Stone Steps and Retaining Wall Wellfleet, MA
What does it take to fit large pieces of granite tightly together? Lots of cutting, which created a tremendous amount of stone shards. Crushed stone was a crucial part of the drainage and structure of not only stone retaining walls but also roads and the foundations for buildings in stone building cultures like the Inca. Much like the mulch industry drives down the price of lumber and leather supports the beef industry, ancient builders were motivated to build extravagant temples in order to reap the benefits of the byproduct. Building a stone city on a 45 degree slope with torrential seasonal rains without a stone crusher on site is quite a tall task. See our post on Machu Picchu for more.
This is a natural stone retaining wall and steps in Wellfleet, MA. See below for before, during, and after, and the journey of the centerpiece from the boulder pile at EZ-Doze-it, local Cape Cod excavator and sea wall builder and the source for the stone just up the street.