Senseless Banter...

RoOsTeR wrote:Power just now back on and you got it camp...now out with the chainsaw. It's windy cold and rainy blaaahhh

Put on a pot of coffee and I'll come out to help

Jeeze, I hope the eaglets don't get blown out of the nest. The weather station at Decorah airport is off line, but the winds are wicked.

We got quite a bit of the tree moved. The first couple of hours where pretty rough weather wise, then it finally cleared up a bit. We lost power for about 4 hours and had to wait for the power company to leave before we could even start cutting up the fallen cottonwood. It's a mammoth! I'll be taking the day off tomorrow to finish up. I'm pooped!






You can see the power line it snagged in the last 3 pictures.

Woah! Is that cottonwood good for the woodstove?

That's an impressive-looking tree. It's a shame you had to lose it. At least you can get some good firewood though.

camprn wrote:Woah! Is that cottonwood good for the woodstove?

Supposedly it smells real bad when burned but I think that's only when it's green

It's amazing how much work it takes to clean up a fallen tree. There's no such thing as 'free' firewood!

Cottenwood isn't the greatest, but we burn it here when the price is right. Will you use yours for firewood?

Man I'm beat, and I'm in fairly decent shape when it comes to physical labor. I think it's the wind that was so draining to be honest. It was just relentless!
Yeah, cottonwood isn't the greatest wood to burn. It doesn't burn, or smell near as good as pine, but it's hard to pass up if it's just laying there. This is the second one to fall in the last couple of years, so this summer I plan on cutting up the first one that fell and drying it out a bit more for next winter. We will end up using most of the wood in our outside fire pit.
Speaking of wood stoves. I am looking at ripping out our fireplace and putting in some type of stove. Fireplaces are so inefficient. I love looking at, and having a fire, but they are fuel hogs!

Looking at a fire through the glass door of a woodstove isn't quite the same as a fireplace, but it still gives me that cozy feeling on a cold, wet, dreary day.

[quote="Too Tall Tomatoes"]

RoOsTeR wrote:Power just now back on and you got it camp...now out with the chainsaw. It's windy cold and rainy blaaahhh

From the innernet:

Cottonwood Firewood

Cottonwood firewood is a low density hardwood with a low BTU rating. Cottonwood can be tough to split when green and sometimes takes longer to dry than a lot of other tree species. When it is dry it burns fast and produces fast heat but doesn’t last long and leaves a lot of ash.

It’s common to hear people say they have had bad experiences with cottonwood firewood and that it makes lousy firewood and they will never burn cottonwood again. Some would rather leave it to rot or haul it to a landfill than use it for firewood. Much of this is just personal preference so take it lightly.

Cottonwood is definitely not the best firewood to heat your home but that doesn’t mean it’s worthless as firewood. You probably wouldn’t want to pay much for it but if you can get it really cheap or free it will make heat and you might as well use it. In some areas cottonwood is all they have available and they make the best of it.

Some say cottonwood firewood is hard to burn and all it does is smolder and make smoke. When people say that it’s probably because it wasn’t dry. Cottonwood can hold a lot of water but once it is dry it can split easy and it is easy to burn. This makes cottonwood good for starting fires and getting quick heat. It also makes decent campfire wood.

God Bless, Ward and Mary.

Ward, thanks for the lesson on cottonwood burning! Rooster, I love my pellet stove!

A good blog post on Decorah Weather and the Eagles

I can't believe how big and fluffy ( ) the babies are getting! They are starting to get their white head feathers.

Wow, I just looked at them the other day and they didn't have the white feathers!

I desperately need to fire up the incubator. We seem to be missing a few chickens ( ) and my call ducks are laying like mad! While not as cool as eagles, I could take regular pictures and update during the process. I need to go out and check, but Lori told me one of the ducks is sitting on a clutch of eggs now!

RoOsTeR wrote:I desperately need to fire up the incubator. We seem to be missing a few chickens ( ) and my call ducks are laying like mad! While not as cool as eagles, I could take regular pictures and update during the process. I need to go out and check, but Lori told me one of the ducks is sitting on a clutch of eggs now!

If I had the space, and I was zoned for it, I'd love to raise a few chickens just for fun.

RoOsTeR wrote:I desperately need to fire up the incubator. We seem to be missing a few chickens ( ) and my call ducks are laying like mad! While not as cool as eagles, I could take regular pictures and update during the process. I need to go out and check, but Lori told me one of the ducks is sitting on a clutch of eggs now!

I was thinking of setting up with some manure producers, so I decided to see what the zoning/regulations were on livestock (I didn't want a cow or anything, just something smaller)...turns out that not only can I not have chickens, I'm not even zoned for rabbits! I had no idea we couldn't get pet rabbits! Mind you, a pot-bellied pig is OK as long as it's leashed when outside and kept indoors like you would a dog, but no rabbits? How in the world am I going to get my own (trusted) manure now?

ducks is sitting on a clutch of eggs now!

Rooster, do you have slugs where you are? In Oregon, some of my friends had ducks to deal with the slugs...
What do duck eggs taste like? or are you getting babies?

The Poison Garden at Blarney Castle. I did not come across this garden when I was at Blarney Castle in 2005. Though I was tipped upside down to kiss the Stone.

That's actually really cool camp Reminds me of the poison berries in the Hunger Games book. Yes, I read it and starting the 2nd in the series TONIGHT!
Gwn, duck eggs are way to rich for me to eat They are supposed to be really good to bake with, but I just can't eat them. Yep, ducks and chickens LOVE to eat little bugs and critters. My laying hens in the barn will even take out a mouse if the opportunity properly presents itself

I was thinking of setting up with some manure producers, so I decided to see what the zoning/regulations were on livestock (I didn't want a cow or anything, just something smaller)...turns out that not only can I not have chickens, I'm not even zoned for rabbits! I had no idea we couldn't get pet rabbits! Mind you, a pot-bellied pig is OK as long as it's leashed when outside and kept indoors like you would a dog, but no rabbits? How in the world am I going to get my own (trusted) manure now?

Zoning? I just go ahead and do what I am going to do anyway. If the zoning folks come around (they never have) I could plead like a Congressman and act real dumb (not much acting required on my part).

God Bless, Ward and Mary.

yet ridiculous at the same time. Regulating bunnies????

Ward can you apply for a variance to the ordinance?

YEAH BABY! The Bruins are Boston Bound! Game 7!

Lol. Happy for ya... The Avs stunk it up again this year

I think Ward was quoting TTT above. I edited the quote