My small town of about 150 people is located about 4 miles south of the ND/SD Stateline, along SD highway 37. It runs north and south through the state. My town's name is Hecla (named after a Volcano in Iceland.) There's more cows and hogs than people out here. And if you get a refuge tag? You can blast a monster. Most full grown bucks are over 200 lbs. 5 years old or older. And even the old does can push 180- 200lbs fully grown. There's crops everywhere! They have plenty to eat. The farmers want to see them all gone because they eat their yields. Just don't shoot our signs like the fffffers from Minnesota and Wisconsin. If you can find me, I can give you a quick tour, and show you yhe farmstead that has about 100+ deer that eat that farmers silage.......everyday
Here in Wyoming, it's interesting the variation between the standing dead trees. There are standing dead in the National Forest that are wet through the whole tree, wet for the first 4-6 feet, and then there are some that are 8-10% moisture content. The key identifier which MagCraft has mentioned before is a long check down the length of the tree. The hard part with the steading dead lodgepole is that they are often in close proximity to other trees and they get hung up, or they've blown into other trees. Some of the trees I cut this week I had to cut 2-3 trees and use wedges to fall them together.
I have had standing dead trees that I have dropped and they were as wet as a green tree, then some that are cracked and ready to burn. This basswood I cut the other day was fully dead, bark pealing. Split it open and it was dry as could be, sounded like 2 bowling pins when you smacked 2 splits together.
Started on some ash that's been down for a few years out at Bunny's. I'm sure it can use some more dry time, but has that dry crack sound when split and the bowling pin when thrown in a pile. I do have a tester but haven't bothered opening it up to check. Most likely will be burning some this winter.
