Large Forebay is nearing completion

Over the last 2 days our staff has been busy trying to put back the dirt around our new dams.  This was a very tough process, but we had some help from some big pieces of equipment.  At the end of the day today we were able to get to a point where we felt the banks could withstand the forecast rain.  Fingers crossed that we don't have to re-do what has already been done after the rain storm!

This is how where we had to leave the Forebay before the rain set in.  Let's hope that we do not have too much to repair before we get a chance to put the sod down and finish our project!

Grassing has begun!

Finally I am proud to say that the grassing has started on the driving range tee and mounds.  This is definitely a good sign that the project is on the way to completion!  The grass being installed is 419 Bermudagrass, along with some Zorro Zoysiagrass being installed around the chipping green.  To date we have completely sodded our larger 2 tiered teeing surface, the mounds behind the tee, teaching building tee, all around the chipping green and new driving range bunkers, and about 75% of the haul road on #8 fairway.  All in all we have installed 15 tractor trailer loads of sod, which when all laid out covers a little over 3 acres!  Not too bad for 4 days of work!  Once TDI starts to get the remainder of the driving range shaped out, the sod installation crew will return and finish the work.  Take a look at the big rolls of sod and how they are installed........

I agree the grass does not look very green and lush, but this is because it is starting to come out of winter dormancy.  After a few weeks of drinking lots of water and soaking up the sun, this 419 Bermudagrass will be green and growing once it wakes from its winter slumber!

Concrete Forebay Installation

We are currently building the forebays, or silt retention dams, at both ends of the pond.  The smaller forebay near #8 tee has been completed, and we will be pouring the footer for the large forebay tomorrow.  The larger forebay is located at the mouth of the lake, and will serve as both a silt collection wall, as well as a walk path for golfers to cross the creek.  The dams are made of concrete, and it takes 3 days to complete each wall.  The first part of the forebay construction is to excavate the area of the creek where the wall is to be built.  In our case, we had to dig 10 feet down from our grade at the top of the wall, which meant a very large hole!

Notice here Lyle starts to dig to the top of the footer.......

Once the contractor showed up to dig the footer, things got a little messy.....but the hole was dug!!!!!

Once the footer was dug out and before the concrete could be poured, metal re-bar was installed for strength and integrity.  Notice the hose in the bottom of the picture pumping the concrete in to the footer.

The next day, after the footer is poured and drying, the wall portion of the forebay is framed and poured.  The workers in the picture are finishing off the concrete that has just been pumped into the forms.  The next step will be for our grounds crew to back fill the wall with the dirt removed and put the creek back to the way it was originally.  This work will start on Monday, and we are on track to finish the large dam at the other end of the lake next week.  More pictures to come!!!

 

The Dredging is Over!

I am very proud to announce that we have finally reached the final day of the Dredging of Lake #3 and #13!! We began the project on December 19th, and have now officially finished on March 13th, a total of 84 days, exactly 12 weeks.   This is actually very close to the timeline we had originally planned for the dredging portion of the project, but permitting can actually be to blame for missing the March 1st deadline.  We were held up 17 days to begin our project, and finished 13 days past our goal.  Not too bad considering we endured 2 record setting ice storms and the wonderful holiday season!  This entire process was a learning experience for all, and I am sure I can speak for everyone when I say how glad I am to be done messing with the lake!  Now is time to put everything back together that we have messed up over the last 3 months!!  The push is on for TDI to finish the range and get our golf course at MCC back to normal!

Here is the big excavator taking out the last few loads of silt

Cleaning up and repairing the haul road.  What a mess!

Kiss this big track truck goodbye!  We don't need it anymore!  Whoo hoo!

The Home Stretch

This weekend of March 8th and 9th is now behind us, and one thing is for certain, we are still dredging the lake on #3/#13.  March 1st was originally our goal to finish the lake, but unfortunately a combination of set backs has prevented us from achieving our goal.  The good news is that we are very close to being finished, and the dredgers will have the contracted amount of silt hauled to the range in the next few days.  From here on we will begin to repair all the lake banks, as well as clean up the "haul road" we have created up #3 and #8 fairways.  I can not tell you how great it will be to finally put it all back together and have a 27 hole golf course again!  The nice sunny weather has definitely helped the drying process with our dirt on the driving range, and we should be able to start shaping the remaining areas in the coming weeks.  Take a look at the following pictures of how they are excavating the remaining material in the lake.  The large machine is sitting where the old grassy island was at the beginning of the pond, and the truck is hauling the dirt back and forth from the loading site....

Notice how deep the lake will be now in this area.  Where the long reach excavator is sitting is the original elevation of the lake, which was above water even at full lake level.  The green truck is about 9 or 10 feet tall at the top of the cab, and now after being dredged would be completely under water if the lake was full.  This will help our irrigation water holding capacity immensely, and also provide a much more aesthetically pleasing view of the lake while playing golf.

Concrete kind of day

Today on the driving range our contractor was able to get all the foundation poured for the new artificial hitting mats, as well as our new turnaround/parking area.  After all was said and done, it took 4 trucks of concrete to complete the entire area.  The first truck was at the club by 9:00 am, and the last one finally finished dumping concrete around 5:00 pm.  All in all a very successful day for our project, as a lot of work was completed ahead of the anticipated 100% chance of rain that is forecast for tomorrow.  Notice in the photo below the new pad for the artificial hitting mats.......

Here is a picture of our turnaround being poured.  Notice the center island, this is where we will place the Centennial Clock and Time Capsule. The plan is to lay bricks all around the center section, and also form a small brick wall around to form the bed.  After the clock is set in place and time capsule buried, we will then finish off the circle with flowers to add a nice touch.  

I snapped this photo today and I feel it captures the state of our golf course right now pretty well.......

I know this winter has been one of change on the golf course.  Rest assured it will all be over before we know it!