The logs are placed onto this machinery and cut into various thicknesses and lengths. This should be considered good pay for the area. Once milled, the cut lumber is stacked and allowed to air dry for several weeks. This one mill cuts about 7,500 linear feet of board each day. Finished and cured lumber is stacked and sold to the public or shipped to buyers.
Prices vary depending on the type of wood, the quality and length.
One by-product of the milling of logs is waste bark and wood. Huge piles of the waste are found beside the river near every sawmill. While some of this material is used for charcoal or other products, most of it drifts downstream during the next time of high water. The boards also provide jobs in secondary industries such as this woodworking shop. Many fine artisans construct both simple and elaborate work from the wood.