• Monday-What'sUP December 10 - 08:01 pm

With winter in the Keweenaw already in full force, the snow load on the tree branches sometimes is more than the roots can handle, causing them to topple over and block folks from getting to their destination. This road block encountered by Del Rajala, wasn't going anywhere soon, so he and his partners had to improvise to get passed the big tree that was down. I have no clue what type of mission these gentlemen were on, but thank goodness for children's toboggans, when it comes to hauling your supplies in the snow. Looks like it may have saved them a number of trips back and forth otherwise.

It is summer here in New Zealand

Hey, it looks like that tree is down going both ways down that road!! Just an observation.

The picture for today reminds me of Christmas trees. Here in New Zealand the Christmas "trees" for sale seem to be a lower branch of a huge pine tree grown for the forestry industry.
There are so many people here in New Zealand that wish they could experience a "white" Christmas with snow.
Growing up in the Copper Country, I remember the wonderful pine smell of the Christmas tree in the house.

Time to do the "Limbo".

This no doubt is an adventure that Del will not forget. We too had a similiar experience last winter north of L'Anse in early Spring. An unexpected storm moved in and dumped tons of snow. It took us three hours to cover 12 miles...only to get out and the main highways were closed. Ended up staying in a motel once we got to L'Anse and headed south the next day. IT WILL BE A TRIP THAT REMAINS AS AN UNEXPECTED ADVENTURE. GREAT PHOTOS DEL!!

The Yoopers are a hardy bunch. If I saw that tree down on my street, I would be taking a personal day, no doubt.

That's why you always carry a chainsaw when 4 wheelin in the woods!

If there was no one around in the woods when that tree fell, did it make a sound?

The firewood from that would keep the sauna going a long time.

UncleChuck,
Especially on windy days, your back trail might not be there sometimes!

The wood from that tree would only put your fire out.

I agree with Uncle Chuck, alway throw a chain saw and can of gas mix in the back. If you have one, a winch has got me out of he "swamp" at least once.

Even for city dwellers, tow straps are winter survival gear, and make a great Christmas gift for someone who has everything. Small and tuck-able in the trunk.

THE GIFT THAT KEEPS ON GIVING

Tom, that would be tragic.

Golly, that must have hurt when they "passed the big tree"! (Sorry, Mary. Had to chime in before FR/Nash caught it.) ;-)

Taken from Dictionary of Same Sounding Words:

passed - moved or proceeded, as in: The parade passed in front of the reviewers' stand. past - having occurred in a time before now, as in: In the past, the pace of life seemed slower.

From reading those two definitions, I'd still say it's "passed", sorry Heikki. :->

Great bunch of picture's Del. Just wish we would get more snow down here in troll land.

Ok... So if a guy speaks in the forest and no woman is there to hear him... is he still wrong??

Love the snow...

Brooke, Tom is right, Ya need dry hard wood for the sauna,

Mr. Bill, we always carry that "survial kit" and Marty has a nice winch and tow straps, otherwise we'd still be in the beaver pond at Keystone. Also, his kit includes beef jerkey and a few rolls of Quilted Northern. lol

Dccloutier: According to my wife, the answer is Yes!
Mr. Deb

Cindy Barth: I once saw a pic on the internet somewhere of a beautiful little cabin in the woods somewhere in New Zealand with falling snow all around. Looked like a scene from northern MI !
Never gave a thought that there would be snow down there in their winter!

Sometimes if you come across tree(s) like this pic that has been cut rather then naturally fell, it doesn't mean necessarily vandalism. Sometimes the DNR or property owners do this to keep 4X4s, Snowmobiles etc. off that trail/2 track!

Cindy Barth - How 'bout atop the glacier at Mt. Cook. I recall having a snowball fight in brilliant sunshine at that elevation.

I have t agree with Margaret, it seems to be lying in opposite directions from the two pictures. I suspect it is two separate trees.

Mary says: The first picture was taken as they approached the tree, the second picture was taken from the opposite side after they went under it. It was taken as they walked away from it on the other side...at least that was my interpretation, since there were no tire tracks in the second picture, only tobaggon and foot tracks. :->

Tom is right, you need dry hard wood for your sauna. The pitch from the pine will snap and pop and eventually coat the inside of the chimney flue and then becomes vulnerable for chimney fires.

my grandpa would burn almost anything in it, even treated lumber. If it wasn't for pasty people I would never learn such things!

Does anyone in the U.P. still have or know of the existence of a "savu" sauna? Jarmo, are there any "savu" saunas still in existence in Finland? Kiitos.

If you look at the photo album you will see this was a service road to a large antenna. These men were just doing their job. I'm sure a lot of people are thankful they did not just turn around and leave.

Thats a monster size tree. Lots of wind gust last month may have sent this big guy down.
They approached with the 4 wheeler. Milled around a bit. Backed it up. - Pic #1.
Both then walked under and thru for a distance and looked back from opposite side - Pic #2.
Walked back, unstrapped sled. One drove around (left side) and one walked under with sled. From other side, plastic sled was turned around as if to go back to starting point. Pic #3
Anyway, thats my guess.
You know what they say..
A picture tells a thousand storys.

Funny the picture of the day is a fallen tree, my Christmas tree fell today also. Scared me, I thought someone was breaking into my house. Alas, I lost a few of my favorite Christmas bulbs.

I don't think so, Mary. Not when 'passed' is preceded by the word 'get'. In this case an adverb, as in "every hour a train goes past", or "we had to get past a huge obstacle." As used above, 'get' is the verb, not 'passed'. Betcha a pasty, eh. ;-)

Guess I didn't pay close enough attention in English Class (sorry Mrs. Klingbeil). :->
It's one of those tricky ones that trips up many folks, at least everyone understood what I meant.

The two pictures are the same tree. Look at the stump Etc. Then imagine that you are looking at it from the other side.

That's quite a road block. Evergreen trees are gorgeous, but they tend to have shallow root systems, and come down fairly easily in wind storms, whether in spring, summer, fall, or winter. I trust it's not far from the destination with the sled of tools and supplies! Great pictures; thank you for sharing them, Del R. and Mary!

Kathie M., ouch, to your Christmas tree's falling! That's a bummer. Had it been up for awhile, or were you still in the process of putting it up and decorating it? I would think that's a little unusual for one to go down, unless it was still being worked on, but it could have been slightly off balance, or had help from a friend, such as a child or a pet, or something. (My husband & my sons have had ours come down before, while they were either trying to stand it upright, or string lights on it. It gouged my nice coffee table, one year. I was pretty bummed about that.) I hope you get yours back up, the way you want it, soon! :-)

For my 2 cents...I never understood the question whether a sound in the woods actually exsisted if no one was there to hear it? Of course the sound was made while the tree splintered into pieces no matter if some one heard it or not! What's the question about that huh?

The sound waves were present but without ears to detect the waves--------no sound.

My grandma used to tell about a guy who came to their noki sauna. He was a tad tipsy and came out all black from falling against the walls. This was Maple, WI around 1910 or so.

One year we put our tree up kind of late in the evening, so all I had the time to put on were the lights and I planned on finishing the job the next day, so off to bed I went. In the morning, my hubby came downstairs before me and couldn't understand why I'd left the ceiling light in the room on, until he looked closer into the room and saw the Christmas tree laying on the floor, with the carpeting soaked from the water in the tree stand. As it toppled over, it brushed the light switch on the wall and turned on the lights!
That year, the picture of our tree was taken with a fan underneath, instead of gifts, since we were trying to dry the carpet. :->

Mary,

Another one that trips up many folks is the word 'you're' substituted by the word 'your'. Have seen this on billboards, in magazines, newspapers, and even on TV! lol. But, as you indicate, we did understand what you meant. No
cents belaboring the point, eh? ;-) Keep up the good work.

The answer IS "yes". Because he's AlWAYS wrong! LOL

Margaret, I believe you're right about that tree.

Heikki, I laughed also when I read "passed". Sorry Mary!!

I like the pictures though. Reminds me of my days back home. I don't enjoy the snow much, but it sure makes for some great pictures. Sometimes it even makes me want to move back home. (But don't tell Mr. Deb, lol.)

Heikki (Heikki):
"No cents belaboring the point, eh?"

Hmmm, do I smell some deliberate FRNash bait there?

I hate to enter the fray, but you can make a case for using either passed or past, according to the online dictionary:
http://dictionary.reference.com/search?q=past

"adv. So as to pass by or go beyond: He waved as he walked past." or
"prep.
1. Beyond in time; later than or after: past midnight; a quarter past two.
2. Beyond in position; farther than: The house is a mile past the first stoplight. They walked past the memorial in silence."

Mary, I think you do a wonderful job, and I appreciate all that you do. I do not like it when people start to knit-pick, especially when your word usage was acceptable usage, in the first place. You had no reason to apologize to your English teacher; you do and did a great job. I appreciate all that you do, picking out wonderful pictures every day, and giving us great descriptions and word pictures. Thank you, very much, Mary, for all that you do for us!!!

And Merry Christmas!

Oops, ok, I forgot you used passed, Mary. That is actually the preferred way, from the same source:
http://dictionary.reference.com/search?q=passed

Either way is fine, guys. Thank you, Mary, and you had it right in the first place.

By the way, I love your Christmas tree's falling over story, Mary. At least you knew it spilled the water, so that the carpet was wet. I spilled sugar water, and did not know it, when I put up our tree when I was in college. I put down plastic sheeting to protect the carpet from water, not knowing that I was making it worse. Well, when it was time to take the tree down, there was a huge mold spot on my parents' carpeting. My dad made it worse, when he tried to fix it with Chlorox, oops! They had to get new carpeting, when they would not otherwise have needed it. And, I was in the dog house for sure, on that one. :-)

FRNash...

Doggone it! The trap was set but your sense of smell prevailed. LOL

(Marianne)

Maybe the rules have changed, but over a half century ago my English teacher, Mrs. Ketola, penetrated my thick skull with the words: "PAST is never a verb; PASSED is always a verb", and I have never forgotten. Your referenced dictionary illustrates this rule. When following a verb as 'get' or 'goes', 'past' is used as an adverb, otherwise you'd have back-to-back verbs using 'passed'.

'Nuff said on this. I apologize, Mary, for extending this string beyond my quota of postings and for even bringing it up. You've been a good sport and handled it well. I agree with Marianne about your wonderful word pictures when describing daily photos. Or is that photoes? ;-)