THE SPRUCE REGION 237 



they have a direct silvicultural bearing. No detailed description 

 or comparative discussion of the methods is given. 



In the spruce region there is an abundant cover of snow from 

 November until late spring. As will be seen, the logging is so 

 arranged as to make use of the snow to the fullest extent. It is 

 a very favorable thing from the forestry standpoint, since logging 

 with snow on the ground hurts the forest far less than logging on 

 bare ground. 



The beginning of a logging operation is made in the woods by 

 the felhng crew. The trees are cut down, trimmed, and left full 

 length, or (in some cases) they are sawn into logs. These logs or 

 trees are then dragged out by single horses or double teams. 

 Where the trees are large and left full length two horses are 

 needed to haul them. Usually several logs are bunched to- 

 gether, and then the front ends placed on a rough sled with the 

 rear ends dragging. The logs are thus taken down ("snaked") 

 to skidways placed beside the main hauHng road. This is often 

 called "yarding" the logs. Where near a drivable stream they 

 may be dragged directly to its bank and piled or rolled in. 



From the silvicultural standpoint it is better to use but one 

 horse for yarding, as the single horse does not need so wide a 

 road and therefore does less damage. On account of the weight 

 of the longer sticks it is not always possible to use one horse. In 

 any case, to enable the team to reach the log, a lane must be cut 

 through the underbrush and young growth. When carefully 

 selected these lanes can avoid the best groups of young growth. 

 The lanes or skidding trails from the individual trees converge, 

 running into one another, until finally one or two main trails lead 

 down to the skidway. This network of skidding trails, while 

 thoroughly gridironing the land, is so scattered, and each trail is 

 in itself so narrow, that the destruction of the young growth on 

 the trails is not a serious injury. This appHes to cutting on the 

 selection system. Where the cutting is very heavy approaching 

 a clear cutting, the damage may be considerable but cannot well 

 be avoided. 



On very steep slopes it may be impossible to drive a horse to 



