Thursday, March 8, 2012

After Midnight

On my way to the bathroom last night, I noticed lights moving in our field. Peering out the window, I couldn't tell what was going on, piquing my curiosity enough to put on my glasses and go to the back door. Our neighbor was moving logs at 3:45 AM. Hmm.

This wasn't as startling as you may think, since said neighbor had asked permission to use the end of our pasture to bring out timber from his woodlot. The snowmobile trail runs from the road across the pasture and into his woods and he planned to cut trees along the trail. He and another person have been working down there for 3 or 4 weeks now, and have stacked some big old trees down there.
My curiosity took me down there with the dogs a while ago for a closeup view.

Getting in there while the ground was frozen makes it easier to maneuver and tears the ground up less, I suppose.  You can see that he isn't clear cutting the whole area, but making an opening down this hill. Maybe he wants the snowmobile trail a little further away from his back yard.

The chains on this skidder are pretty impressive.
Our winter has been a pretty open one with each snowstorm followed by warm enough temperatures that the snow never really got a chance to build up. In other words, we've had several mini mud seasons, and I'm sick of it. Just thaw out once and for all and let spring come for good! (Not going to happen- not in March- not in Maine)

 I thought last night that he was loading up the logs, taking advantage of firmer ground during the colder nighttime temps. In fact I was pretty sure that I saw logs being lifted up with a truck crane in the spotlights down there, but there seems to be a lot of timber still there today. 

 I was awake, no matter what some people in this house may be thinking. I'll have to see if there's a repeat performance tonight, since I am sure I'll be up again at some point. And if so, maybe I should wake someone so I have independent confirmation of the sighting?

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