Current picts of wood cutting and weather conditions.

[Brmorgan]

Hauled several loads the last few days,5 loads in the big white oak to my Dads'. 4 loads of red oak added to the pile. 5 loads of hickory.
Pic of the hickory

Every time I see perfectly good Oak going for firewood I just wanna smack somebody!

 

[pioneerguy600]

Work is all done with that crew now. I'm going back to grading lumber at the sawmill next week. Hopefully it lasts and can stay profitable this time!

A couple guys used brush cutters in some areas, but largely it was done with saws. One guy had a Jonsered 2186, the boss and another guy both had Husky 575s, another a Stihl 460, and another had an 038. I used my ported 371XP, but I didn't really end up spending all that much time cutting since I was skidding with the quad quite a bit. The forwarder is a Timberjack; as far as I know they make their own machines, no? I don't remember seeing any JD insignias anywhere, and I was looking because the same thought crossed my mind.

Jerry, I don't know if you remember from your trip out here last summer, but we were working around the intersection with the stop light up by the brake check on the highway a couple miles north of town, at the top of the hill. The gray in the background through the trees above the green pickup in the pictures is actually the highway. Right there we were working on the powerline that runs parallel to the highway just downhill from that intersection. Basically we were clearing out all dead and downed stuff, and most of the smaller living and standing ones as well, to reduce forest fire fuel around the houses there. We spaced the larger trees to about 6-8' give-or-take, and limbed them up about 8' as well. It looks like a park up there now. Or at least it will once the moss and everything grows back to cover up our tracks!

Yes I remember that highway and the intersection you mentioned very well, I can actually recall almost every foot of that 13,000 K trip. I was sitting here and Ancorage Alaska came on the TV, here I was reliving the trip while watching the US Marshalls drive up the highway to Wasilla, and then Fairbanks.
I could not see any decals on that forwarder so I thought I would ask, right color but wrong maker. Yep Timberjack make their own, good machines too, had a C5 and a C7 here for many years.
They used to do a lot of spacing around here years ago but its seldom done anymore, got too expensive I guess. Where there was less snowfall this year will that create conditions for more woodland fires this summer?
Pioneerguy600

 

[Brmorgan]

Where there was less snowfall this year will that create conditions for more woodland fires this summer?
Pioneerguy600

Well, ultimately that will depend on how wet spring and summer end up being. If we have a summer like last year, where we had over 10 weeks without rain and well-above-average heat, well, God help us all. I just hope our fire fighting aircraft aren't all out on contract to California this year like last year. That was an idiot move. No offense to California.

 

[pioneerguy600]

Well, ultimately that will depend on how wet spring and summer end up being. If we have a summer like last year, where we had over 10 weeks without rain and well-above-average heat, well, God help us all. I just hope our fire fighting aircraft aren't all out on contract to California this year like last year. That was an idiot move. No offense to California.

Did they sell the big Martins Mars they used to keep out on the Island near Niniamo?
Pioneerguy600

 

[parrisw]

Did they sell the big Martins Mars they used to keep out on the Island near Niniamo?
Pioneerguy600

No they are still there. Its on Sproat Lake.

 

[pioneerguy600]

No they are still there. Its on Sproat Lake.

Thats good to know Will, we had heard that they were going to be sold as they were getting too old and expensive to run, after all the fires last year I think they should keep them around.
Pioneerguy600

 

[parrisw]

Thats good to know Will, we had heard that they were going to be sold as they were getting too old and expensive to run, after all the fires last year I think they should keep them around.
Pioneerguy600

Yes, I think all that is true. There was much talk about it. They are getting very old and hard to get parts for, but they are a hell of a machine.

 

[super3]

Every time I see perfectly good Oak going for firewood I just wanna smack somebody!

Oaks around here out number all others several hundred to one and most are far from perfect. But we have lots of good healty carpenter ants.

 

[little possum]

Just a couple pics that I had promised. Those of you Oak lovers, dont look. Although most of the oak went to the mill

 

[little possum]

All this is left over and will be cut split and stacked to start seasoning
Oak, hickory, and some gum

 

[Brmorgan]

Oaks around here out number all others several hundred to one and most are far from perfect. But we have lots of good healty carpenter ants.

Yeah I'm just buggin' you guys. We don't have any Oaks around here except the odd yard tree, and even then between this area not having been populated all that long relative to the rest of the continent, and our winters being colder and longer than Oaks prefer, there isn't a millable one in the whole province hardly.

On the other hand I have the same feeling when I see guys cutting big 4' Douglas Fir for firewood unless it's cracked or full of knots, and it grows all over the place!

 

[pioneerguy600]

Just a couple pics that I had promised. Those of you Oak lovers, dont look. Although most of the oak went to the mill.

Some nice logs there LP, good size and straight.
Pioneerguy600

 

[pioneerguy600]

[QUOTE little possum;

All this is left over and will be cut split and stacked to start seasoning
Oak, hickory, and some gum[/QUOTE]

That will make some real nice firewood, sell much of it?
Pioneerguy600

 

[little possum]

That will make some real nice firewood, sell much of it?
Pioneerguy600

Sold a couple pickup loads this year. But most of it is given away to people in need. No sense in people being cold
I have a few more loads to deliver. Hopefully the weather will break soon so the demand for wood is going to slow down for a while. We need to catch up.

 

[pioneerguy600]

Sold a couple pickup loads this year. But most of it is given away to people in need. No sense in people being cold
I have a few more loads to deliver. Hopefully the weather will break soon so the demand for wood is going to slow down for a while. We need to catch up.

And here I thought I was the only one giving firewood and saws away, good on ya!! see if I can find a little rep to send your way.
Pioneerguy600

 

[little possum]

Thanks Jerry. We just try to help out. Family raised me that way, and said we will get repaid one day.

 

[pioneerguy600]

Thanks Jerry. We just try to help out. Family raised me that way, and said we will get repaid one day.

Yessir +1
Pioneerguy600

 

[Diesel Pro]

Done cutting for a while

All gone to mush fo rthe spring now. I have 13 of my racks filled and enough split to fill at least 4 more. I'm not sure just how much I need, but I'm thinking I'll need about 9 per season. Next season I hope to keep better track of how much I burn. This year I've been using up a lot of junk. Need to get back to sneaking in the old scrap pine log siding and get rid of it.

 

[pioneerguy600]

All gone to mush fo rthe spring now. I have 13 of my racks filled and enough split to fill at least 4 more. I'm not sure just how much I need, but I'm thinking I'll need about 9 per season. Next season I hope to keep better track of how much I burn. This year I've been using up a lot of junk. Need to get back to sneaking in the old scrap pine log siding and get rid of it.

The ice and snow is all gone here to, grounds real soft now. Glad you got your wood off the river, a lot harder to work on that when the water is open.
Pioneerguy600

 

[Modifiedmark]

Jerry I did make it out with the farmer last weekend but forgot my camera...

The 4' oak ended up being maybe 30" and we didnt even get to it yet. He had a excavator in and dug most of the trees up, but it was so muddy we had to drive his 4wd Case 580 backhoe back to get what we did. We just cut the stumps off and drug them back out with the backhoe.

Semi chisel chains for sure after they had been rolled with the excavator and skidded with the backhoe. Most of what we brought up were 20" cherry and a 24" Oak.

Bucked it up and probably put close to 2 cord on the trailer to bring home.

Been raining all week here so there will be no cutting this weekend but maybe next weekend we can get the rest out.

We don't plan on bucking any up next time, just getting it out of the fields and moved up to the clearing by the road. At least we can cut it up anytime that way.