So relieved the hill is done!

Before I share my thoughts on it, here are a few photos.

8:30 AM arrival and unloading

9:30 AM after getting sand out of my arroyo

11:30 AM ready to start mixing after a quick lunch

2:00 PM over half done

By 4 PM they were packed up and gone. It was 100° so I worried the concrete would set up too fast. I rushed over and started wetting it, but it was already cracking. I felt it best to stay away while they did the job and probably shouldn't have. Didn't want to risk any unpleasantness. Men have their egos and they were working for the contractor, not me directly, plus, I would have been in their way. I guess the cracks won't hurt anything. There's wire mesh inside it and I gave them a bunch of fiber that I assume they used. 

4:30 PM sisters helping me wet the cement

Here are my thoughts and conclusions. The Mexicans are very good workers, no doubt about that. I had told the contractor repeatedly that I wanted the surface rough. Why it's slick, I don't know. At some point if that poses a problem, I'll try using acid to etch it. Will wait and see. I was adamant the water needed to run to the inside where there's bedrock and not on the outside to erode underneath the concrete. He did that great!

I can't see how the hill can be a problem anymore, but I'm eager to put it to the test. It was supposed to be 4" thick, but he used a 2X4, which is actually 3½". That and the heat made it set up too fast. Still the ground beneath is practically solid bedrock, so should be fine. Another problem is that he didn't wet the ground prior to pouring the cement. I suggested it, but I can see by looking that it didn't happen. Once the concrete dries, it'll blend in well, just like the patches I've poured do.

I predict that the hill won't be a conversation piece by visitors any more. The road is rough. It'll always be rough. Even when I've had it graded smooth, it becomes a dust bowl until the next rain, and then all rough again. I prefer to skip the dustbowl stage.

The only wildlife I observed today was what appeared on the road.