Stone Dance Day Two

This problem area has been waiting for action for thirteen years.  The house was set lower than necessary and we have been trying to figure out a solution for years.  Last fall a professional with power machines was given the option of completing this job but he never returned.  We needed a series of steps to make a stable transition down this slope.  Unsure on how to proceed, the task remained ignored.  For reasons that are elusive, we decided that now was the time.

Four stones in the foreground have been placed.  Three stones arcing out from the corner of the house are where they will remain.  One stone has been set in the second wall.  The third wall has a stone that is out of place.  It fell into a hole and was finally worked to the top of the stones meant to be there,  When its turn comes, it will be moved to a different location.  The jumble to the left is the stock pile.

We need to tie in the ground near the stone patio with the sloped planting that will develop in front of the house.  Behind the three stones at the corner of the house, ground level will approach the top of the stones.  When the newly graded area reaches the front of the patio, there will still be a slope from the lawn to deal with the extra height.  This slope down to the house is what discouraged the man with the power equipment.  Standard practice does not direct water toward the house.  The house is perched atop a deep gravel glacial deposit. The drainage is such that there is no water to run toward the house.  We have been free of water in the basement and will remain so when the regrading is finished.

The pile of stones to the left were dropped off above but near their final resting place.  The trick now is to limit the number of unnecessary moves while placing stones in their final resting place.  We would really like to finish this job before winter takes hold.