Timber! Felling Pine Tree Number One

June 7, 2025

On Monday (June 2), Bruce determined the ground was dry and hard enough to take the truck into the back pasture. He wanted to use the truck to help safely take down the pine tree one.

Bruce drove the truck into the back pasture and parked it. Using a ladder, Bruce climbed into the leaning pine tree and wrapped a cable around it.

He hooked the other end of the cable to the truck.

We moved everything that might be damaged out of the way, including the ladder.

Bruce started cutting the wedge out of the base of the tree.

For the back cut, Bruce had me pull the truck forward so the cable was tight. If the tree started to fall, he wanted it to be in a direction that he wasn’t in. He had me pull forward in the truck about three times, keeping the cable tight. Once the back cut was complete, Bruce had me go off to the side, so I could safely watch the process. Bruce climbed into the driver’s seat of the the truck. He pulled the truck forward until pine number one was down.

The tree came down where Bruce expected it to fall.

Bruce had me drive the truck around front and put it into the garage, while he gathered up his tools and brought them inside. I strongly suggested that he shower with Technu to get any poison ivy oils off. I tossed his coveralls into the washer and washed them with Technu.

Later in the day, as I walked to the garden, I realized just how nice it was to see the leaning tree, no longer leaning.

If look in the picture above, you can see the truck tire marks in the grass from the gate.

I took some pictures of the garden.

I sat inside reading for a bit with Nox at my feet.

In the evening, we sat out on the front porch and enjoyed the sunset. The smoke from the Canadian wildfires was no longer as thick and we are not getting the great red ball for the sunset.

I continue to hope for rain for our neighbors to the north.