This Week in the Woods
Well, summer is coming to an end. As much as I hate to see it go, I’ve got a lot to do and I am ready for my weekends to settle down a bit. I love living where there are 4 seasons because just when I’ve had enough of one, it changes. We have done quite a bit these past couple weeks in and out of the woods.
Back a couple weeks ago we were harvesting some timber on a well stocked woodlot near the lake. Most of the lot was not in shoreland zoning, but a small part was so we were being careful to follow the regulations in this zone. People are very protective of their lakes, so you can imagine the looks and comments we received. While I fully welcome people stopping onto the landing to ask questions or voice a concern, I draw the line when people put their safety in danger. This type of behavior is actually is pretty rare for us and most people respect our work, but on this particular job a woman literally walked right up to the working feller buncher as if she was invincible to falling trees! Thankfully, my father saw her before anything bad happened and got out of the machine to discuss her concerns. As you can imagine, her approach was more confrontational than civil for a moment until she was convinced we knew the laws of the land and were careful to follow them. The most ironic part…. she was proud to have built her home on resource protection land…. hmmmm… Regardless, this is just another part of the job because in our area most woodlots are somebody’s neighbor. Neighbors tend to get very nervous when the woodsmen show up with big machines but we do know what we are doing and I am happy to hop out of the loader to set your mind at ease but PLEASE wait until the machine is at a stop and we see you before you approach us.
We had to spend some time switching over trucks and when you’re just a small crew this means down time. There is no one to continue operating equipment while we run around registering trucks, changing hitches and hydraulic systems, and getting them lettered. The law requires the truck have your name and DOT number on the truck and it was an act of congress to achieve this. Dad ended up having to just put a piece of cardboard in the window for a day because we couldn’t wait any longer. We also finally got the excavator delivered and the kids and I spent some time servicing and maintaining the machine. The machine is all ready to go but I am still looking for a mulching head that would work with it.
We did a small job in Mechanic Falls that only took a week or so to complete and then we moved out to a job in Bridgton. We harvested this lot about 12 years ago when my big dog, Brody, was just a pup. I’ll never forget it because I used to bring him to work every day and he would lay at my feet in the loader. We were getting out of the machine one day at this job and he fell off! It was awful. I was convinced he broke his leg, but thankfully it was a just bruised up and everything turned out ok. We are there now harvesting some mature oak, pine, and beech trees.
One day this week a sales woman for insurance met us at the job site to talk about insurance options. While I find the insurance sales people very kind, understanding, likable people…. I HATE the subject of insurance. It fires me up more than taxes and that’s saying a lot. There is always an additional insurance they suggest over your regular insurance and before you know it you’re paying and addition $3,000 incase you get a hang nail on the job. I can’t stand it. It is completely out of hand.
I finished up the week looking at a couple woodlots in Naples & Harrison and then we got ready for the best part…. We have some friends that have a seasonal camp at Kokatosi Camp ground in Raymond and every labor day weekend they do a fundraiser for Make-A-Wish for kiddos. We took advantage of the fact that most people camping enjoy camp fires and we donated a trailer full of fire wood to the auction. We were happy to see that the load originally got auctioned off for $375 but then the family re-donated the load and it got re-auctioned for an addition $300! The boys won a fishing pole raffle and we scored a pretty sweet homemade fire pit. All together the camp group raised over $23,000 for Make-A-Wish! That is incredible and we were happy to be a part of the cause. Honestly, there is no better feeling than being able to give back, even if it’s just a little.
Have a great week!
