Jungle Gym-- going, going, gone!

Any of you who have visited the Menagerie homebase have seen our large wooden jungle gym. It came with the house. According to the previous owners, it came with the house when THEY bought it as well. Which is why they were unwilling to remove it when we bought the place...

So there it has stood, being used as a fort by Moose and Lucy, and generally just taking up space. I tried a couple of avenues to get rid of it-- family members, neighbors-- but no takers.

Finally I decided to put it on Craigslist, as well as on a site I had just read about in the paper, the Twin Cities Free Market-- free, just take it away! I did this one evening before we went out for dinner. When we returned, I had about 20 e-mails wanting to take the thing! So I contacted the first e-mailer and told them that it was theirs if they came very soon. They came the next day, all the way from Wisconsin (at least an hour away, can't remember the exact town).

The man and his friend had power tools and got right to work. But the jungle gym was strong and resisted being taken apart. Industry turned to frustration. A sledge hammer was deployed. Still the gym stubbornly stayed together. Finally, beams were sawed in half and the remaining parts were loaded up.... It was quite the ordeal. But the thing is finally gone, to make way for a tree we hope to plant this fall.

Pictures and a video:

Just getting started, slide and a few beams removed...


Gym tipped on its end to facilitate breakdown..


Out comes the sledgehammer (video):



Having failed at that, the saw is taken to the stubborn beams...


And the pieces are dragged across the yard

Taking a much-needed breather along the way,

Before finally loading it all on the trailer and driving away..


Phew! Now there's just a sandbox left in the yard.... any ideas on what to do with all that sand?