Yesterday, as snow fell softly, we met with our local county forester, Kyle. After he pulled on his hiking boots and donned a warm hat, he joined us on a hike around our land, happy to escape the drudgery of office-work in favor of being in the woods. As we crunched our way through the snow, Tyler and I shared our current goals for the property (maple sugaring, wildlife habitat growth, firewood, lumber for timberframes, etc), and asked for his advice.

Kyle shared his knowledge generously. Besides answering our questions, he offered a crash course in tree identification (we have mostly sugar maples, along with ash, red maple, and a smattering of others), sugaring basics, invasive plant identification and removal, and crop tree release.

Kyle's visit was a good one: he validated our progress, offered useful advice for the future, and, like Tim of the Department of Agriculture, praised us on what he said was a fantastic choice of land. He told us to call him any time, email him with any questions, and let him know if we wanted him to come back again. I have a feeling we'll be taking him up on his offers. Thank you, Kyle!!