My son, Finn and I came down for a week and got 2 solid mornings of work in. By 1:00 its well over 100 degrees and feels like death in the sun. In this time we got 1 1/2 walls wrapped and paneled, 2 windows installed and added some cripple studs skipped during my fast framing.