[Tim Harrigan]

I have not yet seen a copy of the grant proposal. I received a version of the proposal but it was in a file type that I could not open.

[Tim Harrigan]

@Vicki 29774 wrote:

Another great video, Tim.

Anyone want to address safety issues in pulling down hang-ups and “widow-makers”?

I thought that a few others might want to join the discussion but I can comment from my point of view. I have to say that I was a little hesitant to post this video because of the nature of the work and the underlying considerations but some of us have agreed on the educational value of these videos to clearly demonstrate what we do. I also think safety should be a part of our discussions related to working animals and it is often overlooked so I am glad you brought it up.

Working safely is an attitude grounded in an awareness that the physical nature of our work can lead to injuries to us or our animals if we do not understand our limitations or have not developed a systematic approach to observing our environment and anticipating how our animals and the loads they pull will interact. So in this logging video there is an underlying assumption that the team is experienced in woods work, steady, and unlikely to be rattled by the sounds and feel of the loads they are pulling. But that is a training issue and is worthy of a separate discussion.

There is also an assumption that the teamster is experienced in woods work and observant and attentive to details. I am not a professional logger but I have learned from loggers on DAPnet that a professional approach is not a function of how much wood you cut. With a professional approach you learn something every time you fell and skid a tree or pull down a hang-up. What you do not see in the video is how much time and work went into preparing to pull down each of the hang-ups, big or small. There was time looking up, not only at the hang-up but at adjacent trees that could be affected, and time looking for widow makers–dead branches or debris that could fall or be thrown by whipping limbs when the hang-up came down.

The angle of the hang-up and how the limbs are tangled affect the required direction of pull and how the log is chained. The team needs a clear skid route and good footing, and the sawyer need a clear work area and escape route so there was a lot of time swamping out the work area for the team. Usually the butt of the hang-up needed to be cut and prepared and that included a whole set of safety considerations as well.

At about 2:05 of the video you can see that even after I have finished the prep work and Will and Abe were hitched and ready to go, I still re-checked the hitch, took another look up at the hang-up and re-checked the skid path before I asked them to step into the load. There was a deliberate and systematic process that preceded each pull. And don’t forget the hard hat, work gloves, cutting chaps, steel toed shoes and other safety equipment.

There is an element of danger in pulling down hang-ups but with attention to detail the danger is really no more than with other logging activities. But things can happen and you need to know when you are operating within your capabilities and when you need to walk away.

[Tim Harrigan]

I am working on a few things that I will have finished by the weekend.

[Tim Harrigan]

@dominiquer60 29736 wrote:

Crossbow works, but it has also been mentioned on this site that cutting the roses and painting the stump directly with herbicide is effective and very exact use of a chemical.

Has anyone here tried using hogs to combat multiflora?

I have resisted using chemicals for several years. Now I am considering spot spraying individual plants so I can be exact in what gets sprayed. Never tried hogs or goats, not set up for fencing either of those. It seems like goats could do the job though.

[Tim Harrigan]

@Rod 29737 wrote:

Hi Tim

What does your team weigh?

They are around 4000 lbs.

[Tim Harrigan]

@Baystatetom 29732 wrote:

What a nice team you have, they make it look easy, not fast and jerky like mine. Comes with age and practice I suppose…

I would get some round up on that multiflora though its not going to go away on its own. The increase in sunlight and ground scarification from harvesting trees will actually make it a lot worse. 5% Round Up out of a mist blower will take it right out.
~Tom

Thanks, Tom, they are getting older so they don’t work fast by choice but they are steady and they can lug out some pretty good loads if they have to. I have been fighting multiflora encroaching in my pastures for at least 5 or 6 years, tried to control it with clipping but that does not work, only gets worse. I think I will spot spray the pastures with Crossbow next spring, not sure what I will do in the woodlot. That stuff is really wicked, Will and Abe hate it.

[Tim Harrigan]

Thanks, Scott. I have reasons for leaving snags that are mostly related to access, proximity to skid trails, poison ivy hazards, etc., but not really based on knowledge of forest ecology. Maybe I can improve in that area.

[Tim Harrigan]

http://youtu.be/i02Ot1h1fS0

Here is the link to it, left click on it and see if it works.

[Tim Harrigan]

You should see a scene from the video that just looks like a picture of us in the woods. If you left click anywhere on the picture it should activate the video.

[Tim Harrigan]

@Carl Russell 29680 wrote:

This brings me back to the purpose for having a forwarder on this job. As a way to bring more horse-power (live power) into the forestry enterprise, a mechanical forwarder is a practical compliment.

Carl

If I understand this correctly you have the flexibility to bring the forwarder in when needed and only pay for it when it is working? So this forwarder is sort of on-call for multiple jobs? That is a nice option to have. From a machinery economics perspective once you make the equipment investment you are locked in x number of mbf/year to cover fixed costs at a minimum. That is when the equipment investment sort of takes the drivers seat.

[Tim Harrigan]

Size is another factor. Cattle in hot climates tend to be smaller. Jerseys as well. Smaller cattle have greater surface area relative to body mass than larger cattle so are able to dissipate heat better. Bigger cattle have an advantage in cold weather for heat retention.

[Tim Harrigan]

@Countymouse 29673 wrote:

? Perhaps breeding can help with this, or perhaps having oxen that are in shape and acclimatized to the environment and the work expected is much more critical than the differences between Taurus and Indicus? Any one else care to speculate?

Andy, I think it is generally agreed that all else equal taurus cattle will be less tolerant of the heat than indicus, and less tolerant than horses which would be less tolerant than mules. But the key is conditioning, lack of excess weight and acclimation. Many folks work cattle all summer, they just use common sense and manage around the hottest part of the day, provide more rest breaks, etc. Sometimes written guidelines seem to indicate a black or white situation where in this case less than 80 is OK, 80 or greater is a problem. But there are a lot of shades of grey, heat index being one of them. An optimal temperature for cattle is in the 30-40 deg F range. As it gets warmer than that you just need to pay attention.

[Tim Harrigan]

I am with Mitch on this one. I guess I could pack tools out but a peavey and saw and such are just too awkward to pack. I have 6 stake pockets bolted down around the edges of my stone boat and I use bungy cords to lash my tools down and leave enough room for me. I skid a lot of wood out on the stone boat anyway so it can’t much simpler than that. And I work with cattle I would have to be pretty deliberate in setting them up for packing in most cases.

[Tim Harrigan]

Same problem here.

[Tim Harrigan]

Maybe the white ones taste better.

[Author]

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