There is a family barn across the way (in fact I call it The Barn Across The Way) that has been rented out for many years and has just come back to the family. Yesterday actually. And now (she says with a big grin) it is OURS. I want to write MINE (because I am the farmer after all) but for appearances sake I will write Ours. I will let Our John build the fences because there is also a decent patch of grass!!
It is across the unbridgeable ditch so will be awkward to manage but it has such potential.
It is old, but recently painted and has a good new tin roof. 
Some of the really old fittings are still there, the stalls and feeders, and some interesting little rooms.
It has the feel of an indoor arena to it with a central walled space for the hay and a wide gallery all around this for the animals to shelter. Part of the barn is a dirt floor and part of it has concrete which is interesting. 
With this beautiful ceiling it brings to mind a circus tent. 
The paint job is a poor attempt to disguise what will be a bit of work. Firstly many of the windows are boarded up so we will put the glass back in and get some light into the space.
Also on the property is a crib. Not like a crib that is a bach. In the midwest a crib is where they used to store corn before the metal bins.
I will go back and look at this today, there is a very interesting mechanism for moving the corn inside this building, I need to investigate further. 
I am considering taking the fattening chickens and a couple of roosters over to this new barn and once they are settled let them loose to do some housekeeping. I was going to put them in the pot, but maybe I can put them to work instead. Plus I need to get some cats settled in there. There is evidence of rodents. I do not have a mouse problem in my barn here and I am sure it is because of the chickens, roosters and cats. I will be over there every day anyway. Probably riding the Tall Teenagers Bike over there for the summer. It would take about 5 minutes.
Later in the summer the cows will come to this barn and over winter there. I do not have room for four cows in my little barn. The barn across the way is huge in comparison. We have just expanded. How is that for wonderful!
Have a lovely day.
Your friend on the farms
celi
The Kitchen's Garden 
89 responses to “Across the way”
Congratulations! It does look indeed like it has a whole lot of potential, it will be a lovely project to work on.
Good luck!
Awesome. Just awesome.
How exciting! It has an interesting roofline and I’m looking forward to seeing it with it’s windows back! I wonder if you could find a bridge that’s been used for road works that’s being sold off (in the fall, maybe).
The ditch it has to span is very wide and has a high bank so putting in the footings for any kind of bridge is the problem evidently. It would cost thousands and thousands in the end.. not really an option just for convenience. sad really, I love bridges.. c
Maybe a boat?
I was going to say the same, a flat bottom boat with a long pole!
You guys! I can see it now, me floating down the ditch, with two dogs and a pig, actually I could have a barge, sheila would happily pull us along from the bank!!
In this neck of the woods, spans across a big creek are a bosun (sp) chair. Poles on either side of the creek with a line and then a chair thing to pull yourself across. Finding one big enough for Sheila might be a problem, though.
Gorgeous photos!
What a beautiful building! And I’m sure the old chickens will be happy to go there instead of to “freezer camp,” as our animal farming friend calls it.
what awesome, exciting news! So happy for you – your joy just leaps off the screen…
Can’t wait to see what stories this old barn will hold…and, hey! No old cars to move 😉
Oh yes! There is no rubbish there at all, it is very tidy.
How wonderful to have that lovely old hand made structure. It has such character. And I love that you are using your animals for more than food – like house keeping and such. They are part of your team and a lovely resource. You might consider growing herbs and using the loft for drying them since it is such a big space and perfect for that use. Then you could make your own medicines and culinary spices. Just a thought. Looking forward to what you do with it.
Yes we do grow herbs both for drying and seed and also we make the oils, so much to do this summer! Thanks Diann
Wonderful news, specially the extra grass. I hope you are able to use it to the full, despite the cycle ride. I can’t see you trotting across in your nightie in the winter, when it’s -20C! Why is the ditch unbridgeable? – see my story The Bridge http://vivinfrance.wordpress.com/fiction/the-bridge-a-story-for-children/ The barn looks beautiful, but I can see from the holes that the paint job was purely cosmetic – could you put on siding (bardage in French) over the top of the holes?
Yes this is John’s plan. Now we need to find anothr barn that is being torn down to get the proper siding. Though you can still but barn siding. Also i will line the interior walls in a few areas for extra warmth.. c
I love it!!! God gives us what we need when we need it in mysterious ways.
Damn, I’m jealous.
Rubbing hands together here…another project! 🙂 Sounds like fun! Perhaps a human catapult could be devised to get you from one side of the ditch to the other..lol Like those medieval movies.
What a gorgeous barn. As I was reading your post I realized how few barns I’ve been in over my lifetime–I’m betraying myself as a city girl, aren’t I? And yet your farm appeals to me greatly. So much of your lifestyle makes me feel like a laggard as I sit at my desk and write all day! But at least I can read you every morning and live vicariously.
please lots more pics. this looks good. any land or fences?
a couple of acres, no fences.. work to do! c
No bastard mink on the premises? As for a bridge-over-the-river-ditch … how about one of those felled trees from last year; drag one of those across with your John’s tractor, and split it lengthwise of course. BTW, I like Viv’s idea: a boat, or a Tom Sawyer raft that you pull across like the farmers do in Holland.
Oh how wonderful! 🙂