Entry 001 — This Looked Smaller on the Map

PALMREACH — FIELD NOTES, ENTRY 001

Woke up with a fairly straightforward plan: give this island a shape, move a little earth, and be finished in time for a brew.

I have since revised my understanding of “a little earth”.

From the beach, Palmreach looked manageable. Standing in the middle of it with a folded plan and a hard hat, I began to suspect that whoever drew the plan had used a very small pencil.

Unfortunately, that person was me.

FIRST, MAKE SOME ROOM

Marked out the first cuts and started carving into the land. Lower ground towards the edges, higher ground inland, and enough changes in height to make the place interesting without requiring mountaineering equipment to fetch breakfast.

On paper, the lines swept gently around the island.

On the ground, they appeared to go through rather a lot of hill.

The digger helped. I am choosing not to question how a digger arrived on an ARK. There are stranger things here, and none of them have offered to shift the spoil.

THE WORLD’S LEAST CONVENIENT STAIRCASE

By midday, the first broad shapes were beginning to emerge: a cut here, a raised section there, and a great scooped-out stretch enclosed by steep sides.

At present, some of the terraces look as though I am building stairs for someone considerably larger than myself.

This is the rough stage, I reminded myself. The important thing is getting the shape right.

I repeated this while looking at a cliff I had intended to be a gentle slope.

A WALK ROUND THE WORKS

Climbed down for a proper look from ground level. Things look very different when you are the small figure at the bottom rather than the confident bloke pointing at the plan.

One section needed widening. Another needed softening. A third provided an excellent opportunity to stand quietly and reconsider several decisions.

Still, walking between the first landforms, I could begin to feel an island taking shape. A rise that hides the next view. A sheltered low spot. A route that might eventually lead somewhere worth finding.

That was enough to get me back in the cab.

EVENING REPORT

Palmreach has its first rough contours. There is plenty left to carve, smooth and argue with, but the ground is beginning to follow the idea in my head.

The idea in my head has also become slightly more respectful of the amount of ground involved.

Tomorrow: refine the shapes and try to make the cliffs look less personally offended.

Supplies consumed: fuel, patience and one disappointingly cold brew.
Casualties: the phrase “just a quick bit of digging”.
Site rule: check which side of the excavation you parked your lunch.

— TBB