A Wall of Rose

On my birthday, Katherine gave me one of the most loving presents a woman could ever give a man, a chainsaw. I love this thing. I've burned through many a chain, gallons of bar oil and fuel, sharpened, oiled, greased, cleaned and tweaked it's performance. I love it when it cuts through an oak like a hot knife through butter, big chips flying and the smell of spent fuel and fresh cut wood. Mix in some  fresh raked dirt, a burning brush fire on the side of the lake, crisp winter air and a dash of a beautiful blue sky......, whats not to like???

I've taken it upon myself to cut a trail around the original pond, now referred to as the goldfish pond. Katherine had told me that there once was a trail around the pond and it would be a great addition if we could re-create it. The trail would eventually cut through Teepeeman's village on the opposite side, if all goes well. The plan is also to connect a second trail that will link up to another lake on the property, Lake Phyllis.

This all started out as a result of the water table falling. It's pretty typical for this time of year. As the water in the goldfish pond receded, it a revealed an old sunken row boat, a perfect time for recovery and removing other revealed debris. After 35 years, the forest was tight, never thinned or maintained, the once young saplings were maturing in size, particularly in height, invasive plant species entered and the natives neglected and the ground was littered with debris from shoreline parties of the past. Clearing out a landing area to remove the boat initiated the new trail head.

The first half of the cut went fairly easy. When I refer to the first half being easy, this took about a weeks worth of work and I managed about 200 yards. I followed a natural path of least resistance that resulted in a pleasing meandering trail. Eliminating the pervasive bush honeysuckle that erupts everywhere revealed some beautiful trees in size and shape. One poplar in particular stands out with it's 60" diameter trunk. The trail migrates through stands primarily of wild cherry and river birch. The thinning process takes time and the results are taking on the desired outcome. There's still lots of work in simply removing what has been cut and cleared, stacking and creating brush piles. The variety of trees around the pond makes it all the more interesting. I am partial to the pines and oaks. I try to make more room for them.

At the far end of the pond, there's a small rise on the trail and a lone weeping willow stands alongside the waters edge. It makes for a good view from the opposite end of the pond. Here, I'll make a clearing. It's a good spot for a bench someday.



Now onward toward the tee pee village and I've hit a wall, a wall of multi flora rose.

There are three predominant invasive plant species on the property; multi flora rose, bush honeysuckle and autumn olive. Of the three, multi flora rose has to be the worst in terms of eradication. The vines are so thick, it's easy to become entangled. The vines are tough and fibrous so you simply can't just snap them loose. They maintain their "green" strength well into winter and don't seem to die back. They grow prolifically onto trees and network into adjacent trees. Limbs snap as a result of their choke hold. They sucker and pop up randomly. The older vines have nasty barbs and needle like stickers that require slow and easy movement around them. It's easy to be snagged, entangled, pricked, poked, scratched and ripped. This is the absolute worst crap I've come across yet and it's in my path, a lot of it too.

Progress is slow now. I chip away at the wall little by little, warm up by the fire and assess my next move.