Diary of a mad vacation rental owner

Diary of Sierra City Sierra Solitude travel and work
Owning a vacation rental- at least in the first year- is a lot of work and travel time
But this diary shows we were very dedicated


2007

1-13-07 thru 1-14-07 2 nights 380 miles mostly leisure visit. check on house for damage from storms
1-20-07 thru 1-21-07 2 nights 380 miles leisure visit. check on house, checked mouse traps,

2-16-07 thru 2-18-07 3 nights 380 miles hung artwork on wall, fixed closet doors, painted closet interiors, swept and cleaned interior. Fixed master bed that was not level. Added drapery rod to kitchen window. brought additional kitchen and rug and towel supplies.

3-01-07 thru 3-04-07 4 nights 380 miles chain sawed down trees, burned burn pile during rain. Added fire extinguishers to house and placed do not smoke signs on property. printed signs for guests.

4-07-07 thru 4-08-07 2 nights 380 miles painted deck chairs with preservative, hung outdoor plants, fixed drainage on driveway, cleaned driveway, removed chains from snow plow, checked tire pressure on snow plow, made a small pond for guests to sit near. Cleaned ditches and drainage ways.
4-14-07 thru 4-15-07 2 nights 380 miles assembled outdoor furniture, painted, planted outdoor flower beds, filled bird feeders, cleaned roof, cleaned windows. Cleaned drains and ditches.
4-28-07 thru 4-29-07 2 nights 380 miles cleaning land,building stairs, printed maps and guest info, guest binder additions, marked nearby trails , fire prevention work, raked leaves and needles, added reflectors to driveway

5-04-07 thru 5-06-07 3 nights 380 miles drip irrigation system work, traveled to get plants in Graeagle, chainsawed down trees and branches
5-04-07 thru 5-06-07 3 nights 380 miles reattached attached satellite radio antennae, rewired telephone line. cleaned fireplace. Added wood to woodpiles, chopped kindling. Added fireplace flue cap. measured for fireplace insert.
5-25-07 thru 5-28-07 4 nights 380 miles worked on trail to river, making stairs. marked trail. collected trash from nearby areas and removed old fire rings.

6-08-07 thru 5-09-07 2 nights 380 miles check on house, re-sort, re-clean kitchen. Build gate for deck. strengthened deck railings, cleaned deck thoroughly, replaced deck screws. Added hotwater heater blanket.
6-29-07 thru 5-30-07 2 nights 380 miles check on house between guests. Paint outdoor furniture, strengthen outdoor furniture, clean bar-be-que, built bird feeders, swept and cleaned property, re-grouted barbeque. Build book shelf in living room. Worked on guest library. Added "property of" stickers to all guide books and guest library. Cleaned and organized guest loaner supplies and incidentals. Brought in dog beds for guest use.

7-27-07 thru 7-28-07 2 nights 380 miles Trip with friends, replaced additional bulbs with florescent, changed furnace filters, filled bird feeders, swept and cleaned property. Placed last of winter items in attic. Hung tools and made padlocks on all garage cabinets. Washed outside of propane tank. Painted all outdoor water pipes red. Cleaned garage doors. Oiled air compressor.
8-30-07 thru 9-03-07 5 nights 380 miles raked needles, moved tree debris to burn pile, worked on drip irrigation, removed wasp nests, took photographs for web site, explored trails and wrote descriptions for guest guide book, swept and cleaned property, gathered and added gravel to areas on driveway, painted flagpole, watered garden trees. Trimmed lower branches on trees near house and moved logs and branches to burn pile.

10-13-07 thru 10-14-07 2 nights 380 miles replacing motor on log splitter, splitting logs for firewood for guests, moving wood scraps to burn pile.
10-27-07 thru 10-29-07 3 nights 380 miles turning off outdoor water, removing plants, winterizing house, changed oil and hydrolic fuid on tractor,worked on trail to river, photographs for website, waterproofed chimney masonry, cleaned yard of fallen wood and needles


11-11-07 thru 11-12-07 2 nights 380 miles checked and re-taped water pipes, changed water filter, fixed loose plumbing.

12-11-07 thru 12-12-07 2 nights 380 miles mostly leisure visit. check on house, add christmas lighting
12-24-07 thru 12-29-07 6 nights 380 miles mostly leisure visit. check on house, cleaned odds and ends