Stump-B-Gone

This probably puts me into some sort of "Loser Pyrotechnic Geek" category, but I still think it is cool. Out of the hundreds of cedar trees I've felled in Wimberley, most of the bigger ones have are hollow in the middle, near the ground. Instead of ruining my chainsaw chains in the process of cutting them flush with the ground, I use a more diabolical approach. Like blowing up fire ant mounds with firecrackers, it just feels right.

The top photo shows one such stump shortly after I started burning it at about 9:00 PM. Those flames coming out through the top are from the hollow core, which serves like a chimney to whisk flames onto a frenzy. All I have to do is poke around in the ground at the tree's base to expose an air passage into the hollow, start a small fire there, and get out the marshmallows.

The second photo shows the stump, or at least the remains of it, at 5:00 AM the next morning. That remaining bit burned away within a few hours. So, while my place in the hill country may not have a lot of big-city thrills, who needs that? Amusement like this can't be found at the opera!