This arborist, Thomas (Tom) Miller, a 27 year old Corvallis native. Tom spends many of his work days up in trees, removing and pruning them, among lots of other major and minor landscaping. I was lucky enough to spend a couple afternoons capturing Tom from way up high, to way down low.
What do you love about being an arborist?
I love it [being up in a tree], it’s really satisfying. It feels good to overcome a difficult task, and I really like working outside, even in the rain or snow.
Miller graduated from Corvallis High School and studied psychology at Portland Community College.
How did you become an arborist?
I sort of fell into it...My mother had my now boss Sam over, to do on a bid on pruning a tree. I was a little inspired by Sam, and told him how much I love plants and gardening.
Miller has found a passion for gardening and plants since 2011.
Sam Carter is the owner of Carter Tree Care, which Miller has been working for, for 1.5 years.
I really like native plants, trees, and shrubs. I like how good they are for native pollinators, wildlife, insects. I also really like being self sustainable, growing fruits and vegetables in my own space. I dream about having my own property with fruit trees and a vegetable garden, and maybe a greenhouse, Miller says.
Albany, Oregon, Tuesday, November 17th.
Thomas Miller and trusty right hand partner, Scout Beckwith.
Tell me about tree climbing, is it scary?
If it’s a dead tree it can be scary cause you don’t know how strong it is sometimes!
What about this tree - was kind is is, and is it dead?
This particular tree was a Red Maple, and it was alive. It had a big branch break out of it, and the home owners were worried about more falling their house and property.
Was this particular job scary for you, even though it was an alive tree?
Yes, they all are. It's hard to predict where the branches are going to go when you cut it, cause the wood is really fragile and not very ‘hingy’, meaning it’s strong until it’s not. It can be more unpredictable, cause you can’t control when that moment happens. - Miller
Have you ever had any close calls?
I’ve had big branches come at my face, and had to jump off a few latter's. I've had branches hit my leg, and cut myself with the handsaw.
I also dislocated my rib once! I was climbing down a tree with just the flip line (which is the one small line), and I spurred out of the tree and then slid down it and hit my rib on a branch nub that we already cut.
What is the scariest part about being an arborist?
Definitely when I’ve taken all the branches off of a tree and its just a stick left, it’s kind of nerve racking cause there’s nothing to hang on to -- it's just you the rope and the tree.
Do you, or anyone else, get panic attacks, while up so high?
I’ve heard of other people having them, and I’ve had minor attacks maybe, but nothing that stops me from continuing.
But there are people who have panic attacks and don’t know what to do, and then you need to rescue them out of the tree.
You need to be able to go up there and get them fast, because the paramedics can’t do it, especially if that person is unconscious.
How long does it take to remove a tree, specifically the one pictured?
This removal was about 3 hours in total. Sometimes they can be more or less time consuming than that.
Are you super tired at the end of your days?
Sometimes, yeah... always on Fridays. Typically we work 6-7 hours a day. It's nice, but very labor intensive.
How long do you see yourself doing this for?
It’s pretty taxing on my body, so probably under 5 years.
What about after that? What would you like to do?
Something with my mind. Maybe running a business or something, that would be the next step. Something to do with tree care or plants, like a nursery or something. I’d like working with native plants.
Maybe I’d start planting trees instead of removing them.
What's the hardest part about your job?
How physically demanding it is. It took me a few months to even get used to dragging brush and stuff like that.
Do you ever get 'snow days'?
For the most part, the only day's we don't work are days when it's exceptionally windy.
How many trees do you remove in a weeks time? How many are in your crew?
About two trees a week, and we have a crew totaling 3 or 4. Although, in the past, I've worked alone while climbing trees, and that was much more freaky.
Once we get to fruit tree season I’ll do 20 trees a week, but with the latter, you don’t have to climb them.
Tom, what's your favorite memory? And what do you do in your time away from trees?
My mom owned a farm when I was little, and we [siblings] would run around and play imaginary games.
Plants are really my biggest hoppy, but aside from that, I do enjoy video games. After work I usually go home to play video games and spend time with my girlfriend Elikameda, and my cats; Pocket and Samson.
There you have it, the day in the world of the guy you might drive by on any given day, up in the trees of Corvallis, Albany, and surrounding areas.
