Monday, October 11, 2021

Arboreal Embrace

EDO was helping me cut some firewood yesterday.  I sawed most of the way through a standing, middle-sized cottonwood, leaving just a small hinge, but I couldn't wedge it over.  It seemed to be hung up in the branches of a live Rocky Mountain juniper standing next to it.  I decided I'd need to pull it down.  I looped the old climbing rope that I carry as a tow strap around the trunk at about eight feet from the ground.  EDO and I both tugged on it, but it wouldn't move.  I hooked the rope to the Chev and drove away.  The rope broke (above).  Old climbing ropes can break, but not often:  I've used them to tow vehicles.  We decided on Plan B:  Cut the juniper, too.  EDO called it a mess.  But it worked and we got both trees on the ground.  While I was bucking, I found the problem (below).  The cottonwood had grown completely around the juniper.  They were not simply hung up, they were hugging.

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