The massive ridge pole weighs 13.5 tons (above), and it was the only log in the house that was lifted into place with a crane. All of the wall logs were lifted using a pioneering trick that makes log lifting easy.

The same trick can be used on a ridge pole -- for comparison, the ridge pole on Skip's house weighed approximately 15 tons when it was put into place. It was installed without a crane, using the same pioneering techniques we teach in our class.

In case you are wondering, butt and pass log homes do not require ridge poles this big -- most of our members use much more "average" sized logs for the ridge pole. Using a ridge pole this large is a little more work, but if you prefer the look of large logs then it can be a nice option to add to your log home.