[Andy McEvoy]

It’s true that we are no longer inviting teamsters to bring their animals to this event as students. Having students there with their teams was a large drain on our pool of experienced teamsters. We WILL be offering events and workshops throughout the year during which students will be invited to bring their teams so keep an eye on the LIF webpage http://mofga.org/Programs/LowImpactForestry/tabid/227/Default.aspx.

LIF has a core group of instructors, but we often invite others to join the teaching staff year to year. If that is something you are interested in you should send me an e-mail and we can talk about the details. amcevoy@mofga.org.

Hope to see a bunch of you there!

[Andy McEvoy]

I would highly recommend this book. The amount of information that the author collected and analyzed is unparalleled by any other resource that I have seen on logging in Maine. At times the amount of numbers and charts is staggering, but taken as a whole it all tells a fascinating story. Also the book is worth it just for the very detailed sketches of equipment in the appendix – i.e. tractor and horse sleds, camp buildings, harness types. Check it out . . . at the very least you’ll be amazed at how much wood a three man team can move!

[Andy McEvoy]

I started working with draft horses four months ago. I’m 22 years old. I have enjoyed being around horses since I was little. I had grown up with thoroughbreds and other saddle horses, but I had always had an interest in working with drafts. I decided that fresh out of college was the best time to try something new. I asked around about possible apprenticeships and came across John Plowden and his horse logging operation. It’s only been four months, but it has been the best four months I have had in a long time.

I think that apprenticeships are going to be one way to encourage younger folks like myself to stick around in this arena. I have noticed that many of my friends and peers have gotten their start through apprenticeships on produce farms. They seem to be leading the way there. What if the forestry community took a page out of their book? I know that in Maine MOFGA sponsors a number of journey persons. The mentor is payed by MOFGA for the apprentice to come and work/live with them. It also seems like there are appentice opportunities at many educational farming facilities.

Looging professionals face a special obstacle because of the liability issues inherent in logging. Perhaps, rather than paying the mentor, the sponsoring agency could fund the insurance costs, leaving the mentor and apprentice to sort out the financial situation which suits them best.

Certainly everyone will not come into draft animal work through an apprenticeship, but I have found it an invaluable exprerience. I recommend creating more opportunities like an apprenticeship to let young folk truly immerse themselves in this world.

A

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