November Wind Storm

January 22, 2023 - About two months ago we had a wind storm that shook the foundations of the house. It was around 10 pm and the thought began to enter my head that it was very possible a tree could come down. We are surrounded by Western Red Cedars, Douglas firs and Big Leaf Maple trees - all of them large enough that one could easily crush part of the house. It’s not often you see an evergreen uprooted from a storm like that, but you never know. Several years prior, we had a storm and one half of a co-dominant trunked big leaf maple fell down - luckily in the opposite direction of the house. By a stroke of luck it fell across a creek that runs parallel to the property, thus creating a natural bridge. But this time around the other half of that same tree fell towards the property. My wife and I heard the loud popping and cracking as the tree gave way. Until you hear the sound for yourself there is no way to describe it. It’s like hearing thunder for the first time. The 80 foot maple fell into another smaller maple, as well as into several evergreens and also the electric pole where all the power comes into the house. The second maple broke the fall of the first larger maple, thus preventing the big tree from smashing the deck and kitchen to pieces. We absolutely lucked out that the house was completely undamaged. Besides dealing with mountains of clean up, the power company repairs and now a big hole in our privacy, we were unscathed. The outcome is that now I have more wood that I possibly know what to do with. A lot of the wood has splits and cracks due to the violent nature of the fall. I’ll sort through and find some of the biggest and best pieces I can. I plan to carve as many bowls as possible and also delve into making some stool or benches. Plus I’ll have firewood for eternity.

Maple bowl from the storm!