June 19, 2013

Politics

By the numbers: The People's Tree arrives at the Capitol

BY: JENNY ROGERS NOVEMBER 26, 2012 | 3:16 PM
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A modest crowd gathered on the west lawn of the Capitol Monday morning to receive the 2012 U.S. Capitol Christmas tree, a 73-foot Engelmann Spruce from White River National Forest in Colorado. The forest's wildlife biologist Natasha Goedert was on the scene after making the trek with the tree to share some information on the spruce. This year's tree, by the numbers:

10: Number of trees in the White River National Forest that made it to final judging before one was selected

74: Age of the tree, in years

210: Height of the crane, in feet, that it took to remove the tree from the forest

15: Number of people who packed the tree

2: Number of days it took to wrap the tree

15: How many people who traveled with the tree

80: Length of the trailer used to transport the tree, in feet

5,500: Miles traveled by the tree

20: Number of days it took to get from northwest Colorado to Washington

1: Number of drivers of the tree truck. Former Sen. Ben Nighthorse Campbell manned the wheel for the entire duration of the road trip.

0: Number of days of rest taken by the fleet

1: Number of snow passes endured in Colorado

25,000: Number of signatures accumulated on the banner that traveled with the tree through towns across America

0: Number of bad sides on this tree. "All sides were perfect," said Goedert. "There's no corner to stuff the bad side in on the Capitol lawn."

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Jenny Rogers

Staff Reporter - Yeas & Nays
The Washington Examiner

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