this is the National Geographic Channel [Music] log cabins rugged timeless and connected to the land I'm Nate Heim and I build log cabin homes here in the Northlands of Minnesota I work with the finest crew around you betcha using century-old techniques we pour ourselves in the each and every cabin bringing the past into the present we're building a ski lodge style cabin overlooking one of Utah's most gorgeous valleys but this erratic Utah weather of the snow has given us nothing but problems I might have to shut this job down no matter what happens my crew and I are on a mission to build log cabin homes all across this country I made my way down the northwest part of Utah on a deer Valley area the meet up with Jen and Ben Russell deer Valley's got to be one of the most beautiful areas I've ever seen in this country I mean the moans the peaks are huge I just hope I can build a log home that matches the beauty of these loans and valleys Wow look at that it's gorgeous [Music] that moons a roofing company and it's always nice to build for clients that have a construction background it'd only be kind of nice if he could put his own roof on so I can soak up some of the scenery oh this must be him found it gorgeous Road yeah it is isn't it I mean you got the mountains the valleys this is a perfect setting for a log home my great-grandfather owned this whole side of the valley and he sold it off before he died and we were fortunate enough to pick it back up no kidding yeah so what made you guys want to build a log cabin well we used to live in one for about 10 years and we loved it and then we bought this property and we're hoping to just put another log home up and make it a little bit different Ben and I have been married for what almost 14 years we have four kids we start our marriage off in a lock home and we want to get back to that comfortable feeling the family feeling inside of the log home well first thing first let's take a look at your property perfect let's do Ben already has a garage on his property but now it's time to build his dream home Oh ma'am please tell me this is a site yeah this is a perfect spot you gotta be kidding me look at these views I really am a mountain man at heart but we don't have mountains in Minnesota so coming here I'm really at home look at you have panoramic gorgeous views exactly that's Wow you've read our minds this is exactly where we want to have a house this is beautiful I haven't seen views like this ever I mean you stand alone up here a 180 degree views the mountains the valleys and more I mean we're surrounded this could be one of the most gorgeous spots that I've ever built the log home with a view like this I'm gonna make it my mission to make it the most beautiful handcrafted log home in northern Utah this is amazing you've got all this room for a walkout basement and I mean the great room you're gonna have to have a very grand great room big windows we're gonna have those big logs coming out as the overhang that's gonna set it off give it even more dimension even make it more grand in the kitchen you gotta have a nice big window no head with the bay window the whole rooms gonna be big I mean we can make the kitchen almost as grand is a great room area for me Nate is a visionary he thought of things that we hadn't thought of and came up with a lot of great ideas that we had just overlooked so what do you guys think I love it you've got some great ideas that sounds scary do that absolutely I got my notepad with I'll sketch it out for you put all those awesome ideas on paper and see we can do let's go do it all right you better have a breath I'm a rookie here yeah that's a little different than sea level so what are you guys looking at as far as your amenities into a house we need to have about 4,000 square feet we'd like to have the kids down in the basement you know their game room a theater a storage area with the great room I'm trying to incorporate a ski lodge kind of feel really rustic I want huge windows okay you know bringing it to a prow front in that great room is gonna kind of give it that central point it's gonna be real massive and then in case the windows in between those vertical log posts Ben and Jen's cabin will be a 4,500 square foot four-bedroom log home overlooking beautiful kamas Utah the main level will feature a covered entryway that leads into the gigantic great room at the rear of the great room will be a proud style window showcasing views of the mountain range the dining area will lead to the wide open custom kitchen the spacious basement level will feature a home theater and game room for Ben and Jen's kids to enjoy along with three additional bedrooms and a second living room highlighting the natural beauty of canvases gorgeous green valleys so what do you guys think that's my house that's what I want we are super excited about this I got an architect who can put these on digits I'm gonna go home tell the guys great news and we'll get started on this right away [Music] you know what this means look at that this build is going to be five bedrooms three and a half baths it's gonna have an awesome walkout it's gonna have a huge pro front all glass the king proud front and then the queen kitchen front it's gonna be awesome this house is huge it's gonna be their vacation home no that's the cool thing about it it's not their vacation home this is gonna be their home their main residence they have four boys so they want to raise a family and that's real important that there's gonna be a lot of memories made in here because this house is so big I called in a little reinforcements we're bringing in Jason Joe's uncle Jason we're gonna bring him on board and have him give us a little hand hey enjoy by the way got a new best friend for ya it's called draw knife we need all these logs draw tonight keep the character but make it happen all right a draw knife is a huge metal blade that has a sharp edge and two handles on it you put your whole weight into it and you pull off that first layer of wood also with the bark Ben and Jen love that look and that's what we're going with draw knifing sucks it's pretty much all back and no brains it's just a lot of aches and pains and sweat and come to think of it it might be good for Joe you do a good job on that draw knife we're gonna take you to Park City someone's good all right you get it done I actually have a chance to step up and show Nate what I've got and I'm gonna take it this is our chance to put our stamp in a popular destination and do something awesome for a really cool family we kicked butt in the north now we're gonna tear it up in the West there you go guys let's get that phonation laid out in the grass we're gonna get this party started all right this is Joe's first time using a draw knife and I want him to learn the proper technique I'm asked his uncle Jason to show them how it's done while we get the first logs of the shell set what I want you to do see I got the math like this yeah like this beyond getting a move yeah real men learned all right it's your turn well if you're right get your hand down there you go off more towards the end of the handle there you go [Music] we might make the drawknife throw out of you yet Joe this drawing I think stuff isn't that bad all right Joe good luck but I'll come back check on you when you draw knifing there's no better feeling than seeing that fork flying off the log hey Joe good log feel their appeal in about 45 minutes to an hour an hour it might take Cory an hour to get this done I'll get it done in no time [Music] moving at the speed of turtle [Applause] well more hard work than it looks I use my oh my BL it's bad [Music] [Applause] this is taking me 20 minutes half hour you know shooting a little bit of it [Applause] get me hangover yeah thanks yeah she's coming along like you've been doing an awesome job it looks good so what if I keep doing this over your monster you will too buddy didn't eat my spinach before I started you look like Popeye anchor tattoo [Music] the log cabin shell is engineered and constructed here at the log yard what all the logs are cut and fitting perfectly we disassembled the structure put it on a truck ship it to Utah where it'll be rebuilt and completely finished it's great to have Joe's uncle Jason here in his right hand man Tom to help us stay on schedule because this is a huge cabin when I cut off my lateral they work it like a racetrack or in a circle I go down on one side get to the other end and then it come down that side and then knock all my material a little point I like to do it works best for me Badri running chainsaw and to enough wood [Applause] well we're boats empty high in the walls everything's looking awesome here you know these drown knife blade marks are really gonna look awesome [Music] come straight down all right straight down I got it the structural building is the second level of the Russell's home that'll sit on top of a foam wakow basement little bit more that's right that's real close there well good yeah it looks good here check the other side [Music] when I first put the level up there to get the next log in position I noticed everything was leaning in about six inches our walls kind of jacked up k tipping in yeah this could potentially be a very big problem looks like we got to do some adjustments here she's leaning in yeah in I think what we should do is I take these bricks off we'll get the skid loader over push on it real gently get it back over and then we'll put a couple these two braces back on and add two more okay I'm glad we caught this problem right now a while it was small because later on down the road it could turn into a huge problem for us all the fix was basically to take the braces off get the skid stir refit over into position get a level on or get it right where we wanted and screw it back down okay go ahead screw it Matt that should do it hopefully we're ready to start building again [Music] there boy this is what I'm talking about we're looking good these vertical posts make up the prowl into the cabin where the great room will be like the forward most part of a ship's Hall the proud projects out into a pointed shape that maximizes surrounding views all right Jason ready for it with so spherical post set we have one more log to set and that's the ridge pole this pole runs the entire length of the house and is super heavy so we have to make sure the guys are aware of this log over the top of their heads let's get this thing wrapped up boys all right this thing is so huge if it falls out that post up over there it's gonna hit all that bracing down the way down see that web of racing's just me like dominos it's gonna do the whole works is coming down look at that thing say in the wind that's a lot of weight up there that's a lot of weight [Music] it's good Jason let's bring that truck don't take a look at it okay there we go perfect okay guys we've got the ridgepole put up safely and man is it looking good now it's time for one of my favorite parts of the job stand back and admire our hard work I'm talking about good job Jason I love set the Red Bull baby up yeah it's the longest log in the house you flew that thing right up in place that's perfect looks awesome Wow guys awesome job I mean this is gonna look amazing on the Wasatch mountain ridge this thing's so massive they're gonna think it's a ski lodge up there compared to all those other ones there's no doubt in my mind this is gonna be the best looking house in there yet Matt and there's always on the chainsaw you rocked it out Joe good job on the draw knife to do a good job keep learning all right my arms are dead from John a sissy he's draw knife to butter my bread I shaved my back with mine yeah keep up the hard work good job everything's gonna come together I mean we're so close just gotta wait for the trucks get here we'll get this bad boy disassembled and over to you Todd [Music] [Applause] we got two trailers to get all these logs on that pole it's gonna be tight gotta make sure they fit tight first you put the big boy on first Ridge Paul beautiful long full-length Jason no more than four feet hanging out the back end [Music] we're kind of making a cradle these long lines it's nice because you can infill with the shorter logs in the middle in this case we got these nice long purlins we can kind of make a cradle on the outside edges and then fill in all the short logs in the middle you got a time right there now perfect unlike the horizontal logs which are easy to grab the vertical posts are much more challenging so we drill holes at the top of each post put a chunk of threaded rod through with nuts and washers and put a super strong strap at the top of the rod yeah we got the last vertical pose here in the kitchen alright Jason ready for you [Music] there goes the truck for dropping the final truss onto the loader truck and I'm proud of the work that we've done here that I can't wait to get to Utah bring this log home to life these logs got a long way to go and we got to hit that open road [Music] we've arrived in kamas Utah town in the northern part of the state that's surrounded by the UN taw and Wasatch Mountains a log cabin will be raining at home in this beautiful terrain surrounded by peaks and valleys [Music] we've got to get cheated hey here comes Nate over here when I pull up to a fresh build site I expect to see a foundation there and plenty of workspace available but I still see guys working on that foundation the logs will be showing up any minute so I got to check in with my project manager and the foundation crew to see what's going on doesn't exactly look like you're quite ready for us today well we're a little behind we started I think Tuesday snap and laying out horse the reins we're not quite to our goal we wanted to be seated and blade out reference lines on before you showed up with the logs have all this stuff out of the driveway and just give you enough room when we arrive to a client's property to start building the foundation is supposed to be completely finished with the logs about to show up and no foundation to build on I'll have to pay the truck drivers extra if they have to wait around this is a gigantic problem you got the crane and supposed to be here today we got semi trucks that are real close I mean they're real close they're not far behind us we're a little behind I think we can do at this point is just jump in get all our hands on we're happy to do that and just try to get us back on track okay I think that's our best situation get the slate clean and bring the logs in Jason what do you think what do you start this thing on tape Jory Hank dad gets a little dirty out there and already we're here let's help out get her done [Music] [Applause] [Music] everything's running good right now we're really working hard to get this done we got George's got all his guys out of here Nate's got his guys out here with busting out all these TTI's right now all the floor joists are getting in [Music] we're gonna help George and his crew set these final floor joists so we can get our last boards on then we should be right as rain no pun intended [Music] they're just getting ready to start putting the floor decking on what we're going to do is we're going to put all these blocks in here to carry the weight there's going to be 20,000 pounds of weight on this outside room we don't want us to fall down a little bit of delay but we're gonna get back on schedule we want to make sure we're doing it right we've got to get this foundation done as quickly as possible if the logs show up and there's no foundation to move the logs to that's extra time that the guys are gonna be sitting around and I got to pay him the log home business is just like any other business time is money well a little bit morning nice and easy like that the pocket going out and watch your fingers Jill great job that's teamwork right there well we hustled we work together and we got it done just in the nick of time the logs are here and we have a solid foundation now it's time to get the real work started it's a beautiful day the sun's coming out we got the first load off the truck and it's a trust the beautiful front entryway it's kind of that grand entryway feel that ski lodge feel nothing better than starting with the big nice log here that's that's the mark buddy one of the first things we do is drill holes through the first course of logs that attach them to the foundation then we put them over threaded rod and anchor them down so it won't move off the foundation once the first course is down we snip the top of the threaded rod off and the rest is as easy as pie [Music] heads up heads up so he's a swinger he's a swinger we need two guys holding on these big logs we got it taken care of the logs are filled with fiberglass insulation they increase the energy efficiency of the home it keeps the outside air out in the inside air in hey guys there comes the bad one there we gotta keep rolling a dark wrinkle just rolled in and started dumping a mix of rain and snow on us five minutes ago there was sunshine and now it's raining I mean there's nothing we can do about it but put our heads down and keep working [Music] it's crazy we just got dumped on by father 1/2 inch there were snow wet snow over here that sons is cleaning you know 72 sunny there's ladies and our t-shirts and over here everybody's wearing their winter gear bustling down it's crazy if we come to Utah they say the weather is crazy I guess you just got taste a little bit everything today [Music] come on baby these are 5,000 poems but when you reaching out at the same angle you lose a lot o of lifting power this is a 30 tonne creed and right now we're just about maxed our nice [Music] we're seven courses up and we're ready to construct the front entryway between the foundation and the weather this bill has been one challenge after another and now it's been brought to my attention that the holes for the front entryway posts haven't even been dug yet this is a major problem we had snow rain we overcame that this entryway ties into the whole rusta stuff we can't set our long trust and we can't go forward and put our main road system up which means it's gonna push this way the I this is a huge issue it's gonna throw the whole schedule off I mean snow is coming in we've already got a little taste of it today so we have to get these set or else we're in big trouble not only do the holes need to be dug but the front entryway posts need to sit on concrete foundations this concrete takes more than a week to fully dry we can't sit around waiting we need to come up with a solution fast [Music] you know guys this is this is a serious issue we're dealing with right now at this front entryway is is basically a foundation for the main roof system we're gonna have to figure out some kind of a way to build some temporary bracing underneath of that and then we'll have to just hang those post logs down until the concrete dries it then you can attach it since we can't set the post on wet concrete bob has come up with a plan to use four tall tube ie eight boards to support the weight of the entryway truss once the concrete has solidified we'll remove the boards insert the post which will support the weight of the truss right now we got our temporary braces underneath here we're gonna put a diagonal brace brace it off really well put the other one in the place and they bring the truss up from the bottom side and brace that off [Music] [Applause] [Music] all right she's gone the bracing is in place and it's finally time to set the truss over the entryway you prostrate you gotta come towards me a little bit [Music] she's going up it's coming it's coming bring her up a little bit you four straight that's craftsmanship right there need to get a sledgehammer in there we're just about done got some nice beefy uprights things are looking good using the temporary braces that set the entryway was a success with the braces set in the trust in place this allows us to get started on the rest of the roof system I even saw Bob having a good time [Music] safer than Hambach slide down [Music] Hey how's it going good you mind if I come in well it's your house come right in man what do you think of this I can't believe it name look at these videos I'm in awe shocking on everything believe me I'm envious I could dream of a better place in a better layout for a house I can't wait to be living out here everything's coming together now we're getting ready to do the real system over the dream room nice yeah you know I've got there's one thing that's getting to me that I think we need to make a change okay over here on this wall we've got a great view out that side of the house I want to do a little surprise for Jen and add some more windows you can't have any more window I know we're taking advantage of it all right here I'm thinking about the master bedroom I think it'll make a big difference okay let's check it out I mean by the time this is done the whole place is gonna be one big window if we could take advantage of the view out this side of the house and you know there's a lot of great view going off to this side and there's just one window yeah you know and if there's any way we could cut out another window for the character yeah it would be an awesome surprise job cutting windows is no problem we can knock that right out for Ben literally we'll make it happen for you okay yeah let's do it Joe's been doing a great job on this build and I know he's really enjoyed working with his uncle so I'm gonna have Jason chose nephew the heart of window craft you've been working real hard to summer maybe we see oh you can do it cutting windows out I'd like to teach you yeah we can't screw this up though we gotta be perfect okay this is the exact type of thing that I've been waiting to do but uncle Jason's right these logs are part of the house and if I mess up they can't be undone I'm a little bit nervous we want this board so it's kind of square with the sheathing so 1 Abbott's of the logs are cut out pretty square okay perfect that must be beginner's luck no kidding this is our window jake is what we've basically made we're gonna take this chainsaw okay and this fits on the 2 by 6 board so we go like this okay then we start cutting we use this to keep us straight doesn't like to kick back at all it does like to kick back so once you get funds through you got to be real careful until you get through that it's fairly safe okay Oh [Music] the feeling of that chain gone through an 18 to 20 inch diameter log it's pretty undescribable [Music] get on your toes ready this was great today I learned how to measure and cut a window I still have a ton to learn but today I feel like I'm on top of the world and it's just one step closer to me becoming a great log home builder [Music] the Russell's cabin is coming right along we just got done with the roofing and now Bob's gonna help install some solar panels I've never put solar panels on a log home before but I got one of the best crews in the country installing these today driving up the road this morning to bed rustles we're putting solar panels in today it's not a metal roof and I'm worried about the snow it's really dangerous up there with all this snow and ice it's a sunny day I hope that the sun's gonna warm that up a little bit melt that snow off the roof so we can get our work done today 500 pounds this solar system consists of eight panels and one inverter and we're gonna plug it up to his main distribution panel so that he can get free power from the Sun this is one solar cell here at six inches by six inches you got sixty of them and they're all tied together so these panels right here we put our clips down first these panels slap in right next to each other they plug in there's two wires I need two one we plug them in run them in series once these are up here you got a nice sunny day they're gonna have some free electric to this house there comes the snow up here in Utah's we've already seen the weather can get pretty wonky we had snow last night and I see another dark cloud coming our way we've only got one day scheduled to get these panels in so we're really gonna have to hustle now that whether it's coming in moving in fast we got two panels up right now we've got five more to go so we got to get it done [Music] we've got our last panel up we got two more clamps to do up on the top we're trying to finish out before we run out of daylight all right last one all right this was a hard job today we had a lot of stuff going wrong we had snow on the roof to start it's snowed on us during the process of putting the panels on we're running out of daylight snow storm passed us but we're done time to warm up guys [Music] right now i'm peacing in basically creating our own siding out 1/2 log slabs a lot of chainsaw work goes into this but you can dimension anything you want with chainsaw so right now I'm working on some vertical trim pieces get over top of the windows so I can start running my siding just all gonna blend in and it's gonna look just like the rest of that [Music] oh it's a great sell it means you did it right we put the screws in the edge here cuz they're gonna come over the top with chinky and I'll be hidden things are coming to a close on Jen and Ben's cabin we have all the interior walls up so now it's all about the details [Music] 36 to the top of the counter just gonna be awesome we'll set the cart operate on top of it it's going to be great accent dialogue work in here perfect place [Music] did I have a mobile scaffolding we're putting a beautiful log accented a white cedar trust right up in here we're not the tap holes through this metal it's gonna be a two-man lift to put it in place then we pass it in the place well there we go we got the last trust in it's a good feeling knowing that these babies are in place they're so gorgeous they set off these dormers but we got a lot more to do this is the nick of time can't wait to see what you got we got four pretty much ready for you all right you got here perfect timing some of the elements we brought in obviously it was like vintage snow skis snowshoes sleds we brought in lots of furry warm clothes too kind of like really give it that kind of coziness well this would be good starch I get the guys when we start getting some boxes and ORS I'm gonna hit the slopes awesome [Music] there we go really excited about these pieces are all handcrafted all right you've got a finished touch here just wanted to elevate with those ceilings we put a lot of things high to kind of bring your eye line up to that great ceiling I've got a few more things to do and Jen and better go be here in a minute okay yeah we get to work she did this way look at those window for me I got this toboggan I want to put up there oh wow leg up a little bit more how cool these are from Jen her father finds he's at flea markets and stuff so he's been giving him two four years brothers all done decorating and the house looks great now I gotta go pick up Ben and Jen and show them their new log home [Music] guys I am super excited to show you your new house I mean you're put it on the roots that your grandfather basically found it I mean this was his stomping grounds now it's gonna be here guys's and my grandfather owned this whole east bench of the valley here for four years I sold it to some gentleman who I was able to purchase a back from that's awesome I kept thinking of that in my mind as we were building that it's like your Bloods already been here I can't wait to show it to you wonderful we need to go a little bit faster yes sir we've been waiting a long time it'll be awesome to check it out all right guys we're getting close is trusses in the dormers they all blend together so nice those lots are huge all right guys you ready Wow look at this oh my gosh [Music] Wow beautiful just that first initial walking through the dart just whoa you know really breathtaking I love the big open ceiling in here look at that it's large has it's 21 feet right to the peak your fireplace is 21 feet love it's those beams and they stick out like that it looks so good the fact that the ceilings are so tall when you walk in it's it's kind of a whelming that it's exactly what we want it well guys we got your fireplace up here yes don't out the stone turned out beautiful who are chess I love that mantle - yeah right from Minnesota northern white cedar and we got the antique snowshoes up there we really went for that ski lodge theme oh yeah yeah for sure I can't wait to sit on the couch with a fire and just enjoy the comforts of that living room guys gotta check out this game room this is gonna be a great place for the kids and you guys the kids are gonna love this yeah good place to store the skis was just so to see the games on the walls and the ski theme that's going on there this is the museum mm-hmm well this is gonna be great for the kids let's go check out the room this for the dolls oh yeah yeah all right guys check out your master bedroom this is an amazing bed look if this is something oh it's gorgeous I'm just picking out the right logs against this amazing detail - it is beautiful and it's a great fit for this room that the log work the vaulted ceilings it's gorgeous look at those views out there look at every morn you get the wake up to those mountains these are endless something's different I thought we were only supposed to have one window in this room yeah I was kind of a surprise as we were given this going Nate brought me in and we we figured we needed to get even more views maximize all the views I mean look at the views you got over there and their fall that's beautiful what a surprise surrounded moans yeah even more views that I get to take in it was just really great surprise you got a log pose here oh yeah look at this table the hammer I like those antlers well remember what we talked about like sometimes in kitchens they put a bay window a whole baby room look at that I put that picture book counter I love that this is an open floor plan you know there's a place for the boys to come and get dinner at the breakfast bar or at the dining room table or when you have get together it's just plenty of room for everybody and these views are gorgeous but where the views get really gorgeous is on that deck right all right guys you gotta check this out very cool you've outdone yourself that's amazing this log siding came from Minnesota it's the same species as the logs that we use it gives it the handcrafted look you know great joints right to the logs we get out to the deck and Ben and Jen love the log siding they also love the deck the views are gorgeous they're amazing can't get enough of it being up here on the mountain side overlooking the valleys like we are and it really takes advantage of the views I think we have one of the best views in the state being able to see all the way from Mount Nebo all the way up to Mount Eden it's just amazing people are gonna look up on the hill it's a band that's of Russell residence right there heck yeah thank you yeah it's just beautiful I can't thank you enough you've done an amazing job you think we could bring the kids out let them check it out I don't think you could put a log home in a better place this is what log home living is all about sharing the log home with your whole family we've been waiting a long time to see these views being able to see the expressions on your guy's face and how excited you are and what this is gonna do for you not only is just a cabin but this is your home where you're gonna raise your family it's really special to us and we're happy to turn over together [Music] thank you he nailed it and it did an amazing job and we couldn't ask for anything better it just surpasses all of our expectations you guys want to check out the house [Music] you
