My arms were aching, and it wasn’t even 11 am. We had hiked in a mile and a quarter to the second bridge site at Cloverpatch, shedding a few of the group to help Brian log out a 21 inch log that barely missed our first bridge. He planned to cut out several other annoyance logs on the three quarter mile trail between the first bridge site and the second.
The rest of us planned to finish the second bridge by widening the eastern ramp and more importantly, fetching 50 feet of downed Western Red cedar from across Tire Creek, another third of a mile. Sig had cut three logs, they were mostly debarked, and they would become the base rails, the final step in bridge completion.
I lifted the end of a 25 foot log, 5-6.5 inches in diameter, a bit less at one end, as cedar tapers. This was heavy, and we needed to first get it across the creek, then move it uphill on a narrow trail and then more than a quarter mile back to the second bridge.
Jeff and I picked up the shortest log, 9 feet, put it on our shoulders and hiked back to the first bridge. My acromion, part of the scapula that is the point of the shoulder, protested, but 9 log feet had been transferred.
Eighteen per cent.
Getting the larger logs across the creek was an effort, with many ways to fall and fail. When we had six people, we used straps and brute force, and with multiple stops, got the log across the creek and part way up the hill on the other side. I was asked to video, which was great, because I then didn’t have to help for thirty feet. I should have videoed the whole process.
I had been computing in my head 6 inches in diameter, 3 inches radius, quarter foot, area 1/16 square foot, times pi, or about 0.2 sq ft. multiply by 25 feet to get about 5 cubic feet of wood. Now, Western Red cedar weighs 28 pounds per cubic foot dry, but this wood was cut 9 days ago and is green. How much? Well, figure maybe 50% more, although one can find even higher numbers. So the weight is probably 40-45 pounds per cubic foot, and we were carrying somewhere around 200 pounds. Two hundred solid, long, not bendable, heavy pounds. While we had six of us, at least two or more of us at any given time were not doing as much when the trail turned or there was an unfortunate rock or tree in our way. Six of us somehow got the log back over to the destination bridge with multiple stops. I felt sorry for Doug, who had the heavy end.
The third log remained. When I went back over, I noted one end was too narrow for what we needed. Someone said we needed only 14 feet? That didn’t seem right, so I checked if we still needed 50 feet total. Yes.
OK. Jeff and I hauled 9 feet, and all of us hauled another 25. That’s 34. We need 16 feet to finish. There was a pause, then agreement. Think twice, measure twice, speaking of which, we had 25 feet of tape measure that wouldn’t roll back up. That’s a 300 inch metal mess spread across the trail.
We cut the log on the narrow end to 16 feet; the same six of us hauled it over, far easier with a third less weight. We placed it on the bridge, let Chris finish debarking; Sig and Steve would put it into place with spacers and lag bolts, we widened the on ramp, and the second bridge was finished!
Two more to go. See you on the trail.
Oh, forgot to mention. On the way home, we got stopped for a train, then 5 minutes after moving again got stopped because of a police action in Westfir. We turned around and came home via the North Shore Road.
by Mike Smith
Willamette NF 2024
Boreal B[l]og 