Trailer Trad Living: The Most Manly Grill In the World

I went up to camp at Heyburn Lake last weekend and had a great time hiking and enjoying a little time away from bustling Moscow, Idaho. Heyburn Lake State Park is the oldest park in the Northwest United States but is pretty much a hidden gem compared to more heavily visited areas in Montana and Southern Idaho.

While there, I came across some nice, original park facilities built early in the 20th Century when the it was originally laid out. The buildings look like they were designed by the firm of  Flintstone and Rubble in the 'Jellystone' architectural style. Wonderful stone work and extensive use of logs finished in handsome dark green make these attractive landmarks in the park.

The shelter is the largest building and contains some unique elements. In addition to a beautiful Arts and Crafts Movement fireplace and wrought iron accents, it features a very impressive grill. Most park shelters contain a grill or even cooking facilities but this one has, not one, but three massive iron griddle cooking surfaces. At the base of the rock work are cool iron doors where wood would be piled into for cooking and for clearing ash. I can imagine how these were built for the crowds of hungry foresters and large numbers of Civilian Conservation Corps workers that lived and worked at Heyburn constructing trails, fighting forest fires, and other park tasks.

Can you imagine a breakfast cooked on one of these bad boys? Three red-hot iron slabs cooking the morning's fare with wood smoke pouring out of the central rock chimney would certainly be welcome before a long day's work! 

 

Finishing it out is a pretty unique, rustic  kitchen counter constructed entirely of logs!