Good deeds do have their own rewards

SLawyer Dave · October 28, 2013, 12:31:37 AM

All my friends know that I have gotten back into cutting and splitting fire wood as part of my continued efforts to lose weight. As a bonus, a good friend of mine just bought his first house over the summer, so I have been stocking him up with my leftover seasoned wood. He emailed me this morning because he saw an add online indicating that a 20 acre prune orchard had been taken out, and they were inviting the public to cut and haul free wood. As it turns out, the orchard is exactly 6.6 miles from my front door, so after the 49ers stomped the Jaguars, I decided to head over and cut a load of wood. Prune is a good firewood, (though the trees tend to be pretty small), and I figured I would let it season and my mom could burn it next winter.

When I got out there, the ranch manager was walking around, so I asked him where it would be best for me to cut. He offered to show me around the ranch, so we got in his 6 wheeler and took off. Boy it was a big place. Over 300 acres of prunes, peaches and walnuts. Due to the prune trees being very old, and a depressed market, they are pulling all of them out and planting walnuts. Unfortunately, he had some "yehoos" as he called them, come through and take almost all of the trunk wood the first few days, and they left all of the limb wood laying all over the place.

So after our tour, I started on a row, and just started walking up it cutting all of the decent limb wood out, and stacking the brush in rows. I went until I ran out of gas, then backed my truck up to each tree and loaded it as I made my way to my saw. Then fill up the saw, and start again. It really wasn't that bad, and I was surprised how fast I could cut a load, (even though most of the wood only averaged 3 to 4". I was also surprised how dry the wood was, since it had only been down for 6 weeks. I figured that in another month or two, my friend could probably burn it, (turns out they had not been watering since last year).

So as I was loading up my gear, the manager stopped by again. He thanked me for stacking the brush, as they are going to bring through a chipper and then disk the wood back into the soil. As we were talking, I mentioned about my friend needing dry wood, and that since the prune wood seemed so dry, I was going to give him the load to see if it would burn for him. He asked me what I did for a living, (and like most people who meet me when I am in my grubbies and filthy from wood cutting) was surprised I was an attorney. As it turns out, he needs some legal work done, so we made an appointment for me to meet with him and his wife. Not only that, when he heard about my friend, he took me over to their "dry pile", which is where they put all of the trees they pull out of their working orchards during the year that die or get damaged. They are all full trees, (walnut, peach and prunes), and dry as a bone. He told me that they had already cut all of the dry wood they needed for the year, so I was free to cut up the rest of the pile. He also mentioned that he did not think they would probably do a public free for all again, (thanks Yehoos), but that I would be welcome to come out any time, as they were going to be pulling out 20 acres a year for the next 5 years until all of the prunes were out and replanted with walnut.

So all in all, I got a good work out in, some nice firewood, what looks to be a new long term source of future wood, a new client, and maybe a new friend. I would call that a very good day, (and as a bonus the 49ers kicked butt). ;D

beenthere · October 28, 2013, 12:53:14 AM

Sounds like a great deal all the way around. Amazing what a little "extra" effort will bring in return.

Which walnut will they plant? English?

Ljohnsaw · October 28, 2013, 01:34:23 AM

Dave,

Great story and good work. Looks like a nice long supply you have there. I see in your profile that you are looking to learn about sawing wood. Me too. I'm building a mill to cut my own wood on my property up I80 and build a cabin. If your interested and want a real workout ;), let me know and I'll let you help :D next spring/summer.

SLawyer Dave · October 28, 2013, 10:09:11 AM

Quote from: beenthere on October 28, 2013, 12:53:14 AM
Sounds like a great deal all the way around. Amazing what a little "extra" effort will bring in return.

Which walnut will they plant? English?

Yeah, not sure of the varietal, but English Walnut is all they plant here. Well, generally everything they plant here now is a grafted English Walnut on some sort of root base. I have a client that is a salesman for the large agricultural nursery in our region. He says that there is so much English Walnut going in that in 10 years that price will be depressed too. Then there are the tens of thousands of acres that the Chinese have planted.

thecfarm · October 28, 2013, 10:15:13 AM

Good job. Probably the yahoos wanted the big wood for smoking or maybe sawing or turning. But kinda doubt the sawing part.

SLawyer Dave · October 28, 2013, 10:24:50 AM

Quote from: ljohnsaw on October 28, 2013, 01:34:23 AM
Dave,

Great story and good work. Looks like a nice long supply you have there. I see in your profile that you are looking to learn about sawing wood. Me too. I'm building a mill to cut my own wood on my property up I80 and build a cabin. If your interested and want a real workout ;), let me know and I'll let you help :D next spring/summer.

Sounds like a plan. I certainly would be willing to help. Are you building up by Colfax, or more toward Tahoe? My daughter just got a job in Grass Valley, and I am helping her move next weekend. Use to do a lot of skiing up that way in my youth.

I eventually want to build a cabin too. Though the plans I am working on are based on a vertical log cabin design. Which is why I am more leaning toward a chain saw mill. I will be facing the logs on two sides, not really making lumber. At least that is the current plan.

Did you see this post:

https://forestryforum.com/board/index.php/topic,69665.0.html

Might want to check it out. Like the man says, even if the Logosol doesn't fit your needs, there will be a free lunch and lots of information and contacts to be made.

Ljohnsaw · October 28, 2013, 11:16:06 AM

I'm at Yuba Gap - almost exactly halfway between Colfax and Truckee. I know, because I had to make a run to get a hacksaw blade last Thursday. An hour round trip to Truckee :

Light snow/rain today up there. The building window is slamming shut :(

Yep, signed up for the Logosol demo with my 9-year-old son - see you there?

clww · October 28, 2013, 06:29:20 PM

Great story, Dave, with a good ending.

Full Chisel · October 28, 2013, 08:49:41 PM

Hopefully if the Walnut Market gets over supplied, the price of walnuts will go down to $3 per pound or something affordable. That's lookin' on the bright side. I've not seen the price of Walnut boards or nuts ever come down.

Here's to ya Dave. I liked the part of the story where you are doing the wood cutting for the health benefits. Most people only know how to complain that they are too fat. Did you know that only 200 years ago people had no concept of what it meant to, "exercise." Life was such that it worked itself in. Life was probably better before imported sugar and prevalent availability of tobacco was in supply. It would be better to live til you were forty and get eaten by a bear than to live the way most do.