Lumbering in Colorado 45 



cially that at the lower elevations has been taken out. All that 

 remains is relatively poor and far distant from the railroad. The 

 building of roads, the most expensive part of the whole lumber- 

 ing operation, must be carried on further and further up into the 

 hills. The lumber haul has been lengthened in many cases 

 doubling the cost of transportation from the mill. The present 

 management in allowing only one-half to one-third the mer- 

 chantable timber to be cut is another factor which tends to in- 

 crease the cost of production and to eventually drive out the 

 operator. The lumberman cannot afford to lay out a system of 

 roads and establish a camp for a small amount of timber. The 

 expense in this case more than overbalances the profits, so, in a 

 comparatively short time all of the timber that can be profit- 

 ably taken out will be cut and unless the times change materially 

 no operations will be going on in the less important districts. 



After the lumberman has bought the stumpage on a tract of 

 land, often on a single hillside, he makes a preliminary cruise 

 of the timber and decides upon a location for the camps. This 

 is usually done the summer before cutting is to begin. The mill 

 must be located so that the largest possible amount of timber 

 can be gotten to it in the easiest way. But at the same time a 

 large supply of water must be at hand which must be continuous 

 throughout the summer. However, the timber is the more im- 

 portant for water can be "flumed" or " ditched 7 ' for a con- 

 siderable distance. The logs must always be hauled down 

 grade and it is of little consequence how steep this grade is, up 

 to approximately 45%. Springs are common and sufficient 

 water may be obtained from them in case a mill is not close to 

 a stream. It is best to have the camp site as level as possible, 

 but generally when the other conditions are satisfied little atten- 

 tion is given to this. The camp is invariably located at the 

 lower central edge of the tract. 



As soon as the location of the camp is decided upon a road 

 is laid out to the railroad. In many cases, there is already a 

 road from the railway for a considerable distance towards the 

 camp. Often, however, the lumber road must be quite long 

 and frequently costs a large amount of money, varying directly 

 with the roughness of the topography. In this road down grades 

 are essential, but many roads laid out without a preliminary 

 survey often have level stretches and even slight up hill grades. 

 These are to be avoided, even at a large increase in the expense 

 of building. 



The length of haul in this region is seldom .over ten miles 

 and is often not more than six. Sawmill men find that the 

 lumber cannot be gotten out with profit when it is over ten 



