Midtech Kephart Pitch Pine Project

Mistwalker · Mar 5, 2025

There has been some discussion in the W&SS section on the subject of pitch pine (fatwood). Since there is some confusion on how it presents itself, since it does so in a few different ways, I'm putting together a "Pitch Pine ID Thread" for the W&SS section.

While I was out gathering ID photos yesterday, I ran into the second largest piece of pitch I've found so far.

Brought these home

This one is next

Hurrul · Mar 5, 2025

This is a great thread! I've got pounds of lighter log, pitchwood, fatwood....I love hunting off trail this stuff, like a dog with a bone - I can't quit snooping around for more.

While I've found specimens in root balls, and the junction knot of branch and trunk, I've found numerous pieces in long ribs, amber veins, and seams of deep maple brown.

- sometimes in a vertical alignment, upright in a stump like a tooth, defying the elements while the rest of the dead, old, Douglas Fir snag decays away.

- in mature stands of Douglas Fir, on South South West facing slops, big trees have space to grow girthy, and age and fall down slopes, rot away, leaving exposed gold.

- an old root and a Bushboot

- back at home, my cache and the broken barbecue, for scale. I've found, this substance can come in many odd, irregular shapes, and the really fat saturated ones don't float in water. I've been using bigger pieces as a boarder around one of my small outside flower/herb bed.

- stump in Yellowstone NP, at the Lamar River. I left it in the Park...

Mistwalker · Mar 5, 2025

Hurrul said:
This is a great thread! I've got pounds of lighter log, pitchwood, fatwood....I love hunting off trail this stuff, like a dog with a bone - I can't quit snooping around for more.

While I've found specimens in root balls, and the junction knot of branch and trunk, I've found numerous pieces in long ribs, amber veins, and seams of deep maple brown.

- sometimes in a vertical alignment, upright in a stump like a tooth, defying the elements while the rest of the dead, old, Douglas Fir snag decays away.

- in mature stands of Douglas Fir, on South South West facing slops, big trees have space to grow girthy, and age and fall down slopes, rot away, leaving exposed gold.

- an old root and a Bushboot

- back at home, my cache and the broken barbecue, for scale. I've found, this substance can come in many odd, irregular shapes, and the really fat saturated ones don't float in water. I've been using bigger pieces as a boarder around one of my small outside flower/herb bed.

- stump in Yellowstone NP, at the Lamar River. I left it in the Park...

That's awsome! I love all the examples you have. I can't walk through the woods here without stepping on it or over it, in all it's different forms. The pine knots make handy batons too.

I don't know if you have seen the thread on "cultivating fatwood" in the W&SS section, but that's the thread where some people are trying to learn some things, and others are trying to share info. But a lot of people have only ever found fatwood in one of it's presentations and don't realize in many cases it's a dacades long, or longer, process. Since I'm fortunate enough to have some old growth forests here to study and photograph examples from the entire timeline in, I'm putting together am identification thread with several of the different forms it presents in. I would love it if you would chime in with your thoughts and examples when I post it.

Hurrul · Mar 6, 2025

Mistwalker said:
That's awsome! I love all the examples you have. I can't walk through the woods here without stepping on it or over it, in all it's different forms. The pine knots make handy batons too.

I don't know if you have seen the thread on "cultivating fatwood" in the W&SS section, but that's the thread where some people are trying to learn some things, and others are trying to share info. But a lot of people have only ever found fatwood in one of it's presentations and don't realize in many cases it's a dacades long, or longer, process. Since I'm fortunate enough to have some old growth forests here to study and photograph examples from the entire timeline in, I'm putting together am identification thread with several of the different forms it presents in. I would love it if you would chime in with your thoughts and examples when I post it.

An identification glossary sounds cool; I'd be into describing my observations thus far, and showing some specimans. So far, I've found examples of fatwood in Douglas Fir, Engleman Spruce, Lodgepole Pine, Whitebark Pine, Limber Pine, and Ponderosa Pine. I'm fairly certain I've found something like fatwood, in the roots of a really big, dead Rocky Mountain Juniper...whatever it is, it's quite flammable and dense, even it's not from a Fir/Pine/Spruce.

Tag me in the thread if you want - I am a sporadic poster and don't always get around to all parts of the forum.

Mistwalker · Mar 6, 2025

Hurrul said:
An identification glossary sounds cool; I'd be into describing my observations thus far, and showing some specimans. So far, I've found examples of fatwood in Douglas Fir, Engleman Spruce, Lodgepole Pine, Whitebark Pine, Limber Pine, and Ponderosa Pine. I'm fairly certain I've found something like fatwood, in the roots of a really big, dead Rocky Mountain Juniper...whatever it is, it's quite flammable and dense, even it's not from a Fir/Pine/Spruce.

Tag me in the thread if you want - I am a sporadic poster and don't always get around to all parts of the forum.

Perfect thank you! The whole point of this is three fold.

To create a comprehensive searchable thread on the subject, with data and input from as many participants and locations as possible.

To inject a healthy dose of Fiddleback Forge in the W&SS section like some of us used to like we did 10 years ago.

And to hopefully to generate some group discussion like we used to have in the W&SS section at the same time.

Some of the older members have passed away, and some people have moved away from the forums to the free social media platforms
Some just got off the net and away from the trolls all together.

I find the free platforms to be worth less than I pay for them. I'd rather make the investment of time to put the knowledge here where I'm not censored for teaching self reliance.

I will definitely tag you when I get it posted, I would love to have your input and your images involved.

Thank you for helping!