Actual flying began Dec. 17. Swanner said the crew took a week off for the Christmas holidays, but, weather permitting, should finish Jan. 25. But the Thomas family chose to protect the other resources as well. The idea for logging this steep mountaintop stand of red oak by helicopter came from logger David Jones, left, who discusses the operation with Bud Cantrell, right, manager of the 5,300 acre tract at Balsam owned by Robert Thomas. Using a team of biologists led by Western Carolina University's Dan Pittillo, geologists, and forester Wayne Horne, flora and fauna surveys were conducted before the first tree was touched.
Some people have the misconception about logging as massive clear cutting and destroying the land.
We're proud of the work we do. We've had more people come to look at this project - Haywood Community College forestry students, forestry schools from North Carolina, South Carolina and Georgia, and even a group of 25 Boy Scouts. Back in their logging days, they would have never imagined a high tech operation like this.