We had been long anticipating this day. The day that marked the end of freezing our butts off working in the lodge!
On February 23rd, a chilly winter day, a commercial window installation crew from Fargo set to work at their trade in the middle of a cattle pasture in Sargent County. It’s hard to imagine they have a lot of jobs in rural areas, and especially work sites where frozen cow pies are a hazard when carrying heavy glass panes.
Besides the amazing log construction of Coteau des Prairies Lodge, the north window is one of our signature features (yes, there are more to come). The north window will be the perfect complement for the great room, which is an expansive tall space accented with heavy duty log roof trusses and 2 levels of balcony. From any angle in the great room, whether you are on the main floor or in either of the balconies, you will have a breathtaking view of the flat prairie and northern horizon out the north window.
Joe Breker is in the field on the prairie below the lodge doing his spring work. We plan to build on the lodge experience by offering opportunities for guests to work and learn with Joe on the farm.
View out the completed north window from the east 2nd floor blacony.
The north window is now complete! It is a little less drafty in the lodge now.
One of the two largest windows takes a lift to its final destination under the eaves in the peak of the north end of the lodge.
The black stringy looking material gets stuffed in along the edges of the panes as a weather seal and to hold the windows firmly in place.
One of the two largest panes being carried to the lift by men using suction grips. This window weighs more than 300 lbs.
The window installation crew picked a frosty day to work. They used a special heater to clear spots for attaching suction grips.
Can you tell which side has a window installed? The windows actually got pretty grimy on the journey from Fargo on the side of the truck.
At long last, the first pane of the north window is set in place. It was a foggy, cold day.
