I studied "Industrial Forestry Operations" at Virginia Tech. For my research project I visited over 30 logging contractors in Alabama, Tennessee, Georgia, North and South Carolina and Virginia.
What I learned is that logging is a tough business! Only by high production and attention to efficiency are the best loggers able to survive high equipment, labor and overhead costs.
The courses I took were very challenging and writing my thesis was much more so. Finally I finished in August 1998 and received my Masters of Science.
My job took me to Alabama where I was a forester with a part in managing their vast timberland holdings. Here we grew trees, especially pine trees, to provide fiber for our mill in Courtland, AL - one of the biggest paper mills in the world.
I had an active role in forestry operations on a massive scale. It was a very exciting and fast paced job, learning daily from many highly experienced and dedicated professionals.
Compared to my work now, where I hands-on deal with one tree at a time, I had a managerial role that dealt with often many acres of trees at a time. Cutting them down and planting them back. Millions of trees literally. It was an awesome process.
A combination of many factors led me to feel it was time for me to try something else, so after 3 years with the company I decided to voluntarily resign.
Even though I enjoyed living in "The South", coming back to the Mohawk Valley has been a good move for me. I enjoy being close to my family again and running my own tree service.
