MUSIC: O Christmas Tree CHUCK LEAVELL: Hi, I'm Chuck Leavell.

You know, the Christmas season brings together three of my very favorite things: family, music and trees.

As a musician, I've been so fortunate to play with many great artists like the Rolling Stones, the Allman Brothers Band, Eric Clapton and many more.

And along with my wife, Rose Lane, we are proud tree farmers in our home state of Georgia.

We even used to grow Christmas trees.

And you know, decorating a tree is not only a wonderful tradition for a family.

But it's also a fantastic tradition for our country, through the U.S. Capitol Christmas Tree.

So join me for a very special edition of America's Forests.

MUSIC: O Christmas Tree CHUCK: Ever since 1970, a crown jewel is plucked from the country's 193 million acres of National Forests to become the U.S. Capitol Christmas Tree.

This winter it hails from the Western Slope of Colorado.

It was found in a spectacular spot with a mouthful of a name - the Grand Mesa, Uncompahgre and Gunnison National Forests, better known as the GMUG.

MUSIC continues CHUCK: There are more than 3 million acres to explore here and no better way for me to see it than on horseback.

I'm joined by expert guides from the USDA Forest Service.

CHUCK: Doug, you've been involved in the Forest Service for how many years now?

DOUG MARAH: This is my 41st season.

CHUCK: Well, tell me if I'm wrong, but I got a feeling that this is what you really like doing.

DOUG: Yes, sir.

I'd rather do this than eat.

(Laughter) CHUCK: So wonderful.

Well, what is just so beautiful to me is that we have a father daughter here, both in the Forest Service.

Bryn, you've been in the service for...?

BRYN MARAH: Seven years now.

It's my seventh season.

So I'm a Rangeland Management Specialist.

So I administer grazing permits for livestock grazing on National Forests.

We also are in charge of the invasive species program.

We're actually able to use the horses to treat invasive species when they're in more remote areas.

And it's so special to use these horses for a plethora of different reasons to pack them, to ride them.

They're the best tool that we have.

It's so special to be a part of this.

And I get to ride a horse at work.

CHUCK: I think you love a horse, don't you?

BRYN: I think I do too.

CHUCK: I like this girl.

(Laughter) CHUCK: Let's talk a little bit about these species of trees that we have here.

DANA GARDUNIO: Sure.

So the type of forest that we have here is what we call a Mixed Conifer Forest.

So we have primarily Engelmann Spruce, we have some Doug Fir, a little bit of White Fir and of course, the classic Colorado Aspen.

MUSIC: We Three Kings CHUCK: Like all of our National Forests, the GMUG is a land of many uses.

Part of it has been set aside as a designated wilderness.

These are special places where nature still calls the shots - peaceful refuges for wildlife and people alike.

DANA: The wilderness is really near and dear to my heart.

It's an opportunity to really see some spectacular country and have those opportunities just to appreciate the outdoors.

The GMUG is fortunate to get to manage thousands and thousands of acres of wilderness.

Those areas have been specially designated for higher levels of protection.

They're not open to motorized or mechanized travel.

And so really the only way to access those areas is either by foot or on horseback like we are today.

BRYN: That also means that we can't use motors, so chainsaws, for example.

And so, it's more the idea that it's untrammelled by man.

MUSIC ends CHUCK: The GMUG is also managed as a renewable resource.

Our National Forests are an engine for local economies, providing millions of jobs.

Our trees give us so much - lumber for houses and offices; wood to make furniture and musical instruments; pellets for heat and biomass to generate electricity.

DANA: So we like to think of the GMUG as a working landscape.

Historically and traditionally, we have a lot of uses that the forest has been part of, including grazing, logging, and mining in this area in particular and so a lot of those uses still continue today.

MUSIC: Greensleeves CHUCK: And, of course, there's one more use of our National Forests - Christmas trees.

The long-standing tradition of bringing a towering conifer to the Nation's Capitol has earned the title of the People's Tree.

So how does a single tree get chosen from this endless forest?

JIM HUBBARD: The People's Tree at the Capitol, started in 1964.

But the Forest Service and the Architect of the Capitol started working together in 1970 and have been ever since.

So for 50 years, the tree has come from a National Forest somewhere in the country.

The Architect's very fussy about getting the perfect tree.

So we work hard at that and work together to bring the perfect tree to the people.

CHUCK: Colorado's National Forests have provided the tree four times now but that doesn't make the job of finding the perfect one any easier.

TODD GARDINER: Finding this tree, I am always up and down on the forest managing projects and so for about a year and a half I had my eyes peeled looking for the right tree.

Found a handful of them and then worked with the Architect of the Capitol from D.C. to select the actual tree.

Finding wild grown trees that grow in such a way that they look nearly perfect is really hard to find.

CHUCK: The tree that made the grade is an 82-year-old Engelmann Spruce.

And it's a beauty.

It towers 55 feet high and about 25 feet around.

There's no bad side to this tree.

It's gorgeous from every angle.

MUSIC ends CHUCK: Now you may not have room for a 55' tree in your house.

But every single one of us can get a Christmas tree from a National Forest.

All you need is a permit.

And in my case, a four-wheel drive.

Here we go!

MUSIC: God Bless Ye Merry Gentlemen CHUCK: I'm meeting up with Matt McCombs, District Ranger for the Gunnison section of the National Forest.

CHUCK: Matt, I'm Chuck Leavell MATT: Chuck, nice to see you.

CHUCK: A pleasure my friend.

A pleasure.

Wow, this is so incredible.

So beautiful.

But I got to tell you that ride up the hill, whoo, I thought I was going to fall off about ten, fifteen times there.

MATT: That's part of the fun.

Part of the adventure.

CHUCK: Well, listen, thanks for taking the time for us today.

We have a tree located?

MATT: Yup, we got everything we need.

CHUCK: OK. Well, let's get to it.

MATT: All right.

CHUCK: You want me to take that sled.

MATT: I think so.

CHUCK: I don't have to pull you in this thing, do I?

MATT: Not today.

(Laughter) CHUCK: That's a good thing.

CHUCK: So, Matt, other than cutting down Christmas trees, what kind of recreational activities go on around here?

MATT: Well, here on the GMUG, there's an amazing amount of opportunities for winter rec.

You've got your downhill skiing at Telluride and Crested Butte Mountain Resort.

As well as a little ski area on Grand Mesa called Powderhorn.

You can get out and do some Nordic skiing on miles and miles - although they say kilometers - Kilometers and kilometers of Nordic skiing.

Snowshoeing.

Ice climbing.

CHUCK: Ice climbing?

MATT: Ice climbing, yeah.

Just right here outside of... near Ouray, there's the Ouray Ice Park.

Some of the best ice climbing in the world.

CHUCK: Well now I've heard about this very strange activity that has to do with a pack of dogs or maybe some horses and some skis.

MATT: Skijoring.

CHUCK: Skijoring.

MATT: I've never done it myself, but I've observed it.

It looks like a lot of fun.

Having a pack of dogs or maybe a couple horses dragging you around on skis.

CHUCK: That's wild, man, that's wild.

I don't know.

Maybe I can try that one of these days, but maybe not this trip.

MATT: That's one of the cool parts about the National Forest.

You can be yourself.

If that's your thing, go ahead and skijor all you want.

They are your public lands.

CHUCK: That's great.

MUSIC: Auld Lang Syne MATT: I think we're going to come right down through this gap by the log here.

What do you think?

CHUCK: I think you're making me work for this thing, man.

Doggone it.

MATT: Not exactly Georgia, right?

CHUCK: Oh, that's a pretty one, though.

MATT: That's a good-looking tree.

Too bad we can't take the snow with us.

CHUCK: Well, this is going to a nice school and I look forward to seeing the kids have some fun with this, so Let's take her down.

MATT: All right.

CHUCK: You've got the saw.

MATT: And one other really important part and that's our Christmas tree permit.

CHUCK: You got to have the permit.

MATT: You gotta have the permit gotta be legal.

Right?

We don't want my law enforcement officer pulling us over.

That'd be a little untoward.

CHUCK: That wouldn't look too good.

MATT: One of the cool things about the Christmas tree program is that, you know, you and I are foresters today.

CHUCK: Yeah.

We're doing our part to thin out the stands and give some of these other trees room to grow.

CHUCK: Yeah, that's cool.

Let's do it.

You're going to make me do the sawing?

MATT: Heck, yeah.

CHUCK: Alright, alright.

There you go, sir.

CHUCK: My weapon.

MATT: I'll steady it for you while you cut.

CHUCK: Good idea.

Here we go.

(sawing) CHUCK: Just about, there we go.

MATT: Timber!

There we go.

Oh boy!

CHUCK: We did it!

You got a little dusted, didn't you!

MATT: Now we'll get the permit on and we'll be legal and ready to go.

CHUCK: Great!

So any family anywhere I guess in the country can come to a National Forest and cut a Christmas tree?

MATT: Absolutely.

You just stop by your local ranger station.

And this is one of the best ways that American people get to connect with their National Forests.

This is probably one of the most important holiday traditions of families all across this country.

Tromping in finding the best tree.

Laying it down, get the permit on and then hopefully keeping it on top of the car on the way home.

CHUCK: There is that, yeah.

MATT: That was always an adventure, at least in my family.

CHUCK: I'll lift her up.

MATT: I'll slide her in.

I think that'll do.

CHUCK: You got the rope?

I'll hold the saw.

You do the tugging.

Your turn.

MATT: Fair enough.

MUSIC: Jingle Bells CHUCK: Next stop, the small town of Olathe, just on the edge of the GMUG.

We're bringing this tree to the Elementary School where kids have been hard at work making hundreds of ornaments.

TEACHER: As you know, the Christmas tree that will be at the Capitol is coming from this area.

So we've been asked to make ornaments, and that's what we're doing today.

We want to represent Colorado.

Look at some symbols that represent Colorado.

The forests or nature.

CHUCK: This year, Coloradans young and old created nearly 10,000 handmade ornaments.

3,000 ornaments will decorate the U.S. Capitol Tree itself on the West Lawn.

7,000 other ornaments will decorate 70 more companion trees placed throughout federal buildings.

Luckily, there are still some ornaments left over to decorate the tree that Matt and I are delivering.

MUSIC ends (school bell ringing) CHUCK: We got a tree for ya.

You got that thing boss?

MATT: (laughs) I've got it.

CHUCK: What do you think?

About right in here somewhere?

MATT: I think this looks good.

CHUCK: Straighten her up.

Are we going to decorate this tree?

KIDS: Yeah!

MUSIC: Jingle Bells CHUCK: Let's go to work.

Let's go ahead and start hanging some ornaments on there.

Wow, you've got some fancy ones.

That's beautiful.

You want me to reach up a little higher maybe?

MATT: Find yourself a branch.

Who's next?

Come on in.

CHUCK: You got toys on there.

A tractor?

You know I've got a tractor.

I love my tractor.

You guys having fun?

You ready for Christmas?

Yeah, me too.

Me too.

MUSIC: Kids sing O Christmas Tree CHUCK: Yaaay!

Fantastic!

Y'all are the best singers ever.

Would y'all go on tour with me?

I want you in my band.

CHUCK: Well, the big day for the big tree has finally arrived.

And it feels like Santa is a comin'.

MUSIC: Hey Santa!

DANA GARDUNIO: Welcome to the beautiful Grand Mesa, Uncompaghre and Gunnison National Forests.

(Applause) MUSIC continues (Chainsaw) CHUCK: No "Timberrrrrr!"

for this tree.

Instead it is lifted straight up into the air with two cranes.

CRANE OPERATOR: I got her suspended now.

So you're going to be pulling up.

And then I'll just start walking away from you and it'll just start laying down.

CHUCK: It's a delicate operation, maneuvering 6500 pounds of tree onto a flatbed truck without damaging any branches.

CRANE OPERATOR: Alright bud, give me some left swing.

Swinging left.

Looking good.

Swinging left.

Let's hold that and see what everyone thinks here.

CHUCK: It's all hands on deck to lay the tree in a specially-made cradle that was refurbished by staff at the USDA Forest Service Job Corps.

CREW: We're on.

MUSIC: Deck The Halls CHUCK: Once the tree is safely on the cradle, it's wrapped in protective plastic for the long journey east.

I convinced Todd Gardiner to let me go "backstage" to see the tree in person before it takes off.

CHUCK: That's a tight fit.

I'm in baby, I'm in.

CHUCK: He's going to show me how they keep the tree healthy and watered.

TODD: So you're going to get the behind the scenes tour back here of the tree.

CHUCK: This is fantastic.

Look at this.

TODD: We're taking a 20-25 foot wide tree and squeezing it down to 8 feet in this truck.

CHUCK: Amazing!

Now,It's your responsibility to look after this puppy, right?

it's all on your shoulders.

I mean, you have to keep it watered, right?

TODD: Yeah.

So this is the big water device here.

It's basically made out of PVC material, similar to a river raft.

And there's a little chimney up here that I got strapped shut.

And then we just run a garden hose in here, which is just wrapped around here.

So you send it down the chute and- TODD: Send it right down the chute, you fill it up, and this holds about 80 gallons of water.

And just depending on how warm and dry it is, it's been pretty cold the past few days.

So we're only filling it up every few days.

TODD: But we did have it parked in the garage one night and it sucked a bunch of water up.

So I said, "Let's park this baby outside.

So it doesn't dry out so quickly."

CHUCK: Exactly.

Is freezing an issue?

TODD: Yeah, so a cool feature of this big water device is it's wrapped with heating coils.

And so this plug here, we plug this in at night and it keeps our water from freezing like a rock.

So we've been really cold here, like single digits or teens overnight.

So we've been plugging it in every night.

CHUCK: Well, you got to have all kind of techniques to make this thing work right, don't you?

TODD: Yes.

And you know, we learned from the previous foresters who have done this since we pass it off every year.

I was lucky enough to go to New Mexico last year and learn how to do it all so that we could figure it out this year.

CHUCK: Well, you're the right man for the job, dude.

TODD: Right on.

Thanks, Chuck.

MUSIC: Up On the Housetop CHUCK: Before leaving for DC, the tree will make several whistle stops in Colorado.

(Truck horn) CHUCK: At each stop, well-wishers are invited to sign banners and place stickers on the truck and join in the celebration.

(kids chanting) Christmas Tree!

Christmas Tree!

It's one big rolling outdoor party and photographer James Edward Mills is there to capture it all.

JAMES EDWARD MILLS: This is my sixth tree.

So started in 2015 with the tree that came from Alaska.

CHUCK: Well, I'll tell you what, it's so great to be talking to you about this.

I bet you've had some incredible experiences shooting this event from year to year, right?

JAMES: Oh, absolutely.

I mean, we've gone from one end of this country to the other.

We've been in deserts.

We've been on mountains.

We've been through forests.

We've had an incredible trip through this country.

And we get to tell the story of the People's Tree.

It's gorgeous day.

It's great for taking pictures.

And the tree never looks better than when it's surrounded by happy people.

You know, especially when we come to a town like this, and everyone comes out to see the tree.

Everyone is celebrating not just the holiday of Christmas, but they're celebrating the outdoors, they're celebrating nature.

Everyone can come and bring to this event anything that they want to from wherever it is that they are.

It is the one thing that we can collectively agree on.

We need to protect and preserve our wild and scenic places.

And to bring an ambassador of the forest to Washington D.C. to represent the collective interests of all the people of the United States.

I can't think of a more unifying message than that.

MUSIC ends MUSIC: We Wish You A Merry Christmas CHUCK: From the Western Slope of Colorado, to the West Lawn of the US Capitol, it's a straight shot on the interstate system of more than 1500 miles.

The trucking team is used to long hauls, but this cargo is something unique.

THERON SCHMALZRIED: I've been a truck driver on and off for 40 years.

I've driven four million miles.

It's special for me to drive it because it's maybe bringing a little joy, maybe a little happiness.

And it's nice to see people kind of forget about all their differences and enjoy something.

MUSIC continues CHUCK: At long last, the People's Tree reaches the Capitol.

It takes another few days to set it up, with all those lights and all those ornaments.

But then the magic moment finally arrives.

ARCHITECT OF THE CAPITOL: Good evening.

And welcome to the 56th annual Christmas tree lighting ceremony at the United States Capitol.

ANNOUNCER: Five, four, three, two, one.

(Applause) MUSIC: Silent Night SENATOR MICHAEL BENNET: This tree took root in Montrose County on Colorado's Western slope, roughly 82 years ago, which would put it somewhere in the middle of President Franklin Roosevelt's second term.

Then, as now, was a difficult time for our country.

But as the sapling grew year after year enduring droughts and storms, disease, and wildfire, so too did America.

And through it all emerged this beautiful 55-foot Engelmann Spruce.

I hope it will remind us that whatever the challenges our times may bring, like this tree, our country can grow stronger.

MUSIC ends CHUCK: Well, guys, this has just been a tremendous amount of fun for me and I hope it has been for you too.

I just want to wish all of you an incredible, wonderful, fantastic holiday season, and peace, love, and joy to all.

MUSIC: Joy To The World