Tuesday afternoon I cleared out the back of my truck and took off with my chainsaw. Earlier that week I’d spotted a bunch of recently-cut eucalyptus by the side of the road in Mill Valley. I enjoyed the change of pace, from the computer and office stuff to a straight-forward physical chore. A relief. It reminded me of when I quit building domes in the ’70s, good riddance to all the mathematical precision and caulks and plastics, and I got a used Ford pickup truck and started scrounging for used lumber and other building materials in debris bins on the streets of San Francisco. More like it!
The wood was still there and was straight-grain euc and still wet, so easy to cut. I loaded up the truck to max, then headed home. The sun was out high up on the mountain (months of fog at beach this summer), so I parked and took off down a trail lined with manzanita bushes, the 6PM sun shining through the green leaves and red-bark branches. I got to my favorite watershed, and took off down a steep faint deer trail along the edges of the creek. Lo and behold here was a deep pool I hadn’t remembered. Cold yes, but once out, all bodily systems are on GO. A high without a letdown. Made my way downstream, hopping rocks and at one point nervously traversing creek on 30-foot-long redwood log. Got down to road, ran back to truck, then on home at sunset.
Blossom of flannel bush where I dumped firewood. Going to rent my neighbor Mark’s homemade splitter and will end up with maybe 2 cords of firewood for coming cold months.
You need a Russian Fireplace in your location 4 cord would get you thru the winter.
We get by on 2 cords. Dress warmly, in layers.
I'd like to see the homemade splitter.