First concrete goes down

Today the first batch of concrete went down, to start the foundations for the boundary retaining walls

Mixing up the first batch of concrete

The trench to be filled

Looking down from the footpath level

View from along the boundary of the new concrete footing

Using the JCB bucket...

...to carry the concrete to the trench and pour to the required level

Today was an exciting day for the build... as we actually built something, rather than digging holes or shifting soil.

It feels great to be actually putting something physical into the site build for a change, as it's been nothing but digging and shifting for about 6 weeks now. That said, the footings for main house foundations have yet to be dug and there is more soil to be removed before building the retaining walls around the rest of the perimeter.

The trench for the first length of shallow-depth retaining wall was dug this week and today the builders lay a bed of concrete in the bottom. Next week, they'll start to lay blocks on top of this which will form the retaining wall boundary along the public footpath.

The weather has been hot and dry - very unusual for this time of year - but it's been great to be on-site without being ankle-deep in mud for a change. Hopefully this will continue for a while, so the foundation building can go smoothly without any flooding or landslides.