Bell Valley Retreat is excited to be engaging in land stewardship work that aims to mitigate fire risks, restore a deciduous oak woodland, and provide useful building material in the form of carbon-stable, Douglas fir poles. This year, we are giving these fir poles away to our community!

Bell Valley Retreat is located on 650 acres in Anderson Valley, 5 miles from Boonville, CA on the ancestral territory of the Tabahtea people, Northern Pomo. Douglas fir trees are encroaching on old and new growth oaks and creating a serious threat to biodiversity and fire resilience. We are currently thinning 25 acres and removing ~1,500 - 2,000 small diameter Douglas fir trees. Of that total, we are hoping to salvage 500+ poles that we will limb and stack for free pick up by our community.

To access these poles, please respond via this survey with your requests for fir poles by May 14th, 2021.

We are also hosting a brief 1-hour fir pole informational walk and talk on Sunday, June 6th from 4:00pm - 5:00pm at Bell Valley which you must register for here.

Why use round fir poles?

Round fir poles are much stronger and resilient per board foot than milled dimensional lumber. They are one of the readily available gifts the land offers when we tend to it on behalf of fire resilience, biodiversity, and enhanced forest health. Smaller poles can be used for garden trellises and short-lived fences, shade structures, craft projects, furniture, and more. Larger poles can be used for timber-framed construction. Check out ideas for fir pole construction at this Pinterest Board.

We have a limited amount of material that we are preparing to give away, so please complete this survey/form to reserve your poles: Bell Valley Free Fir Pole Distribution. Your responses will help us assess the market opportunities for these products.

Please contact Erin Axelrod erin@lifteconomy.com with any questions and remember to respond with your requests for fir poles, via this survey by May 14th, 2021. Pickup of fir poles will happen during daylight hours between Friday May 21st - Sunday June 6th. Please do not come outside of these hours.

Register here: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/fir-pole-pickup-tickets-153040904465