Standard thatched hut (2x2m)
Chopping wood with stone hatchet
Demolishing old hut
Salvaging timber
Hammering post holes into ground
Total floor plan is 4x4 m
Putting in posts
Lawyer cane for lashings
Lashing on crossbars at gable ends
Top of side wall purlins, note overhang for eaves
Scaffolding to walk on
Tying on ridgeline
Lashing rafters
Putting rafters in place
Again note overhang for eaves to shed rain away from posts
Lashing bottom of eaves to stop thatch hanging down
Finished frame
Cutting palm fronds with stone knife
Splitting fronds in half
Vine to tie on thatch
Tying on bundles of thatch
Using scaffolding to thatch higher up
Thatching is always done from lower down to higher up so that the leaves overlap and shed rain
Seems to need reinforcement in the middle of the hut
A post halfway along will stabilize the roof especially with the weight of the thatch
Halfway there
I was conveniently able to move the planks like so, as the thatch progressed inward
The ridge line was tricky to thatch
So bundles of full fronds were tied together
And pushed up over the ridge to keep out rain
The finished structure
Moving tools in
Pot, brick mold, firesticks and axe
Some mud bricks for a fire pit
Making a fire to keep mosquitoes away
Transferring tinder to top of firewood pile
This "upsidedown" fire has a descending fire front that converts wood to charcoal and then burns it with little smoke produced
The large structure will make a good work area out of the weather