Cutting Our Way In

[Jacob J.]

Other than that, how did your day go? Ya know, it's just one of those times when you finally make it back to the pickup, wet and cold, sit down on a damp seat 'cause you didn't roll the window all the way up, pour the last of the lukewarm coffee, eat the last half of a soggy peanut butter and jelly sandwich, look at yourself in the mirror, and say "Well...you wanted to work in the woods". And then go home and work on your saws half the night.

Ain't it grand?

lolol, that's exactly how it is too. If you can find a way to smile through all that, you got it made.

 

[slowp]

Ya gotta love it....

Better love it, or you'll go crazy. After pushing hard to get the road open yesterday, well, guess what? Today the loader wouldn't work in the chilly weather. In fact, when I drove up, one of the loggers yelled at me to make room and he dove into my warm pickup because he was cold and his diesel ford wasn't warmed up. And so it goes....

 

[Spotted Owl]

Spotted Owl: I used to live in "The Siberia Of Warshington" in a house built in 1910. It was insulated with sawdust. When the temps dipped past -10, the shower drain froze up. Then when temps warmed up to -10, it would thaw. I could shower, but had to bale out the water afterwards.

Is that like a wash tub bath? See, you weathered through that and now you have a fond memory. Lets hope that you don't run into the same situation where you are now.

Glad to hear your doing good today. Nothing like over doing things and having to head straight back into it the next day.

Take care of yourself and stay warm. If I was a Dr. I would prescribe your favorite adult beverage consumed slowly in a hot tub, while a used dog is at the ready with you towel when the proper soak time is completed. Perhaps mulitple beverages depending on the severity of conditions.

Do you have a short calendar to retirement yet? If I remember correctly it should be coming close?


Owl

 

[bitzer]

Call me crazy, but that sounds and looks like fun to me. My favorite weather is under 40 with any kinda precip. Most people that know that think I'm nuts. Today it was blowin and snowin, maybe 20 (warm, I know, but much colder to come) with 5 inches on the ground and 12 more to come tonight. I forgot to patch the holes in my boots before the snow, wet feet all day. Flyin chips and 2-stroke exhaust are my friends. I love the sound when you quit the saw and smack a wedge to finish a tree in the middle of the woods after its been blanketed with snow. Its that muted echo, a solid type of sound, then hearing the hinge creak as the tree commits, hesitates, then jumps into the powder. A bad day in the woods is better than a good day in any office.

 

[cuznguido]

Other than that, how did your day go? Ya know, it's just one of those times when you finally make it back to the pickup, wet and cold, sit down on a damp seat 'cause you didn't roll the window all the way up, pour the last of the lukewarm coffee, eat the last half of a soggy peanut butter and jelly sandwich, look at yourself in the mirror, and say "Well...you wanted to work in the woods". And then go home and work on your saws half the night.

Ain't it grand?

Actually, yes. Except for the coffee part. Hate the stuff.

 

[slowp]

Call me crazy, but that sounds and looks like fun to me. My favorite weather is under 40 with any kinda precip. Most people that know that think I'm nuts. Today it was blowin and snowin, maybe 20 (warm, I know, but much colder to come) with 5 inches on the ground and 12 more to come tonight. I forgot to patch the holes in my boots before the snow, wet feet all day. Flyin chips and 2-stroke exhaust are my friends. I love the sound when you quit the saw and smack a wedge to finish a tree in the middle of the woods after its been blanketed with snow. Its that muted echo, a solid type of sound, then hearing the hinge creak as the tree commits, hesitates, then jumps into the powder. A bad day in the woods is better than a good day in any office.

Well, there's not much snow right now. The units and logs are in the bottom of a steep sided valley. Last year, the loader operator figured out that he got maybe 20 minutes of sunshine on a sunny day.

But, as we used to say on a crew, "There's always something worse." And it is way better than being stuck in an office all day, every day.

I took Twinkle to the heated shop and took things apart and degunked them.
Twinkle is ready to go some more.

 

[slowp]

Is that like a wash tub bath? See, you weathered through that and now you have a fond memory. Lets hope that you don't run into the same situation where you are now.

Glad to hear your doing good today. Nothing like over doing things and having to head straight back into it the next day.

Take care of yourself and stay warm. If I was a Dr. I would prescribe your favorite adult beverage consumed slowly in a hot tub, while a used dog is at the ready with you towel when the proper soak time is completed. Perhaps mulitple beverages depending on the severity of conditions.

Do you have a short calendar to retirement yet? If I remember correctly it should be coming close?

Owl

I can pull the plug in 2011. Got the years but not the age.

 

[2dogs]

Argggh. The wrists are sore this morning. Blowdown makes for some strange postures. 16 degrees this morning.

Ugh! I haven't been sawing a whole lot these last few weeks while I have been waiting for burn season. Now that it's here and I'm working again my wrist have been waking me up at night. At least we don't have your weather here. It has been down around 28 , cold enough that I put a heat lamp in the chicken coop and gave the outside dog double rations of greasy sawdust. Still I get to stand 20' away from the burn pile and warm up between cutting sesions. The biggest hassle is that the burn logs have been drug through the mud and dull a saw chain pretty quickly. I just bought a loop of semi-chisel full skip to see that does.

The sun is out and warm today but now I have to go work on a water trough.

 

[slowp]

keee heee heee. :monkey: Somebody on here had to go out and get to work cutting blowdown. To them I'll say, "Put down that coffee and git out of yer pickup." Besides, it is 25 degrees there. It hit 6 here.

I stopped and took pictures of the unit. While I was out, I could hear the trees cracking and popping. They're still settling.

 

[Gologit]

keee heee heee. :monkey: Somebody on here had to go out and get to work cutting blowdown. To them I'll say, "Put down that coffee and git out of yer pickup." Besides, it is 25 degrees there. It hit 6 here.

Yeah, but I'm back home now with hot fresh coffee and the heater turned up high. Saws are taken care of, tools put away, and I got my fuzzy slippers on.

And I did get out of the pickup...every once in awhile.

And furthermore if you add in the wind chill factor up there on that ridge I'll bet it got clear down to twenty. So there. Phfffffft.

 

[slowp]

Yeah, but I'm back home now with hot fresh coffee and the heater turned up high. Saws are taken care of, tools put away, and I got my fuzzy slippers on.

And I did get out of the pickup...every once in awhile.

And furthermore if you add in the wind chill factor up there on that ridge I'll bet it got clear down to twenty. So there. Phfffffft.

I had to lug Twinkle from the pickup into the office. Pretty hard work, that!

We also were exchanging information without the engines going down in the place where the sun don't shine.

Yup, it was a pretty hard day. My fingers are thawing out from throwing balls for The Used Dog, who doesn't seem at all aware of the chilliness. It did get up in the 20s here.

Got the wood stove going so phfffft back! Now where's that kicking thing?
Oh, here.

Now I need to see if the camera worked in the arctic air today.

 

[slowp]

Back on Topic!

These are pictures of the uncut unit. This happened on Sunday. Like I said before, these trees are cracking and popping.

 

[Gologit]

These are pictures of the uncut unit. This happened on Sunday. Like I said before, these trees are cracking and popping.

We have a name for stuff like that in the first picture. Can't even say it on AS though.

And, since you don't have much to do, why not give me a hand? The payscale doesn't really have room for another faller but since you make more on vacation than I make working you'll be okay. Just think how nice it would be to work in such a mild climate...the wind only blew about twenty knots today and other than the snags blowing down all around us there isn't really too much hazard.

And I took a page from Burvol's book today...I wrapped cajun fried shrimp in tinfoil and heated it on the warming fire. Tasty.

 

[Burvol]

Bob,

The only thing better than your shrimp was probably everyone's face when they observed you eating a hot lunch, gourmet to boot!!!

 

[Gologit]

Bob,

The only thing better than your shrimp was probably everyone's face when they observed you eating a hot lunch, gourmet to boot!!!

There was just me and the grapple skidder guy today...and the only time he got out of the skidder was to fuel up or throw more chunks on the fire.

That shrimp, warmed and smoked in a cedar/pine fire was gooooood. We usually can't have any fires during the main season but winter logging does have it's advantages.

 

[Burvol]

There was just me and the grapple skidder guy today...and the only time he got out of the skidder was to fuel up or throw more chunks on the fire.

That shrimp, warmed and smoked in a cedar/pine fire was gooooood. We usually can't have any fires during the main season but winter logging does have it's advantages.

Winter logging is like camping with out the beer and flipflops. The loggers I'm cutting for usually have a pitch rager going, can see the flames way down the road before I get there. It's nice to stand next to on the way out and discuss the business end of things by.

I've noticed guys like to throw big filter elements in there too. One guy called it recyling. He says, "See, I just pull out the mesh that's left and I recycle it."

 

[Gologit]

Winter logging is like camping with out the beer and flipflops. The loggers I'm cutting for usually have a pitch rager going, can see the flames way down the road before I get there. It's nice to stand next to on the way out and discuss the business end of things by.

I've noticed guys like to throw big filter elements in there too. One guy called it recyling. He says, "See, I just pull out the mesh that's left and I recycle it."

NO, NO, No....No filters in the fire. Nobody really does that. Ever. Nope, not ever. slowp might be listening No filters in the fire...especially fuel filters which burn much cleaner than oil filters. Or so I've heard. :greenchainsaw:

 

[slowp]

That was one of the "discussions" today. The art of the lunchtime pitch stump fire. Unfortunately, nobody had one built. I don't know what is wrong with those guys! Maybe I'll have to teach them.

Bob, I'm afraid I can't help you. Now that I'm acclimated to our new global warming weather (16 right now) I might overheat in your tropical climate.
The Used Dog would have to shed a lot. Then there'd be more dog hair flying around than usual. Maybe some in the shrimp. Mmmmm, more protein.

Another topic was exploding paint cans in the lunchtime stump fire.

 

[Burvol]

NO, NO, No....No filters in the fire. Nobody really does that. Ever. Nope, not ever. slowp might be listening No filters in the fire...especially fuel filters which burn much cleaner than oil filters. Or so I've heard. :greenchainsaw:

Oh, that flame does burn hotter for sure.

Recipe for disaster:

1. 1 coke bottle (glass)

2. Slash fuel (diesel saw gas mix 60/40 should do er)

3. Tight green fir cone.


Take the bottle and fill it not quite half way with the slash fuel. Cork it with the green fir cone. You want one that you have to ram into it to make it a fit tight. We need maximum compression for maximum combustion here. Set it in the fire where you know it will be straight up and get to a safe distance and enjoy.

 

[slowp]

A partially full quart can of paint, with lid screwed tightly on will also provide a little bit of enjoyment. It takes a while, but will explode nicely.

I also learned the one plop method of heating up canned food on one of those night time lightning busts. :monkey: