The Eastwick Press Newspaper

Eastern Rensselaer County's Community Newspaper

Gathering Wood For The Winter At Dyken Pond Enviromental Center

By

By Doug La Rocque

It has become a tradition this past five years that the Friends of Dyken Pond are joined by volunteers on an October Saturday afternoon to collect, split and stack the firewood needed to keep the Center’s Office and Classroom warm through the coming winter. [private]

Friends of Dyken Pond volunteers were joined by Sienna College’s Wildlife in Conservation class to get wood that will keep the Center’s office and classroom toasty warm this winter. Photo by Doug La Rocque
Friends of Dyken Pond volunteers were joined by Sienna College’s Wildlife in Conservation class to get wood that will keep the Center’s office and classroom toasty warm this winter. Photo by Doug La Rocque

This year, some 30 people gathered on October 24, a windy and brisk day, to forage the many trails for downed timber and transport it back to the Center where chain saws, a splitter and human hands combined to put about four cords of wood in the woodshed.

The Center’s director, Lisa Hoyt, keeps the volunteers organized and on task, as well as using the opportunity for some teaching and forestry lessons.  This year the Friend’s organization was joined by Professor Dan Bogan’s Wildlife in Conservation class from Siena College.  Professor Bogan is also a resident of Grafton.  Also lending hands were 15 members of RPI’s service fraternity, Phi Gamma Delta.  Hoyt said it takes about three hours of hard work to accomplish the task, but it is a joyful time, topped off by dinner at the end of the day.[/private]