History Channel – “The Axemen”, Vernonia, OR

Original Productions, (the production company that produces “Deadliest Catch”), is shooting a new show based on a similar format. This time they are covering the lives of career loggers in the Pacific Northwest. “The Axemen” will be a 13 part series airing this spring on The History Channel. Four camera teams are covering four different companies. I’m covering Stump Branch Logging, based out of Vernonia, OR. This site is a salvage logging job that Stump Branch is doing for the State of Oregon cleaning up a huge blow down area from our severe windstorm of 2006.Due to mountainside scrambling that each camera crew has to do, as well as danger to equipment, the show is shot in HDV with Sony Z1-U and V1-U cameras in 30p format. Six wireless channels of audio are being run to my camera via the units in my waist packThe “Yoader” is a combination yarder and loader that hauls logs up the hillside once the choke setter wraps the choker cable around each log. Once they are hauled up to the landing, a shovel loader uses huge clamping teeth to pick up the logs and place them in the staging area where they will be bucked, (de-branched) and cut into 40 foot lengthsLoggers start before sunrise every dayMorning mist from Roundtop Mountain<imgEJ and Ross capture a moment with Melvin and Michael of Stumpbranch Logging
Loggers affectionately call their work trucks “Crummies” as they are usually older 4 wheel drive pick ups they buy used for cheap. They get absolutely thrashed every day. Our crummy was a bit nicer, a new Ford F-150 on loan from Astoria