22 May, 2015

Sunset Balcony

A quick construction update here.  The screening for the veranda has been completed.  It joins up with the screened in portion of the old veranda and wraps around to the northeast corner of the addition.  Most of the north side of the covered veranda will remain without screen.  We like having a mixture of screened in and open areas.  What we call the "sunset balcony" on the upper level of the west side has been completed, too.  I am in happy anticipation of evening cocktails while sitting on the balcony and watching the sun set over the jungle. Salut!
The north side of addition.  The sea is on the left (to the east).  This shot was taken while they were putting up the rail on the sunset balcony. 
The sunset balcony has great views over the swamp around Black Creek and the adjacent jungle.  Before we venture up the stairs to the next images, queue up the appropriate music from the movie Vertigo by clicking here.

Stairs from the back veranda up to the balcony.
The footprint of the balcony is a roughly 10ft square with a tapered end off the north side of the square.
Looking toward the tapered end from the top of the stairs.
Looking toward the top of the stairs from the tapered end.
 The views are grand.
Looking south from the top of the stairs, you can see the older cabana with the shade cloth-covered pergola.  That 10-yr-old roof doesn't look too bad! 
View to the southwest across the swamp and Black Creek.
Those taller trees along the left horizon are the dense jungle through which the Monkey River runs.  The jungle is home to troops of Howler Monkeys that give Monkey River its name.  We can hear the monkeys howl during the still, pre-dawn hours.  It is a sound unlike any other.
The sunset balcony is 22 feet above the ground.  
15 steep steps from the balcony to the veranda and then another 16 not-as-steep steps from the veranda to the ground.
Do you think we need stair rails?


14 comments:

  1. You need a parachute up there Wilma. {:))
    Nice views though.

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    1. A few cocktails and I think a stair rail would be a good idea. :-)

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    2. Just hope we will be able to fit in the stairs rails AND the zip-line! Kidding, the rails were put up today. ;-)

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  2. Beautiful design, location, and workmanship! Oh... and view!!! Um, yeah, maybe a railing...

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    1. Thanks, Mitchell! Maybe you can tell that I am pleased with how it turned out.

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  3. You should be truly pleased Wilma, your house and it's views are things of real beauty and I imagine that you are the envy of an enormous amount of people. You guys should be really proud of what you have achieved.

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    1. Pleased beyond belief, Derek! Thank you. It is hard to believe that this is the place we have made for ourselves to live. Still a lot to be done, but we need something to keep us busy!

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  4. You have a lovely selection of living areas there. The balcony gives great views. I know I would feel happier with a hand rail, especially after a cocktail or three ;)

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    1. Sturdy railings on both sides are now in place. Now extensively tested and demonstrated to be very helpful for the post-cocktail descent! ;-)

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  5. Oh my gosh, Wilma. Your place is incredible. You're all doing a wonderful job. I know you have to be more aware of hurricane's than we are here, inland. The photos are great. Thanks so much for sharing your adventure. Gale

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    1. Hi Gale - good to hear from you. Even though we are on the coast, we are down in a little pocket protected somewhat by Honduras and Nicaragua. Belize City gets more hurricanes than we do. But still, we have to be aware and have plans in place. We have a good evacuation plan and recovery plan and will use this coming year to get our shutters and other protective measures in place. Hope things are good on Dreamer Farm. Cheers!

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  6. Hi Wilma,
    Finally got our beach balls and glue. Would it be possible to use the photo of Dennis holding the beach ball with all the critters on it on my blog? I want to give an example that shows it really does work. Whatever attribution you care for is fine.
    Cheers,
    Dave

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    1. Sure, no objections to you using it at all. Just put in "Wilma at South Englishtown Gazette" with a hot link to that particular post in case anyone wants to look into it further. I look forward to seeing it works for you. Good luck!

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