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Need to Vent

Started by Woodboogah, September 02, 2014, 06:47:10 PM

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Woodboogah

I moved over to a small lot (14ac) I have been waiting to get to because I wanted to finish up the big lot (137ac) completely.  Well Hardwood market is hot small lot landowner has a semi wet area and its dry as a bone now so I pukled the trigger and moved over to there.  Worked out well because big lot LO wants me in there longer so no time constraint now.  Now to the venting.....The neighbor where I moved to called the cops  right off the bat.  No big deal to me everything is in place, not doing anything wrong.  Cop talked to me said they were upset because I did not notify them.  Semi understandable.  Cop give me the go ahead to continue working and deals with the neighbor.  I come out with another hitch now the chief is there and LO I am cutting for.  I go about my business.  LO comes to talk to me and explains she had been a problem before and not to worry about it.  I go about my day with no issues.  This was last wednesday.  At the end of the day Weds.  The neighbor politely asked if she could have a word with me I agreed and met her and her husband in the road HUGE MISTAKE.  She flipped her lid and I have dealt with unruly people before and I just try to educate them a little and explain I am not clear cutting and no houses are going in, its what's good for the remaining stand.  One of her complaints was the landing was to close to the house.  Logistically it was the only place it could go.  Septic and well on one side and beyond that it would have been under the powerline.  So I tried to be civil with them for about an hour and got nowhere.  I turned my back and left.  I called the same officer that talked with her earlier just to get something on record so she didnt flip it around on me.  On to today.  I did not work all weekend so I tried to hit it hard today.  I got a call at around 1pm from PSNH (the utilty provider whose transmission line I am crossing) asking if I was the only one out there skidding.  I had to file with them to cross under the line.  i explained I was and was doing as we discussed and it there was a problem.  He explained to me that someone has been complaining about skidding logs under the transmission line and he had to follow up.  Understandable.  He went on to say he has problems with the same person complaining when they did some right of way work.  I didnt ask for a name but can only assume.  I have the Chief of NH division of forest and lands coming out tomorrow, per my request just so they dont keep going down the list of state agencies to come and check on me.  I have never had this problem before, or at least this ridiculous.   Thought I would share.  On the plus side there is some monster pine that I would have bet had butt rot.  It did not!  Grateful to have this forum to have a place to vent stuff that is work/logging/forestry related.  The wife is a good listener but she really doesn't understand what's going on. 
Keenan Logging & Tree Care, LLC

luvmexfood

I can understand you frustration. Coming from a background of law enforcement those are some of the most aggravating calls you can get. Some guy out trying to make a living and trying to do it correctly and some citizen just won't leave it alone after being educated on the whats.

If you have an attorney/friend maybe a certified letter letting them know you are operating within your legal rights and any continued harassment that is unfounded will result in a lawsuit for lost production time.
Give me a new saw chain and I can find you a rock in a heartbeat.

Woodboogah

Thanks.   When I spoke to the officer at the end of the day he told me not to interact with them if they come out again and just to give him a call and he would issue a warning and if it happened again he would charge them.  The kicker to me was how she was complaining about just coming home from the hospital but she argued with the cops and me at separate times.  It took a lot to keep my composure and be civil but all I wanted to say was you sure are doing an awful lot of yelling and screaming for someone who supposedly needs some rest.  I didn't say it though. 
Keenan Logging & Tree Care, LLC

luvmexfood

Sometimes it's hard to bite your tongue but it's usually best.
Give me a new saw chain and I can find you a rock in a heartbeat.

Peter Drouin

You did good, Be glad we don't have more people like that.  :D :D :D :D
A&P saw Mill LLC.
45' of Wood Mizer, cutting since 1987.
License NH softwood grader.

Corley5

Don't let them bait you to the wrong side of justice  :)
Burnt Gunpowder is the Smell Of Freedom

BargeMonkey

 Some people thrive off the drama. You seem like youve covered your bases, been as nice as you can and enough is enough. Between the poor guy on here who's picker got robbed, and this situation youve gotten dragged into Im thinking a "bail money- donation fund" for other loggers should be established.  8)

lopet

By the way it sounds , you only have lost some production. It always could be worse, but I know what your talking about.
Make sure you know how to fall properly when you fall and as to not hurt anyone around you.
Also remember, it's not the fall what hurts, its the sudden stop. !!

Ken

Congrats for keeping your cool.  Document all interactions in case things become uglier later.  I hate idiots who can't mind their own business.
Lots of toys for working in the bush

JDeere

My first question would be, where did you move here from? NH & ME really do need their own Border Patrol.
2013 Western Star, 2012 Pelletier trailer, Serco 7500 crane, 2007 Volvo EC 140, 2009 John Deere 6115D, 2002 Cat 938G, 1997 John Deere 540G, 1996 Cat D-3C, 1995 Cat 416B, 2013 Cat 305.5E

Timbercruiser

Your a better man than I am . I have neibours who have the cops at my place alot of times. I never have done anything wrong nota thing . I just worry that after people dont get there way that they will start making up a story to get me in trouble. Good luck with it all mabe you need to be more old school

Maine logger88

I wonder why some people can't seem to mind there own businesses? Maybe cause they have no businesses? I hope if I am ever in a similar situation I can handle it as well as you have!
79 TJ 225 81 JD 540B Husky and Jonsered saws

treeslayer2003

shoot i thought i was the only one got the crazies lol. yea brother there is some loney tunes out there....i just dealt with one a couple weeks ago. she accused me of trespasing and cutting [makeing a big mess] her land lord's trees..........what? chic didn't have a clue where she was, she was a 1/4 mile off their property lol.
her land lord came out and said he was sorry for her harrasing us and that he knew i flagged the line and that it was correct.
still though, it makes ya mad.........people are misinformed about what a tree is..........and us loggers are the devil lol.

MJD

I went through this about 5 years ago, working along the back property line cutting some nice hard maple a lady comes out in her bath robe I could here her screaming at me over the 372, she is lucky I herd her as I was back cutting and she was in the intend fall area. She claimed I was cutting her trees 150 ft. from her property line, 1/2 hour later the cop comes and asked me to stop working until they could check things out. Then the next LO down the line actually cut up a marked maple that uprooted for firewood again 150 ft. over the property line.

chester_tree _farmah

If they wanted to save those trees so much they should have bought the lot. If they don't want it developed they should buy it. Put your money where your mouth is crazy lady.
254xp
C4B Can-Car Tree Farmer
Ford 1720 4wd loader hoe

Woodboogah

Asking them bluntly what the real problem is never received an answer.  Just went off on another tangent.  My thoughts are that they will not get their way and make up some story.  That is why I am getting the chief of forest and lands involved.  At least he can see the job for what it is and if a problem arises he can back me up and it will be on record.  See how today goes with logs getting picked up.
Keenan Logging & Tree Care, LLC

goose63

Give the lady some supper glue next time she comes around tell her its for her nose because it just fell off her face and landed in the middle of my job site
goose
if you find your self in a deep hole stop digging
saw logs all day what do you get lots of lumber and a day older
thank you to all the vets

John Mc

It's hard to do, but often the best way to deal with these types of people is just to be as polite as possible and calmly explain what you are about. It won't satisfy them, but at least you can honestly say that you were not the one being abusive.

Telling them off and pointing out just how misinformed they are might make you feel better, but it will only wind them up further.

I was cutting firewood a couple of years ago on some land I own jointly with other families in the area. The neighbor came up and said she thought I was cutting trees on her property. She was calm and polite about it but obviously concerned. I took the time to pull out the map that showed the firewood lot in relation to the property line, then walked her over to the remains of a barbed wire fence that marked the line. I was a good 100+ feet on my side of the line.

I told her that I needed to get back to work, and that I was sure I was right.  She still looked unsure. Since she was being nice about it, I said I would finish the tree I was working on, pull these out, and then cut on the other side of this stand for the rest of the day, if she wanted some time to check things out further on her deed description. She thanked me, and before I finished pulling the trees out she was back, apologized, and said go ahead and continue cutting.  She was concerned that I not damage trees on her property by dropping my trees on them, so I explained that I was stopping about 50 feet short of the property line, and would drop those all away from her land.

She was not a raving looney, so that made things easier. I just focused on trying not to escalate the situation. I had a little more latitude, since I was cutting for myself, rather than for production. (It probably also helped that she knows another of the joint owners, whose home abuts the property on the opposite side. I wouldn't be surprised if she called them to check me out.) We actually get along fine now. Not exactly friends, but do stop and chat when we see each other around town.
If the only tool you have is a hammer, you tend to see every problem as a nail.   - Abraham Maslow

Southside

You handled it very well, given what has taken place I would set up a game camera or two around where the equipment is parked, just in case.  Most folks like that are cowards, they can hide behind a telephone all day long, but you never know.

Funny how she is so worried about land that is not hers, I am sure she lives in a tent and only consumes sunlight, walks to work, etc, things are good for the NIMBY's as long as they can do as they please on their own land. 
Franklin buncher and skidder
JD Processor
Woodmizer LT Super 70 and LT35 sawmill, KD250 kiln, BMS 250 sharpener and setter
Riehl Edger
Woodmaster 725 and 4000 planner and moulder
Enough cows to ensure there is no spare time.
White Oak Meadows

enigmaT120

Man I'm glad Weyerhaeuser is my neighbor on 3 sides, and I wish it was the fourth, too.  The people to the south of me were the Alpaca people, locally famous for the Alpacalypse where they let a bunch of their animals starve to death.  But they never tried to do anything along our property line, so I never really had to deal with them.  Now that parcel has been repossessed and I hope it doesn't get bought by idiots like the OP is talking about.  I wish I could afford to buy the 10 acres or so that are on my side of the creek.

Ed Miller
Falls City, Or

beenthere

Quotethings are good for the NIMBY's as long as they can do as they please on their own land.

.. and tell others what they can and cannot do on the land surrounding them that they don't own.
south central Wisconsin
It may be that my sole purpose in life is simply to serve as a warning to others

redprospector

It's funny how people like this will scowl at you and make funny faces if you mention the owners property rights. But they will be the first to scream about their 1st amendment rights if you tell them to shut up.
No, on second thought, it's really not funny at all. Is it?
1996 Timber King B-20 with 14' extension, Morgan Mini Scragg Mill, Fastline Band Scragg Mill (project), 1973 JD 440-b skidder, 2008 Bobcat T-320 with buckets, grapple, auger, Tushogg mulching head, etc., 2006 Fecon FTX-90L with Bull Hog 74SS head, 1994 Vermeer 1250 BC Chipper. A bunch of chainsaws.

SwampDonkey

Had a lady one time that was all upset that we might thin her trees with a brush saw. We was working across the road from her place. She only owned an acre house lot, so didn't qualify for thinning anyway. Always wondered if she didn't like a bunch of saws screaming at 6:30 am every morning. ;D :D

I noticed Crabbe's mill cut every stick of wood around her last winter as they own the land behind her. ;)
"No amount of belief makes something a fact." James Randi

1 Thessalonians 5:21

2020 Polaris Ranger 570 to forward firewood, Husqvarna 555 XT Pro, Stihl FS560 clearing saw and continuously thinning my ground, on the side. Grow them trees. (((o)))

jwilly3879

Years ago the fellow I was working with got a job and the neighbor's studio was about 20' from the line. We were flagging the boundaries and out she came, demanding to know what we were doing in her back yard. We explained we were checking the property lines in preparation for a timber harvest and she LOST IT! Screaming at the top of her lungs and swearing enough to make a sailor blush. We remained calm and just walked away into the woods will she was throwing anything she could grab. We went back the next day to finish that line and again it was chaos,  she screamed that this was her studio and she was writing a book, had a deadline and could not endure the noise and would probably have a breakdown over the loss of the beautiful trees. She informed us that if we started to cut those trees there would be big trouble. She then contacted the land owner and went off on him which gained her no sympathy, and in fact he told us to start at that end of the property.

Monday morning at 8 am we started dropping trees, 8:45 the troopers arrive and ask us to stop while they talked to her. We sat on our side of the line and listened to her voice get higher and higher until she was screaming at the troopers, they too just walked away and said we could go back to work. 10:45 and NYSDEC show up, followed by the Adirondack Park Agency and we walk them through showing cut boundaries, setback from the stream and so on. No problems there, go back to work and the screaming starts again finally when she was completely out of breath the LO shows up and simply said, "Buy all the trees that are marked and they won't cut them."

In the end she paid the LO what he would have received in stumpage and paid us what we would have made on the timber and the trees remained. About 10 years later a big wind came through and tipped a few over on the studio, not major damage but she hired a tree service with a crane to get them off and sent the LO a bill. It wound up in court and the LO showed the judge the bill of sale for those trees and the case was dismissed but not before she went off on the judge and was charged with contempt.

It would have been much easier to rent a nice lakeside cottage for the three days we would have been working behind the studio.

SwampDonkey

 :D :D :D 8) Good story, truth or otherwise.  ;D
"No amount of belief makes something a fact." James Randi

1 Thessalonians 5:21

2020 Polaris Ranger 570 to forward firewood, Husqvarna 555 XT Pro, Stihl FS560 clearing saw and continuously thinning my ground, on the side. Grow them trees. (((o)))

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