Oko Wanci

Monday, Feb 23 to Sunday, Mar 1, 2009: high 67, low -3

This week was the beginning of the Wingsprings year. It is marked by an alignment of three elements: a geographical landmark, the point around which the Wingsprings facilities are designed, and the sunrise location. The axis that connects these three elements is called Wingsprings west-east. Since the landmark and the design point are fixed, it is the third element–the sunrise location–that completes the axis. At the winter solstice, the sunrise location is at its most southerly point along the eastern horizon. Then every morning it moves northward until the summer solstice when it reaches its most northerly point along the eastern horizon. Therefore, the sun rises twice a year on any point along the eastern horizon between the two solstice sunrise locations. And since the eastern end of the Wingsprings west-east axis falls between those two points, the rising sun completes the axis twice a year, once in late winter–as happened this week–and again in late summer.

The western point of the axis is Bear In The Lodge Creek Butte, or in its abbreviated form, Bear Creek Butte. It is less than a mile west of the house i was raised in, a house that was originally a cabin built by my great-great Uncles in 1906 with logs they harvested and hauled from over near what is now the town of Allen, SD, at the headwaters of Bear In The Lodge Creek. For as long as i can remember, the Butte was a geographical marker of home. It is visible from miles all around, and by reckoning our location in relation to it, we could establish where our home was.

So when i was searching for a site upon which to situate the Wingsprings facilities, one criterion was that the Butte not merely be visible, but be silhouetted against the western sky. This meant that the site had to be lower than the Butte so that the distant western horizon would be below the angle of vision. In my childhood memories, the Butte was a physically huge landmark. Though my adult eyes still envision it as a large landscape feature, it barely registers in most photographs.

Still, in many ways, it serves as a personal and familial point of reference. Once the site was selected, and a center point for the facilities established, then a line was metaphorically drawn from the Butte to that center point and extended on eastward. This is the Wingsprings west-east axis, and it is reinforced and embodied in the design of the facilities. For instance, this photograph was taken from the center point.

Far in the distance, approximately two and a half miles west and barely visible against the western sky, is the Butte. A line drawn from the Butte to the center point bisects the soon-to-be-poured concrete floor. The photos below were taken from atop one of the two main trusses that run perpendicular to the axis and that support most of the roof load. You can see that the sun just set “behind” and on axis with the Butte.

Far in the distance, approximately two and a half miles west and barely visible against the western sky, is the Butte. A line drawn from the Butte to the center point bisects the soon-to-be-poured concrete floor. The photos below were taken from atop one of the two main trusses that run perpendicular to the axis and that support most of the roof load. You can see that the sun just set “behind” and on axis with the Butte.

Here is another daytime photo looking west toward the Butte. Note that in the middle ground are a series of natural spring-fed pools that flow from left to right, or south to north.

About a half mile to the north they empty into Bear In The Lodge Creek that also flows northward until it empties into White River.

This next picture shows the rough framed walls of a little room atop the two main trusses. In the distant background,

piercing the skyline, yet barely visible, is the Butte. In some sense, the little room is the control center of Wingsprings, and therefore, in keeping with the idea of flight, we call it the cockpit.

After sheathing the cockpit, the ridge beam for the living room roof was put in place. It hangs from the western wall of

the cockpit and is directly on axis with the Butte, as this photo below from inside the cockpit looking through a window opening clearly illustrate

The photo above shows the horizontal ridge beam and its rafters in place. The axis of that ridge beam is continued to the west by the connected sloped ridge beam that terminates in a tapered point. On the east side of the

cockpit, the framing likewise follows the Wingsprings west-east axis. And once again it ends in a point. The photo below is taken from directly on the axis. The surveying

instrument in the foreground is set up over the center point of the facilities design. Beyond it you can see the roof and the cockpit on axis, and far distant, on the axis but hidden by the house itself, is the Butte.

Though this winter-time photo was taken off-axis, it helps to visualize the relationship between the Butte and the house.

As was mentioned above, twice a year the sun rises on the Wingsprings west-east axis. The dates are determined when the sunrise shadow from the cockpit of the house is cast directly in line with the Butte onto the slope on the other side of the springs.

This photo was taken on the Wingsprings west-east axis from the ridge east of the house at sunrise on February 25th. In the far distance, just to the right and below the trees on the horizon, is the Butte. You can see that the shadow from the cockpit is cast to the right–or north–of the axis, meaning that the sunrise location was south of the axis.

In this March 1st photo taken on the Wingsprings west-east axis from the ridge east of the facilities, the cockpit shadow can be seen just to the left–south–of the axis. This means that it rose on the axis prior to today. The February 25th photo above illustrates that the sunrise was after the 25th. Therefore, a comparison of the two photos suggests that the actual date the sun rose on the Wingsprings west-east axis was closer to March 1st than it was to February 25th. In other words, February 28th is probably when the sun rose on the axis–and the Wingsprings year began. Happy New Year.