
A neighbour once said, “A delivery of firewood is thrice enjoyed: Once, when the wood is delivered, next, when the wood is stacked and put away, and finally, when it is burned.
To this, I would add a fourth: chopping. As required. I shall explain.
There is no natural gas on Pender Island, and few people bother with propane, except to run their stoves. So no central heating systems warm our homes. Wood stoves do. Firewood is a big part of our lives, here.
This adds a layer of work – and pleasure – into heating the house. You stack a cord of wood, or two or three, then maintain a supply near the house to save yourself a trek up the driveway in the cold or rain, to bring wood in when needed.

More Wood, More Work
When firewood is delivered, it is generally ready for the fireplace or wood stove, chopped to size. If you want kindling to help start the fire, well, that’s extra work.
Starting the fire in the most efficient way is in the realm of opinion or tradition … or superstition. This past year, I’ve been using the top down method: I place a layer of logs in the bottom of a cold stove, then a layer of kindling. Lastly, I layer a small amount of newspaper or pine cones on top of all that. The top tinder is ignited and the fire starts modestly, but soon begins to eat its way down. Gas is given off as the logs heat up, but there is already flame on the top to ignite it. Before long you have a great fire going with a minimum of smoke.
When Mildrith came into our lives, it meant more wood and more work. More stacking, more chopping and more transporting wood to the oven shelter.
Chopped to Size
The prevailing wisdom among wood-fired oven users is that logs are not the most efficient size to use. The fuel needs to be smaller. I chop firewood to the diameter of a human wrist. The wood burns brighter, hotter, faster, bumping up the surface temperature of the hearth and walls. Lots of this wood thrown on the fire builds a reservoir of heat that will bake three to four loads of bread on one firing. Equals a happy baker!
So firewood destined for Mildrith needs to be chopped first. It’s repetitive. If I’m not in the right frame of mind, it can be boring. But it’s amazing how the time flies by, setting a log on the chopping block, finding the right place to split it, bringing the axe down. The wood cracks, the chips fly and soon enough you might step back and realize you’ve chopped a hell of a lot of wood..
There is the scent of wood. The pungence of fir sap. It’s sharp at first, because you’re so close to it, but it fills the air around you as the wood splits open and you bend over to pick up the next piece. There are fir trees everywhere on Pender, and you realize you smell it every day when you step outside. You’re closer to wood, the more you chop.
Lo and Behold! A Stack of Wood!
I’m the sanguine type, who forgets my worldly concerns when I’m working with the axe. I focus on the task at hand. Trance-like, I carry logs from the stack, chop, pick up the pieces, repeat. Before long, there is enough firewood for two or three wheelbarrows that can be taken down to Mildrith and stacked neatly beside her. Mildrith is provided for. The fruits of my labour lay before me. I can take off my gloves. My back is a little stiff, there are splinters in my fingers, but there is a deep satisfaction when I behold enough wood for many firings of the oven.
A recent favourite book, Norwegian Wood ‒ Chopping, Stacking and Drying Wood the Norwegian Way by Lars Mytting, is a paean to the wood-fired world and all the tasks and pleasures it entails. In it, I discovered these lines from the great Norwegian poet, Hans Bøli:
The scent of fresh wood
is among the last things you will forget when the veil falls.
The scent of fresh white wood
in the spring sap time:
as though life itself walked by you,
with dew in its hair.
That sweet and naked smell
kneeling woman-soft and blond
in the silence inside you,
using your bones for
a willow flute.
With the hard frost beneath your tongue
you look for fire to light a word,
and know, mild as southern wind in the mind,
there is still one thing in the world
you can trust.
Hans Børli
Happy Monk Tidings - May 18, 2022 🍞 - Baker's Choice: Olive Bread; UPDATE: Canal Bridge project postponed; Assume normal delivery schedule; BLOG: The Breadman's Quest for the Stanley Cup - [See LinkTree in Profile ]
Happy Monk Tidings - May 11, 2022 🍞 - Baker's Choice: Rye-Spelt Sourdough; Blog: Road/Bridge Closure: Be Here Now - [ See LinkTree in Profile ]
Fun visit from @thiswolfeislandlife on bread day Friday. Laura Buckley and partner Peter from Wolfe Island near Kingston, ON to compare notes and share a few laughs. So great when bakers get together! Thanks for the photos, Laura! See you next on Wolfe Island!
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#bakers #bakery #bakerslife #woodfiredovens #woodfired #woodfiredbakery #woodfiredbakerylife #southpenderisland #southpender #happymonkbaking #happymonkbakery #happymonkbakingcompany #happymonkbaker
Happy Monk Tidings - May 4, 2022 🍞 - Baker's Choice: Polenta and Rosemary Bread ☀︎ Blog: An Artisan Bread Manifesto ☀︎ [ See LinkTree in Profile ]
This guy, Davy Rippner, @leathersmithe, our neighbourhood sandal-maker, wood-chopper and story teller extraordinaire, is one of my best buddies. He comes every Friday morning to help me bag each loaf of bread and get ‘em out the door in time for delivery. He turns the whole process into a heck of a lotta fun, laughs and great conversation. Lucky to have him as a friend and Happy Monk helper. These are Spelt-Honey Sourdough loaves, by the way. Adapted from Michael James’ Tivoli Road Baker.
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#bread #breadbaking #bakery #bakeries #woodfired #woodfiredoven #woodfiredovenbread #breadhead #breadmaking #sourdough #spelt #speltbread #michaeljames #sourdoughbread #penderisland #southpenderisland #happymonkbakery #happymonkbakingcompany #southerngulfislands #southerngulfislandsbakers #southerngulfislandsbakeries
Happy Monk Tidings - April 27, 2022 🍞 - Baker's Choice: Spelt Honey Sourdough; Blog: A Podcast for Pender Island [ See LinkTree in Profile ]
Happy Monk Tidings - April 20, 2022 🍞 - Baker's Choice: Mountain Rye ; Blog: Walking with My Father [ See LinkTree in Profile ]
Happy Monk Tidings - April 13, 2022 🍞 - Baker's Choice: Hot Cross Buns; Blog: Who's to Blame for the Hot Cross Buns Song? [ See LinkTree in Profile ]
Happy Monk Tidings - April 6, 2022 🍞 - Baker's Choice: Whole-Wheat Flax Bread; Blog: The Baker's Arms [ See LinkTree in Profile ]
Happy Monk Tidings - March 30, 2022 🍞 - Baker's Choice: Oat Porridge Bread; Blog: Thanne Longen Folk ...; We're Donating to Ukraine! [ See LinkTree in Profile ]
Mooning for the camera, first light on bake day, with the first load of Salish Sourdough singing at the table..
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#breadsinging #breadsong #woodfired #woodfiredoven #woodfiredbakery #woodfiredbread #bread #breadlove #baker #bakersofinstagram #bakerslife #bakersofsoutherngulfislands #sourdough #sourdoughbread #sourdoughbaking #sourdoughlove #happymonkbaker #happymonkbakery #happymonkbakingcompany #southpenderisland #penderisland
Billowy Spelt-Honey Sourdough, burnished (after) and raw (before).
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#spelt #speltbread #honeybread #breadhead #breadporn #breadlove #wildyeast #honey #honeyhoney #honeybread #michaeljamesbakes #tivolirdbakery #naturallyleavened #artisanbread #realbread #rusticbread #woodfired #woodfiredbread #sourdough #sourdoughbread #penderisland #southpenderisland #happymonkbaking #happymonkbakery #happymonkbakingcompany
Happy Monk Tidings - March 16, 2022 🍞 - Baker's Choice: Spelt and Honey Sourdough; Blog: Wheat Connections to Ukraine [ See LinkTree in Bio ]
These corn kernels are headed to the mill to make cornmeal for Anadama Bread this week. It’s a bread with origins on the east coast, but that shouldn’t stop us west coasters from enjoying it, too, godanadamit! This is organic field corn from @fieldstoneorganics of Armstrong, B.C. … and the hard red whole wheat from Metchosin, B.C. make this Happy Monk take on Anadama a bona fide west coast phenomenon! Just sayin’!
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#anadama #anadamabread #cornmeal #cornmealbread #metchosinbc #armstrongbc #stoneground #stonegroundflour #stonemilled #stonemilledflour #stonemilledbread #woodfiredovenbread #bread #realbread #naturallyleavened #baker #bbga #artisanbread #breadhead #breadmaking #sourdough #sourdoughbread #penderisland #southpenderisland #happymonkbaking #happymonkbakery #happymonkbakingcompany #southerngulfislands #southerngulfislandsbakers #southerngulfislandsbakeries
Happy Monk Tidings - March 9, 2022 🍞 - Baker's Choice: Anadama Bread; Blog: Salvador Dali and the Art of Bread - [ See LinkTree in Profile ]
Happy Monk Tidings - March 2, 2022 🍞 - Baker's Choice: Cinnamon Raisin Sourdough; Blog: Have Your Been Shriven? [ See Link in Profile ]
Morning Breadsong (volume up!) A pile of Salish Sourdoughs just out of Mildrith, the wood-fired oven.
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#breadsinging #breadsong #woodfired #woodfiredoven #woodfiredovenbread #bread #realbread #naturallyleavened #baker #bakery #bakerslife #bbga #artisanbread #breadhead #breadmaking #breadmaking🍞 #sourdough #sourdoughbread #coboven #earthoven #earthenoven #penderisland #southpenderisland #happymonkbaking #happymonkbakery #happymonkbakingcompany #southerngulfislands #southerngulfislandsbakers #southerngulfislandsbakeries #penderisland
Happy Monk Tidings - February 23, 2022 🍞 - Baker's Choice: Danish Rye (Rugbrød); Blog: The Burned Loaf: And Offering and a Blessing - [ See link in profile ]
I cut open the loaf to reveal a pretty pleasing and moist crumb. Wow! If you don’t mind a little char, this burned loaf has some pleasures, like a super crispy crust contrasted with the soft crumb and the nutty chew. The char does dominate the flavour, though 😂. But would you put it in the display case of your bakery? (Thanks for the comments, all 😉)
It just needed a few more minutes. That was three hours ago. Saved my best for last! #showusyourfuckedloaves
Happy Monk Tidings - February 16, 2022 🍞 - Baker's Choice this week: Sourdough Sandwich Loaf; Blog: Festival of Fornacalia - All hail, Fornax! Goddess of the Ovens! [ See link in Profile ]
John-boy’s got his arms loaded with a bunch of Happy Monk bread, one of his favourite states of being. He’s generous to a fault, though, and spread the loaves around his close circle of friends. That’s m’boy!
The 2kg Desem miche is out of focus, in the back ‘cause it would have drowned out the little 1kg Durum Sesame loaf in front. The miche is a monster but every bit as delish as the Durum loaf! The Desem’s coming soon! Won’t be a miche, though!
Lest we be forgotten: https://leathersmithe.smugmug.com/Community/Green-Angels/Green-Angels-Work/
https://leathersmithe.smugmug.com/Community/Green-Angels/2019-Angels/
Thank you, Davy, for the links and the reminder! Ye are not forgotten!
The Green Angels of Pender Island are wood choppers extraordinaire! A band of volunteers who chop downed trees into firewood that are donated by property owners in return for charitable tax receipts. That firewood is then given to Pender residents for their winter fuel supply in return for a donation, usually around $300 a cord of firewood. This pool of donations are then used to support a variety of local causes. You can read more about this terrific enterprise here: https://greenangels.com/
[…] thinking of firewood and the “thrice enjoyed gift” when a cord of freshly cut fir arrives and is dumped by the woodpile. Behold what pleasure […]