Unless you're in a different time zone, you keep the bad hours I do.
Will be doing some building ( timber frame of course, though perhaps not using all classic joinery), on a nice site overlooking the Rivanna River, and developing our wood resources, 180 acres, while we're doing that I hope. I'll be looking for cast off logs that would otherwise go to landfills (you'd be shocked at how often that happens around here), letting folks bring logs to us, some run out sawing. We're even thinking of letting folks go into the woods and pick trees that they want, doing some custom felling/milling on that sort of very custom basis.
My friend NativeWolf (ff mbr), has walked the woods with me, spotting all the walnut trees, his favorites, and given me some advice, though a lot of it centers around typical commercial selling in bulk. For some reason or another, I get nervous about that. I think it's the fact that we've seen too many bad logging jobs over the years. A neighbor has about 20 acres on a corner of our land and came close to doing that recently, though the job was above average as to how little it tore up the land. I just think he cut too many trees per acre, almost a clear-cut for the most part. I'm pretty sure money was his sole motivation, and that he just happened to hire a logger who was a little better than most in that respect.
Southside Logger (Jim), who operates in this general area, another ff mbr, is trying to find a time to come up and look at our forest regarding his flooring operation that he's getting going.
Our number one species is white oak, plus red Oak, sycamores, a few Pinetrees here and there in groups; Many & varied species, but in some cases a bit stunted by not being properly managed. We have 80-90-year-old trees that are 12 inches DBH, or even less. If you'd like to see our 2017 update of a 2006 cruise, for fun or profit, send me a private message and I'll send it to your email address, three pages. Total value is close to $300,000, stumpage, if we adjust for some things, including for land purchased after the cruise, etc. I'm not sure what ratio that's based on, which is important since the harvesting cost ratio is a big factor in how much the owner clears.
I've heard everything from 40/60 to 70/30, with many factors to consider. We may ask a logger to come in and buy and harvest some trees, while laying down some trees for our build that will take care of. My wife bites her fingernails when she sees me with a chainsaw in my hand next to a standing tree.
The irony of that 2006 cruise is that guy missed all the walnut trees. Did not even mention them as miscellaneous or pulpwood. If I was listening carefully to NativeWolf & interpreting his commentary properly, I'd say we have many thousands of dollars worth of it, some to cut now, and some we should let grow after marking their positions.
We have some lowgrounds along the river that would be ideal for planting Walnut, and maybe some northern red oak elsewhere on the land, we don't want a monoculture, for sure. I'm 66, so someone else will likely cut it, but there is value in growing crops for the long term, with attending risk of coarse. Warren Buffet's Berkshire Hathaway has never paid a dividend, but that's never stopped anyone from putting a value on it.
We're going to see how it goes as I learn to use the equipment better, and also I think I have a young man from our restaurant employee group who may want to learn the forestry game as a trade. I will need some help myself to avoid the blind leading the blind syndrome, given my currently low level of experience.
As you can see, we're considering a lot of directions. Number one at the moment is to get started on the house, as soon as we have a final "box" design, at least. Then I can get Superior Wall in and get on to lots of trees, to cut and mill.
If you're ever anywhere nearby, come over for the tour and making sawdust. My personal favorite is mountains, but the topo on this land is at least reminiscent of where I grew up, in southwest Virginia and there's the 4000 feet on the river.
How are things in Fairbanks? Our kitchen manager spent about three or four years there in the US Air Force. He was there over Christmas, and said it got up to above freezing I think at one point. OMG.
Going to sleep now, I hope I didn't leave any bad typos or grammar in there. 💤💤💤💤