Men/Machines

The thinning project has ramped up. Instead of just Mark Weller running the massive Barko harvester, he now has his younger brother Craig Weller assisting with the logging shovel.

Mark fells the trees as he tiptoes his machine through the thick stand to remove the ones that are dead, broken and damaged, or growing too close to the rest of the trees. As he falls each tree he uses the long arm on the Barko to shlep the full length tree up the hill and out of his way while he goes in search of the next one needing to be cut. Craig uses the long arm on his shovel to grab the tree, which still has the branches on the top half, to a temporary deck on ground that is more level than where the cutting is taking place.

After a pile of unprocessed trees are stacked, it is then Mark’s turn with the Barko to slide each tree through the processing arm. Her he emoves the rest of the branches, measures and cuts the trees into log lengths to match the needs of the different mills they will eventually be going to.

Mark moves the Barko back into the forest to continue thinning while Craig sorts the processed timber into the proper stacks.

The stacks need to be facing the right way in the landing for Dad Dennis Weller to appear with the log truck for the next load out of the forest.

The area that has just been thinned has been transformed. Before it was dark, no undergrowth at all and cramped trees. With the canopy opened up and the trees spaced out, sunlight can once again hit the ground in places. An understory of ferns, mosses, Oregon Grape and salal will be able to flourish and hopefully, in a few years, the Chanterelles will decide that this is a good place grow.