Mary and Gary Adams have lived in their log cabin at the end of a dead-end road in rural Colfax for almost 40 years. Five acres of land contain their home, several fruit trees, a gazebo, a shed with chest-high stacks of firewood outside and a sloped pasture where the horses and colts used to roam. They call it paradise.
For as long as the Adams lived there the hilly road leading to their property has stopped dead in its tracks shortly past their driveway. Now they have been told by Jasper County officials that the road will need to be maintained and extended past their property to grant access to an adjacent, landlocked 20-acre parcel.
But Mary, 73, and Gary, 76, are adamant that there is no road left to maintain, only a small path along the edge of their eastern fence line. The rest of it, they said, has eroded away to a nearby creek, creating 75-foot ravines in some areas. The road base can’t even be seen with all the grass and trees grown over it.
To them, it is baffling how anyone can come to their property and say there is still a county road there. That is an argument the Adams brought with them to the board of supervisors meeting on Feb. 6 at the county courthouse, in order to oppose a request to accept quotes for a fence relocation. Their fence.