First time processing since November!/Larch

So I decided to dust off the saw today. The valley bottom is more or less free of winter snow and we are experiencing a very early spring in the Canadian Rockies. Last month I noticed this larch laying in the snow along a back road. For those who dont know this soft wood tree its similar in btus to birch and black cherry and is the highest btu wood to be found in our area so its considered gold. Hydro put in a new tower and cleared a small foot print to work so they had to take down some trees. Im a green wood snob for the most part because Im spoiled with a "stash" of standing dead larch that is close to stove ready. The reason this one got my attention was because I could back my truck right up to it. I have back issues so a 20 inch across bucked to 18 inches green larch that I have to dry for possibly two summers isnt high on my list but I couldn't resist. Considering how long Ive burned Im surprised Ive never noodled a tree before especially considering my lifting limitations. I took inspiration from Shawn Curry's recent thread on the subject. I cant compare the size of trees or the awesome chainsaw but I enjoyed myself today. There were no bugs but I sure sweated a lot under the sun. I think thats something I havent done since last fall as well!

 

This is 3 rows of mostly 18 inch splits which works out to be about .4 of a cord with labour from me, myself and I. I was impressed at how easy it was to crack open with my sledge and wedge. I shy away from splitting by hand because of the vibration in my back but this was a breeze. I experimented a bit with different depths of noodling and found that it took very little to crack it with the sledge! There is a doug fir dropped green two years ago laying just out of sight that I was going to pass up because of the weight but with a bit of noodling experience Im feeling inspired.

 

Nice! Thats a perfect size tree for making the whole process enjoyable.

 

nice looking bed full of btus Sean

 

I thought I would be more tender today but aside from being a bit stiff Im fine. I never worry about how my muscles feel its my spine I pay attention to. That green larch is heavy! Ill split it tonight when I get home. I had to drive my loaded down truck to the office today.

 

Nice looking truck load!
You did a fine job working the rounds so they were manageable.

 

Nice load! Noodling is kind of cheating though. That being said, don't look at my wood pile.

 

Are you getting any of that coldish weather? When I was out cutting yesterday it was 17c!! Its raining and 7c right now. Ill have to have a fire when I get home tonight.

 

By the way I noticed in my second picture theres a little piece of fir laying on the ground with a nasty angle cut. That wasnt me. Im not sure if you guys noticed but I guess now you will!

 

Well.....still kind of waiting for spring to show up lol. It's not bad, but the weather forecasts keep changing daily. The other day it was +11 C, and last night it went down to -10 C. It's +1 c right now. A few more meh days weather wise, and then it should be smooth sailing.

 

My wood supplier (sharp looking fella runs a Husky 240) does the same thing.

 

Larch, or Tamarack as it's known in this area is great firewood, and hard to come by in the national forest where I cut. Oh believe me, it's there, but we are not allowed to cut the green ones, and the dead ones are pretty well picked unless you have a nice setup with winch, a few snatch blocks and a whole bunch of cable to pull them up from the lower side of the road. (These are things I do not have)

Enjoy those fine BTU's Sir!

 

Great wood, but I find it hard to get it burning.

 

We've got tamarack up north at the cabin, but with so much red pine, and red oak as of late, there's been no reason to venture that far too get any of it.

 

Yeah unless you're just doing it for fun. Ill sometimes drive a long way for some wood just for play but I rarely do this since Im cheap and dont want to spend all my savings on heating with wood by burning up to much gas.

 

We have burned Tamarack for years, and as long as it is seasoned and dry, it lights right up with a Firestarter or some kindling and newspaper. Love the snap, crackle and pop when it burns too.

 

Rarely have I ever cut green larch so we'll test it in October but I think this will be for the following winter. I dont have a problem getting it burning but truthfully I usually dont start a fire with it or use it for kindling I only add it to coals on reloads. Also the larch I usually use has been standing dead for a long time and is pretty special stuff.

 

Yes its a very distinctive crackle isnt it? Very rapid fire popping and crackling.

 

I love to sit and watch it burn. I got a load of it last fall, now I can't wait for the snow to melt where cut it at 8000 ft elevation.