Trout Mountain Forestry

Smith Hill Oak woodland restoration/fir harvest

Mike — Thu, 19 Apr 2012 23:13:05 +0000

The chips are flying at this year’s harvest on the Smith Hill property near Corvallis, where we’re conducting an oak woodland release in some areas and a variable retention fir harvest in others. The cutting is mostly being done with a medium-sized mechanical harvester, which can safely wrestle the fir out of the oak crowns without damaging them. Larger fir trees are cut by chainsaw, with a gentle push sometimes given by the harvester to put the tree in the right direction… much easier than pounding wedges!

Here are some pictures from the first day of cutting. I also posted a few videos, which can be found here at our new YouTube page: http://www.youtube.com/TroutMtnForestry

The annual PCT pilgrimage to Trout Mountain

Mike — Wed, 11 Apr 2012 19:27:00 +0000

This year marks the first ever trip to Trout Mountain (near Eddyville, OR) with every member of Trout Mountain Forestry in attendance! In addition to a fun hike to the summit of the mountain, the entire crew fired up their saws and helped Scott pre-commercially thin a large alder stand. This was also Marla’s first time running a chainsaw and as you can see from the pictures below, she’s a natural!

What’s a yoder?

Mike — Mon, 26 Mar 2012 20:17:46 +0000

In this winter’s cable thinning harvest at the Corvallis Forest, B&G Logging of Philomath used a Yoder as the log yarding tool of choice. Yoder = Yarder + Loader. Its a track-mounted log loader with cable yarding spools and pulleys added. It’s wide tracks don’t require time-consuming guy-wire rigging to keep it steady. B&G’s owner Levi Beelart says its the perfect tool for short corridors with smaller logs, allowing careful thinning on steep terrain at a economical cost.

Spring has arrived!

Mike — Fri, 09 Mar 2012 23:23:58 +0000

Indian plum near Gaston, OR

By the time spring weather arrives, the predictions of Punxsutawney Phil (the groundhog) or the Snohomish GroundFrog are a foggy memory. To know when spring has truly arrived here in the forests of northwestern Oregon, I look to Indian plum (Oemleria cerasiformis) for its signal. Indian plum is an early bird of the plant world, as it often begins to leaf out and flower long before other shrubs (they’re still hitting the snooze button). As I’ve been out in the woods the past few weeks, I’ve seen Indian plum leafing-out as well as snowberry, so it’s official!

Annual retreat!

Mike — Fri, 24 Feb 2012 21:28:49 +0000

This month we had our 6th annual Trout Mountain Forestry retreat at the beautiful Timberline Lodge on Mount Hood. It’s a great opportunity for us to withdraw from the hustle and bustle for a few days and reflect on the past year, make goals for the year to come, and to refine our skills, standards and policies. We get a lot of work done while we’re up there, but we also make sure to reserve some time for play as well. This year the snow wasn’t the best we’d experienced, but it was still lots of fun to get out on the slopes together and enjoy the amazing views. The highlight this year was our spontaneous post-dinner team building exercise – a 6 person ping pong game with two paddles and constant rotation of players around the table… needless to say, there was a lot of running…and laughter! We’re back from the retreat refreshed and inspired and geared up for a busy spring and summer.

Trout Mountaineers at Timberline Lodge, Feb 2012 (From left: Barry, Scott, Mark, Marla, Mike, Matt)

“Sustainable” vs. “Conservation-based” Forestry

Mike — Thu, 16 Feb 2012 22:58:37 +0000

What does sustainable forestry mean today? The term has been used for centuries and its meaning has continually evolved. Much of its history is rooted in the concept of ‘sustained-yield’ and the long-term prospects of a reliable timber supply. It is often still used in that context, but the past several decades have seen a much greater emphasis on sustaining the environment and communities as well. The recent marketing buzz around sustainability in (all sorts of industries) muddles the picture. It’s hard to know when it’s meaningful and when it’s “green-washing.”

I admit I often say we practice sustainable forestry, but I prefer the term ‘conservation-based’ forestry. To me, it better captures our ethic and what we do on the ground. Nowadays, it seems more meaningful to identify with conservation, than with sustainability. Our forestry practices are carried out in the spirit of the conservation movement, which seeks not only a sustained yield of natural resources, but also the preservation of soil, water, wildlife, fisheries, and biodiversity. For example, this means we’re growing older, mixed-species forests, identifying trees for wildlife habitat, creating snags, leaving downed woody debris, controlling invasive species, and restoring rare oak habitats.

What are your thoughts? Which concept means more to you?

Mixed Douglas-fir/Grand fir stand near Hagg Lake thinned by Barry and Mike in the Spring of 2011

Welcome to the Trout Mountain blog!

Mike — Thu, 26 Jan 2012 22:43:53 +0000

Greetings friends and colleagues! Welcome to Trout Mountain Forestry’s blog. We will update the blog at least monthly to share stories and pictures about our projects or to start or continue conversations about forestry and maybe other things that interest us…

Please feel free to comment on any of our posts and start a conversation, we’d love to hear your feedback and ideas.

Stay tuned for our next post! We’ll be contemplating the meaning of sustainable forestry in modern-day society and hopefully sparking an interesting discussion.

: Beautiful late fall day at Camp Arrowhead, WA.