Christmas Tree Hunt

December 14, 2008

View overlooking Steamboat Creek in the Umpqua National Forest

This year we wanted to harvest a Christmas tree from the woods instead of getting one on a tree farm. So, we packed the truck up and headed to the Cascades. Our first stop was the Umpqua National Forest Glide Visitor Center to get a tree permit. They cost $5 and it allows you to find a tree under 12 feet tall somewhere on the vast expanse of Forest Service or Bureau of Land Managemet Lands. We headed up to Steamboat Creek about 45 minutes up the road and we were hoping that recent snowstorms hadn’t dumped too much snow in the area.

Right off the bat, we got into snow and found the going slow so we put on tire chains to get into some better tree country. We didn’t feel too bad about the location we chose as there were other vehicle tracks going into the area. We knew we wouldn’t be alone if we got into trouble… you know safety in numbers kinda thing.

We crawled along higher and higher until the snow got too deep and we declared that a tree was gonna be found in the immediate area. Coming up behind us was another Roseburg family, the Gayners, and they were looking to do some sledding and find a tree too. Surprisingly, we ended up getting a nice tree nearby. The trees look entirely different when they are covered in snow as the branches are all droopy with the weight of snow on them. It requires a lot of shaking and getting covered in snow to find the right tree. We spent the rest of the afternoon sledding down a spur road. It was a real blessing to run into the Gayners as they brought an ATV which made a nice sled run for the kids and they brought hot cocoa! I also had to borrow their folding saw as ours was hidden so well in the backseat of the truck. I didn’t find it until we unloaded the truck at home.

Shaking trees to find the right one

“Mom, are you absolutely positive this is the one?”

Jacob Lum-berjack

Dragging the tree

Tagging the tree for the trip home

Loading the tree in the truck

Jarrod and Jessica sledding down the spur road.

Jacob catching some air off the ramp

Merry Christmas Tree Hunters