Ron Burgundy

Well well, accusations but still no answers. Can't say you are not doing everything by the book HighClimber, a job in politics awaits. I will remind you of the very basic (I assume) questions I asked you, which you have ignored in favour of consistently telling me I know nothing as if I am competing with you! As for felling cuts being high with no hinges I am not an arborist so am not sure about the terms or techniques here, but the patch that did appear to be worked on appeared to have been thinned with all the stumps taken down to near ground level. Is it normal to do a hinge cut and then leave the stump as it is? Or have I just got the wrong idea here? Also what is too high? If you can't put photos on the website then fair enough, but it seems weird to me that you go to such lengths to ignore these questions. You haven't touched a nerve or insulted me somehow, but you have disappointed me as this forum is great as a learning tool and for satisfying curiosity and I am hitting a brick wall here.

It's clearly myself that is confused, but you have chosen to tell me how much better you are in all matters arboricultural than I am rather than answer my questions, which I would have thought would prove very simple for a 13 year veteran. In fact you would rather take a day out to trespass round the estate with me than answer those basic questions! I am a very pretty man, maybe there are other motives at work here as after all the woods in question are quiet and secluded I have given nothing in the way of opinion so reminding me, since I in fact pointed it out first, that I don't know what I am talking about seems a little bit redundant! In fact your entire post is very defensive in tone, which, if my background in psychology can be relied on, implies that you have something to hide. You somewhat classically said with the greatest respect which is almost always a term used by people who mean the opposite! It is an aggressive sentence on the whole - this is odd because I have accused you of nothing, but have simply highlighted a few differences between your recent view of the estate and my view from much earlier in the year and wondered what has happened. The rational person answers the questions, the irrational person raises more, I was once told...... So the mystery only deepens! I would go for another look, but it is a bit of a trek and I clearly wouldn't know what I was looking at anyway I do hope that we are talking about the same patch of woods though, what an embarrassment otherwise! The Headon plantation seems to be the host for many of these events though.

Not found what I need at Merrist Wood yet, but Otley college has something interesting. 10 Week Tree Surgery Code: OHOT9B01S Level: 2, Type: Full Time Aim of course As part of the course you will receive training and assessment towards a Level 2 Craftsman Certificate, 4 NPTC CS units, and a St Johns basic first aid certificate. Giving you the fundamental qualifications required to start a career in tree surgery. What will the course involve? The course will cover a mixture of practical and theory our aim is to give students a realistic working environment wherever possible. Sessions will be taught on campus and at various off-site locations. What can I do afterwards? You will be prepared for working in the arboriculture industry or able to continue on to other arboriculture courses. Future career development will form part of your course. What do I need? There are not formal entry requirements but some industry experience is beneficial, but not essential. You must have the ability to work at height. Equipment Needed You will need to bring your own chainsaw protective boots. College can provide other personal protective equipment although we recommend purchasing your own. Bit of a trek to Suffolk though!

Very funny, but also worryingly indicative of the state of education, bureaucracy and the financial world at the same time! I only wish maths was as practically based as that when I did my GCSEs. All I remember is parabolas and for some reason that still baffles me now 'show your working'.

Interesting. I was up in those woods for another event earlier in the year and I barely saw any work done anywhere. Looked like it had hardly been touched in 10-20 years in fact. Plenty of blowdown scattered about the place and a lot of work needed to be done. As for felling cuts being high with no hinges I am not an arborist so am not sure about the terms or techniques here, but the patch that did appear to be worked on appeared to have been thinned with all the stumps taken down to near ground level. Is it normal to do a hinge cut and then leave the stump as it is? Or have I just got the wrong idea here? Also what is too high? Sounds like someone has done some work up there recently anyway as there wasn't much firewood about. Any chance we can see these photos so the uninformed, like me, can see what not to do? Seems a bit odd to have a go at someone but not post the evidence.

This thread has taken an interesting turn already! Unfortunately lads I am not a stripper, pole dancer or similar. More likely to get paid to put my clothes back on unfortunately. Not a pro footballer either coz I fayled the IQ tesd. That and I am rubbish. Looks like I will be looking up 10 week course at Merrist wood tomorrow then. Sounds ideal. Could look for a longer, part-time course to take it further after that.

Alright, looks like I am going to have to say a bit more about myself. I am mid(to late)-twenties, not married and live in Oxfordshire. I wont say what I do for a living, but to tease you all I will say that I work predominantly at weekends, I only work when I feel like it, it pays well enough and is flexible enough that I can go to college at the drop of a hat. Indoor work though and I miss the fresh air (and the routine). So realistically a 2 or 3 month college course would suit me perfectly to start with. Had I got into this at a younger age I would have happily gone through the groundwork, work your way through thing, but as I am a bit older I would rather get a move on and do it off my own back. Would have to find job/employer etc as well that wasn't going to waste my time. Seems to me like it is CS30 and CS31 then 33 and 38 or something similar that I am looking at, but all these codes give me a headache and I think I will come back and have another look a bit later.

Hello everyone, my first post on this site so here goes. I thought I saw a place where I could introduce myself earlier, but seem to have lost sight of it as I have trawled through looking for other things. I am not a tree worker as such, although I have had the fortunate chance to work with trees in the past and have probably done more than my lack of knowledge in that area should allow. With this in mind, and the fact that I really enjoy working outside and particularly in amongst the trees, I am looking to get some training - and just as importantly I expect, some qualifications (those Bureaucrats love pieces of paper with numbers and letters on them and I am getting old enough and cynical enough to understand that an idiot with these papers stands more chance of progress than anyone without). There should be a good chance of work for me when I get a start so I am keen to get going. Trouble is I haven't worked out where I am starting yet and although this forum appears to be an absolute minefield of useful info I haven't yet worked out how to read it efficiently. Can anyone tell me about or point me to where I can find out about what I need? I want to firstly be able to fell smaller trees (which I have done, but need to learn more about) Then I would like to become a climber (which again is something I have some small experience of, but again need to learn much more about before taking any further) Then I would be looking at felling bigger trees and progressing with other forms of tree work and forestry. Lastly (for now) I would like to learn about woodland management I don't actually mean I want to do all that at once, but it seems like a sensible progression and I would like to get started as soon as possible. I am aware it wont necessarily be cheap, but that has been accounted for. Thankyou in advance for any replies.