For him, that means horse-logging every time. It involves choosing which trees to take and which to leave behind. What remains behind from this first cut determines the future value of the property. An experienced horse logger can make that process far less damaging to the soil and to the trees that remain behind than can be done with mechanized skidding. The horses used in these teams are not particularly fancy nor necessarily purebreds, though they can surely do the work.
Good temperament is their most important feature, apart from strength.
Generally they are Belgians or Belgian-Percheron crosses. The equipment is simple. It is interesting to see how little leather is used in the harness today, with much of it now being nylon composite instead. Some harness is even made from conveyor belt material. Ray Blystone, one of the other operators shown here, has been in the horse-logging business only two years, although he has had horses since he was a child.