Fall colors and logging in the Coulee region

[c5rulz]

Well my logger buddies are in the area and I have been up every day getting a load. Firewood progress is good, with 18 loads, 6 with the help of the forwarder. Colors aren't quite at peak, but it is scenic on the ridge.

 

[ChoppyChoppy]

Interesting to see other areas. Up here the trees have been leafless for nearly a month.

 

[c5rulz]

Words don't describe just how steep this is.

Can't blame a guy for taking a few scraps home can ya?

Got about 100' of pile done.

 

[ChoppyChoppy]

Running on that steep ground with a buncher and skidder?

 

[Onan18]

Now that's what I call firewood cutting! Looking good buddy, especially like the 288 with the Total on it. And holy cow that does look steep, how do you get a footing while bucking the logs?

Joe

 

[olympyk_999]

Running on that steep ground with a buncher and skidder?

where you see a buncher??...cable skidders do good on steep ground...or at least better than a grapple

 

[ChoppyChoppy]

My post was a question.

where you see a buncher??...cable skidders do good on steep ground...or at least better than a grapple

 

[cigmaker]

Guess I'll throw the YOU SUCK! in on this one.

 

[c5rulz]

Running on that steep ground with a buncher and skidder?

They use the cable skidder to get wood to the landings to cut to length. The forwarder truck takes to the main landing where it is sorted and stacked in piles. The semis haul from there. Some have grapples, some don't depending on the type of truck and where they are going. They sell to different mills depending on the quality of the timber. This site didn't have real high quality. The one across the road last year had a great percentage of high quality veneer. I am cutting over there too but have to load the trailer myself the old fashion way.

The steepness is really lost with the camera. A good percentage of the time the skidder can winch the stems up to the skidder and then drive up the skidder trails to the landing. At this site a lot of it was winched all the way up the hill with the skidder having to relocate, let out cable and then pull it in again.

 

[c5rulz]

Now that's what I call firewood cutting! Looking good buddy, especially like the 288 with the Total on it. And holy cow that does look steep, how do you get a footing while bucking the logs?

Joe

Well if logging isn't hazardous enough there was an additional element too. A rock about 18" across dislodged and came careening down the hill like a cannon ball. Pretty unreal sound when it started hitting the slash down below.

 

[c5rulz]

Guess I'll throw the YOU SUCK! in on this one.

I've had a few think it was "lucky" to get on places with a lot of oak for making firewood. Every place I have cut on I put in considerable sweat equity in order to make this happen.

Originally I put a Craigslist ad offering to do saw work in exchange for firewood on places that had been logged. I got one offer and this worked out, the next door neighbor came out to inquire as to what I was doing, he without asking invited me to cut on his place too as it looked good when I was done.

Then I met some loggers who worked near my house. I hit it off with them and got the names of landowners as to where they were going next. I offered the landowners the same deal, saw work in exchange for access. I have met some that I consider friends and now literally have the run of their properties. I started on one a year prior to the logging starting and worked 5 days trimming edges of fields and cutting firewood for him. He kept trying to pay me and I just said "things will even out".

Today where the loggers are working I started cutting up cull logs for the landowner with a OWB. I have cut about 40 full cord of wood for him.

Today's pics of what I worked on. Camera died and didn't get a good after picture.

Report this image

Report this image

 

[ChoppyChoppy]

They use the cable skidder to get wood to the landings to cut to length. The forwarder truck takes to the main landing where it is sorted and stacked in piles. The semis haul from there. Some have grapples, some don't depending on the type of truck and where they are going. They sell to different mills depending on the quality of the timber. This site didn't have real high quality. The one across the road last year had a great percentage of high quality veneer. I am cutting over there too but have to load the trailer myself the old fashion way.

The steepness is really lost with the camera. A good percentage of the time the skidder can winch the stems up to the skidder and then drive up the skidder trails to the landing. At this site a lot of it was winched all the way up the hill with the skidder having to relocate, let out cable and then pull it in again.

Ok. I was thinking the whole thing was your operation. Must be slow going cable skidding logs up a hill like that!

 

[mn woodcutter]

Thanks for all the pics. Beautiful area!

 

[zogger]

Well my logger buddies are in the area and I have been up every day getting a load. Firewood progress is good, with 18 loads, 6 with the help of the forwarder. Colors aren't quite at peak, but it is scenic on the ridge.

Sure is pretty! but that there's cheating! hahaha! Every gust of wind here, snowfall of leaves. Weather guessers saying low 30s tonight here, finally gonna close all the windows. Official fall, best time of the year!

 

[c5rulz]

Ok. I was thinking the whole thing was your operation. Must be slow going cable skidding logs up a hill like that!

Nah I am just a serious firewood hack. I've gotten to know the boys pretty well and bribe them with fresh baked goods my wife bakes. They like Honey crisp apples out of my orchard the best though. I've referred a couple jobs to them that they wrote contracts on. One coming up is a 120 acre parcel that is going to take 3 weeks. That will be firewood for a long time. I am after the cut offs generated on the landing.

Cable skidding up the hill dramatically slowed them down and the amount of dirt on the bark was annoying. But dirty wood is just the price of doing business. I started with a sharp chain and sharpened 3 times on a single tank. But that generated a load of wood too.