Tradeoffs
Wow no pine!!! Here in the west your options are pine, quaking aspen, or cotton wood. I suppose you could try yer luck with sagebrush or cow chips
I had no idea there was anybody anywhere who would refuse to burn pine!
Every area of ther country has different stuff, and regional prejudices. For most folks in the east, you not only don't want to burn pine, but you shouldn't, because one time two hundred years ago someone filled up the stove with pine fatlighter, lit it off, proceeded to have a mini nuclear reaction, and got a chimney fire and their house burnt down. So to this day, hardly anyone burns pine except as campfire wood. But, like mentioned above, those who do if they choose to can vburn it, get it for free, and sell hardwoods or just not work hard to heat their homes. They bulldoze pines up and just burn them in bonfires here and there.
Unless someone is for real logging and taking saw logs or pulp, it is considered by most to be a "trash wood". Now I have burned it since the early 70s when I first started heating with wood. I have yet to have any problems with it.
Anyway, tradeoffs, you guys got pine, big mountains, wide open spaces, and elk (well, and grizzlies, too..). We have a huge variety of nice hardwoods, some decent spaces here and there between urban areas, some baby mountains..and giant hogs!
Hogzilla - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
I've seen one near this size, down in mid georgia, dang close to that size, had a good shot but didn't take it. I am thinking "WTF will I do with it"? Didn't have any way to get it out of the woods, and not near the freezer for it at home.