Today my Dad and I worked down a large White Pine (pinus strobus) near LaCrosse, WI. We had a propane tank among the obstacles on the ground. We didnt have to rig absolutely everything, but there was a strong rigging component to the overall plan. I trimmed away everything that I could on my way up. The tree grew into three distinct leaders. One of them was really subordinate and was not nearly as big as the other two. Of the two, there was a dominant leader. I climbed it to about 20ft from the top (approx. 100 ft.) rigging out the branches that were over the tank and letting the rest bomb away. I set up the main block and then descended removing the subordinate leaders on the way down. I had the rigging hook waiting for me at the lowest branch and I rigged the last branches out on the way back up to take the top. The top came out smoothly and I got to bomb a couple of chunks out on the uphill side of the trunk before I felled it. I used the GRCS to pull the trunk uphill and directly against the lean. I bored out the sides and front before setting up a trigger and got myself clear. I then walked up to the winch and cranked the stem over. We cut three eight-foot saw-logs out of the main stem. The trunk was 28 inches in diameter at chest height. I look forward to being there when the logs are milled. What a day!
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