Alaskan Logging Equipment, Left to Rust

DR Oliver said:

Not all of the equipment in your pictures are still in place. I've been cleaning up scrap around S.E. let me know whats still out there and I could possibly clean it up.

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If I were to post my response to this drivel, I would surely be banned.

Clean it up, you say? Yeah right.

Well put Contract Logger G**D*MM Clown Just cant leave well enough alone "Could possibly clean it up" What are you?? Probably never heard of "KARMA" but You Will !!!! Want to clean something up come down here to Victoria and go to the Parliament Buildings They are in dire need of cleaning DR

Let Live

These great old pieces of battled scarred equipment are the last surviving witnesses to the greatest industy ever developed. These giants helped provide products and house people all over the planet.Some like to dive for sunken ships in the reefs to see their great remnants,others like to dig for old bones and cities,natural disasters get park protection.May these still soldiers stand forever to remind the world of the great fortitude,determination,engineering,thought,design,and sleepless hours spent by inginuitive loggers and builders decades ago who were faced with the worlds toughest conditions,the steepest ground,the biggest wood,the furthest locations,the ugliest weather,and few comforts of home.The Loggers overcame the lack in technology then, and had to actually use their God given minds to overcome and accomplish daily obstacles to provide the world with the products that were so insatiably demanded of them.May these idled beasts forever guard their territory and remind us of how far we've strayed from a simpler time in the industry when hard work was respected,jobs were valued,and the economy was fed by the risk,fortitude,determination of a rare and fading group of risk taking entrpreneurs known as the early loggers.I agree these pieces of equipment don't need to be 'cleaned up' their not ' a mess'.Their all that exists of a living history thats slipped away.The cleaning up needs to go back further to the root and cause of this catastrophe,which has little to do with equipment, or this area.Don't shoot the wounded,honor them let them stay as they are parked,and hopefully they will haunt those forever that fought to get them idled.

I would kinda think that these machines still belong to someone, or a group of someones, who would be ultimatlity responseable for them. If they wanted to cut them up for scrap, and haul them off that would be up to them. All the work involved to scrap out a machine of this size, plus the cost of getting to Seattle to a junk yard dosen't hardly seem worth it to me.

I would also like to know where in the hell some Jimmy Smith like ruhtard with a torch thinks he has the right to scrap someone elses stuff?! There would be some grand theft, larceny and tresspassing involved I do believe.

Same thing happened here--Google--Adventuresinmikeslife,blogspot.com When it comes up scroll down to Blog archive 2011(86) click on that then scroll down to The Doriston Trucks After you look at all the pics go back and read what Mike had to write!!!!!

There are a few things in my life I would love to see. One being all the equipment left sitting around there, in hopes of being used again. The second I would really like to see is the logging come back and all that stuff running. With more new machines being made to keep thousands of people in the logging industry busy once again. It is a crying shame to see all the equipment and trees going to waste, do to stupidity. Just plain stupidity. It is so good to see some people rebuilding the old trucks and equipment so the younger generation can see what once was one of the greatest industies in the world.

Isn't it amazing how one miscreant can come along and stir the pot, and in the process add new life to an old thread?

Now, you will notice, I didn't call him a no-good, slack-jawed, cousin-dating, good-for-nothing miscreant; just a plain old, garden-variety miscreant, in hope that the mods will let me live another day......

HDX said:

Same thing happened here--Google--Adventuresinmikeslife,blogspot.com When it comes up scroll down to Blog archive 2011(86) click on that then scroll down to The Doriston Trucks After you look at all the pics go back and read what Mike had to write!!!!!

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That really a neat find ,and very old relics,thanks for the lead HDX,one with a water tank looked Hayes like.not full enough photo though..I don't make a habit of telling where the pieces I find are either,out of a respect for the history and hope for their survival.Just recent a pair of cable dozer cats from the 30's that were around forever got cut up.I did video them though,and they're preserved in one form.

I'm of two minds on this. First I worked on a great deal of stuff that is up there. Whether it was pre-delivery on new machines, installing attachments and guarding packages, fixing up used ones to go up or traveling up there to keep the stuff running, I've caressed my share of what is there. Unfortunately if it hasn't run in two years and the brush is growing up through it, it isn't going to run ever again in its current form. While I'd like to think that the stuff has some historical value, the facts are that up there it is more of a hazard to everything around it. I've seen shovel booms up in the air with rotten lines just waiting to fall. There are the hydraulic machines with oil seeping out into the land and the streams. I've seen miles of wire rope strung out down the sides of the roads again just rusting away leaving daggers and needles to punch holes in any critter that happens to stumble on it. If anything has a chance of running again, it will only be the odd used part that happens to fit something else a long way away.

While many will argue the point, if someone has the get-er-done spirit, the permission of the owner and a way to make some money for both of them, then I think it is better to get the stuff out of there. Really, when you think about it, what is the difference between the logger going up there on faith and this guy up there on the same kind of faith.

There is no sentimentality in a machine. If there is no use for it, it should be changed into something else that can be used.

Give Him a Break..........

I love the old iron.......I just wish it were working, if it were, it wouldn't be getting scrapped. It is our fault as the silent majority of voters.........hard working people that want nothing more than a chance to make a good living.............how many of us don't get involved in our political process? How many of us have never called or emailed our Congressman, Senator, the White House? I would urge all of us to do exactly that EVERYTIME we see something happening that affects us in a negative way. They only listen to the loudest voice, we tend to be quiet. We tend to think we are too busy running our outfit to be involved in that stuff. Well, it costs us every time we think like that. Elections have consequences and man have we seen that in the last 20 years! Every time we sit on our duff and don't cast our vote THEY get more powerfull. We have to start at the local level, and throw the big spending liberal preservationist socialist out!! They are slowly taking over this country and us deadbeats are letting them do it!!

I hate to see the big iron cut up, melted & sent to some other country to be made into some piece of inferior junk to be resold here. I grew up on big steel towers, big cats, big log loaders..... things I dreamed of as a kid. But it will all get melted down if WE as voters do not get off our duff and get involved in the process. Perhaps if the gentleman scrapper could find a good paying job in the timber industry he would be doing that instead. I'd like to think so..........

Give him a Break?? I'd better add some 'back story' for perspective:

A friend of mine in Ketchikan had 2 machines stored with permission in an out-of-the-way location (in an abandoned rock pit). Plans were to eventally restore both pieces and as soon as his shop construction was finished, and when the machines would not be in the way of the new construction, these machines (large cable cranes with logging booms/modifications) were to be moved back to the shop to resume work on them.

He arrived back at the pit after a couple of weeks to find scorched earth and slag where his treasures had been sitting! I had posted pictures of these items and the owner was a little miffed with me for posting in fear that someone may recognize that location- his fears were eventually realized and I felt horrible for having potentially contributed to that loss. I will state again the items were scrapped WITHOUT the owner's permission, consent, and basically they were just stolen.
(I had better also point out clearly that the Ketchikan incident was someone else and NOT the above poster).

1. The fact that these persons even needs to ask where these items are sitting just proves my point here I think...?

2. If the owners were interested in scrapping they would call a scrapper, right? That just stands to reason.

I don't know the above poster personally and I'm not inclined to accuse or desparage this person of any wrongdoing.
That being said, after what happened to my friend I will refrain from posting or aiding in the potential of further harm.

I am somewhat shocked, however, that a person would find a group of vintage-machinery fans and start the conversation by asking where they can find other peoples machinery to go cut up.....?

I'm willing to listen and I'm willing to be wrong. For now, this post is basically my line of thinking. I enjoy 'long-lost machinery' hunting, but my kill is by camera, not by torch.

HDX said:

Same thing happened here--Google--Adventuresinmikeslife,blogspot.com When it comes up scroll down to Blog archive 2011(86) click on that then scroll down to The Doriston Trucks After you look at all the pics go back and read what Mike had to write!!!!!

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Thank you HDX, this is the story everyone here needs to read.

http://adventuresinmikeslife.blogspot.com/2011/12/doriston-trucks.html

The photos are great, and the story is all too common.
Do we need to give all of our history to the Chinese, who are only using it to build weapons?
I fear that someday our treasures will all come back to us- likely in the form of missiles and bombs.

These postings have been quite the eye opener for me. I had been wondering why the locations of machines had been kept a closely guarded secret by a few - now I can only thank them for their secrecy. I'll be changing my ways when it comes to posting pics - locations will not be revealed in the future.

While I hope you can keep these old treasures location hidden I hope people will continue to share the pictures of them. I am still hoping to get back to the west coast this summer, on my motorcycle. In hopes of seeing some of the old iron, and maybe see some of the newer stuff operating. Since I will be on my motorcycle, other than the memories I hope to bring back some pictures to remind me of when I lived out there for a while. Had thought about asking where to find some of the old machines but now know I would rather know they are safely tucked away.

What a Shame.............

Contract Logger said:

Thank you HDX, this is the story everyone here needs to read.

http://adventuresinmikeslife.blogspot.com/2011/12/doriston-trucks.html

The photos are great, and the story is all too common.
Do we need to give all of our history to the Chinese, who are only using it to build weapons?
I fear that someday our treasures will all come back to us- likely in the form of missiles and bombs.

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Those trucks were one with nature.........they almost looked like they grew there. It is a shame they are gone. People who steal in this way are in the same boat as an arsonist who destroys just for destruction's sake. This should be grand theft auto big time.

Left alone all the so called "abandoned" equipment will end up in the same beautiful state.

When I take my pictures, (of which I have posted none and will not post without the owners permission)
Most of the owners down here are very nervous about the world knowing who's equipment it is and where it is.......there are too many whacko's out there who would love to mess with it. It's a sad world out there.

Thank you guys for the hours and hours of enjoyment I have recieved from this forum. I am thankful that there are people out there that enjoy heavy machinery as much as I do! Thanks for protecting it as much as we can.

This thread has been a huge hit and I am taking more pictures now that ever. I'll continue to post some but I have to tell you that ordeal with the Ketchikan machines really has really made me rethink the whole thing and I surely do regret giving more information than to describe make, model, and probable year built. For now we just need to let things cool off and chill for a minute.

One good thing that has come out if this is that I approach every machine as though it's my last chance to record it- and it isn't uncommon for me to take 200 pictures of a single yarder or shovel. I carry 3 charged batteries and 6 to 8 4GB SD Cards everywhere I go these days, so in another 20 years I'll have lots of pics to remember things and share with the fellows building models and miniatures.

I will say this- if a person is traveling to a certain area and is looking for certain makes or models of machines, I will gladly direct you toward them via private email communication if your story checks out. Alaska isn't realistic due to insane travel/accomodation expenses but much machinery remains in Oregon, Washington, and California.

I dont want to discourage anyone from the 'hunting hobby' but we do need to hold our secrets a little closer these days.
I think most of you would agree and will understand. I sure hope so anyway.
What's done is done and if we look backward to often we'll miss whats ahead.

Its very sad people can't leave history alone. Instead they have to destroy it for proffit. They are low life theaves in my opinion and there is lower than a theif.

Seems as though someone could get hurt pretty easily doing such things. Accidents do happen, you know......

I would like to thank contract logger for all of the great pics and specs he has posted onto this thread

Yes I couldn't agree more. Thank you very much Contract logger your pictures are very interesting and very inspiring to my model building. I am planning a build of weyerhauser number 420 in 1/25 scale. That truck has history and should be in a museum not rotting away on a beach :-(