Gravel vs the monsoon

Last year when we were here, there were a lot of thunderstorms, and a fair amount of run off as a result. I took one look at the soft earth surrounding the house and decided I wanted something that would NOT wash away with the next big storm.

I asked my builder Mark Berry if he knew of someone who could provide me with a dump load of gravel. He recommended a guy out of Springerville, AZ who would be able to deliver a "belly dump" load of road base (gravel with a "binder").

The load was 18 cubic yards of gravel, and here is what it looked like just after delivery:

Jill and I have been spreading it the old fashioned way with a shovel, wheel-barrow, and rake. It is tiring labor, this old body is not used to REAL work.

I will gleefully post a picture when this chore is done.

On a side note, the semi tractor and trailer that the load was delivered in was horrifying. I am no truck enforcement guy and I saw several violations ( he had suffered a blow-out en-route and rode in on a flat tire while telling an amusing anecdote of how the severed retread had almost hit the car behind him). If Trooper Freeman had been around, the fines on this rig probably would have bankrupt the guy.

Finally finished spreading the gravel. Took 10 days working 2-3 hours a day. It is spread 1-3 inches deep depending on where it is at. Now we just need a good rain storm to wash the coating of binder off. The gravel itself is a blue/gray rock and looks nicer than what this picture shows.