04/06/2026
Take 2 🎬 The Ex*****on of the Black Lake Mammoth:
It’s been brought to my attention that some people are saying it was luck not skill that resulted in our triumph. I hope this breakdown will shed some light because it is quite the contrary 😌
Last Monday brought some unexpected ripping winds, and started to sow a little bit of doubt if the job would in fact be executed that day. So, the crew pulled together to examine all angles of the tree and started reviewing the weather.
We determined that later in the afternoon was going to bring a window of no to low winds. In the meantime the guys started pinpointing tension points, testing and retesting ropes, finding the right anchor points and figuring out the best placements. Then they began to Bore cut into the tree to see if it had any meat to it or hinge wood. ( In simpler terms, to gain control over the direction of the tree fall )
This cut was detrimental because as you can see this beast was leaning right over the power lines and road, and the direction of the wind was NOT in our favor for most of that day. Thankfully, National Grid came out that morning to drop the service wires and opened us up a much larger fall zone, and a much safer one.
Once the winds were in check, a traffic zone was set up, everyone took their places, and the SKILLS continued to commence. Once cutting began, traffic stopped, and that’s when observation, strategy, and knowledge of physics and trajectory took their key roles.
As cutting continued they began to pound wedges into the initial cut to maintain control and let the tree know where it was going. Tension and anchor ropes were monitored and adjusted as needed. Traffic was stopped and directed as necessary. It may sound simple as I type this out but don’t be deceived this was a high pressure, and high tense situation with no room for error. The tree creaked, cracked, and moaned above, and was highly unpredictable due to its poor health. So once the process started we had to stomp through carefully and consistently! In this line of work, you can’t solely rely on your equipment, spikes and saws. This work also requires critical thinking and skill.
From start to finish this project took a total of 5 hours, and the tree dropped up against the mark (with PLENTY of clearance I might add) with that being said THAT is not luck. However, we feel lucky to have had the opportunity to show what we can do, and it was such an amazing experience! 🥹
Our victory was shared with the homeowner and her daughter, onlookers who pulled over for quite some time just watching from the side of the road, neighbors, and people stuck at our traffic stop for what felt like forever in the final moments (sorry again for the wait if you were one of them!) We were met with cheers, some people honked, and even sang our praises as they drove by, just captured by the efficiency, teamwork, and effort put into this day! ✨
We persevered! We planned! And we slayed the Black Lake Mammoth baby!!!🦣 🌳👣✅
Thank you to our kickass team that day, to everyone who helped, to our customers and bystanders, our supporters and believers, we appreciate you all so much! And none of this would be possible without you!🥰
