We have managed over the past several years to buy three adjacent lots that total almost 4 acres. It was all totally raw, untouched land when we got it and we have spent years....countless thousands of hours, cleaning it up so it'd look nice. Limbed up thousands of trees, moved tons of rocks, removed all the ground scrub, and cut out hundreds of stumps.....all done by just Tracy and I. The place looks like national park land due to a huge amount of work on our part. This is the 3rd February in a row that we've gotten hit with ice storms that have wreaked havoc on the trees, with this one being the worst of the bunch. The icing started early Monday morning and has continued non-stop since. As of this posting, it is still coming down. Took a heartbreaking stroll around part of the property to survey the damage, and it is extreme.
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I only covered a small portion of the property, just stuff close to the house. I'm dreading seeing the carnage heading down the hill in the back to the canyon. So many hours and so much work destroyed in a matter of a few days. It is truly gut wrenching. Please understand that trees in this area are sacred. The "soil" is solid rock. If you want to put in a garden, you build up, not dig down. If you want to plant a tree, you get a jackhammer. For trees to grow to any decent size takes a long, long time. People go to extreme lengths to save trees for this reason. Yes, a lot of what is shown here are cedars but we have oaks in the back yard that are 2' in diameter that took some big hits too. Heck, those trees were probably around when Columbus came strolling through

Well, I've shed enough tears here. Now gotta get into the mindset to start the clean-up process, which is going to be a monumental task. Thanks for being here everybody so I have family to share the woes with.
Bummed and depressed,
Robert