The purpose of this book is to provide a general guide for the field forester or forest engineer in logging road construction, bridge construction, skidder trail layout, log landing construction, seeding and forest hydrology.  This book is general in nature and does not deal with every specific field problem.  In bridge design, a professional engineer should be consulted and proper plans obtained for major bridges.  This book does not and should not be used to replace the professional forester or engineer when professional expertise is needed.  The recommendations in this book should not become regulations or law, for they do not cover each specific field problem.

     This book has been prepared for use by Seven Islands Land Company for its company personnel and for use on lands under its management.  No part of this book may be reproduced without permission of Seven Islands Land Company.  This book was published through the cooperation of Seven Islands Land Company, the University of Maine and the New England Council on Forest Engineering for use at the March 1985 COFE Workshop.  Neither Seven Islands Land Company, the University of Maine nor the Council on Forest Engineering assume any liability or reliance of the contents of this book.  If you have specific questions, go to professional foresters, biologists or engineers for the answers.

     The Council on Forest Engineering is an organization of international scope.  It was established to promote the recognition of forest engineering and to enhance its practice.  Founded in the late seventies, annual meetings have been held ever since throughout North America.  Regional subdivisions of COFE were authorized in 1984.  The New England Regional Council on Forest Engineering (NER.COFE) has its origin on November 15, 1984.  The address of the parent, COFE, is 620 SW Fourth Street, Corvallis, Oregon 97333.

     The author is A. Allen Murphy, Forest Engineer for Seven Islands Land Company.  Seven Islands Land Company is a forest and land management company based in Bangor, Maine which represents owners of forest land in Maine and New Hampshire.  Mr. Murphy began working in the woods in the 1950s on family-owned forest land in Bridgton, Maine.  He is a graduate of the University of Maine School of Forestry.  He served 3 years in the United States Marine Corps, most of that time in Vietnam.  Following graduation from the University of Maine, he worked for several companies and for the Maine Bureau of Parks and Recreation.  He joined Seven Islands Land Company in 1970 and became forest engineer in 1978.  Mr. Murphy is a registered professional forester and a member of the Council on Forest Engineering.  He is currently the Chairperson Elect for the New England Regional Council on Forest Engineering.

     Since his first book in 1984 he has written several more articles on forest road construction projects, and in 1994 is republishing his Forest Road Construction Manual. 

     Art work and sketches for the first book were provided by John Connick, Draftsman, Seven Islands Land Company.  The typing for the first edition was done by Chris Murphy, second edition by daughter Jill, and third edition by Cindy Paschal, Administrative Assistant, Dept. of Forest Management, University of Maine.  Thomas Corcoran, Professor, Forest Engineering, University of Maine, aided in publishing editions 1 and 2.