Ellis Hive

I received an email from a fellow beekeeper about a hive in a tree that had been cut down in the process of clearing some land, so I jumped at the chance of getting my first swarm/extraction of 2012.  I spoke to Mike Ellis who gave me directions to the location where I also met his father who was running a dozer.  It was a huge tree about 4 feet in diameter at the base.  We had to carve away the outside of the large trunk to start collecting bees and comb.  Little did I know that it was going to be quite a challenge.  We wrapped up just before getting dark.  Mike, who didn't have a suit, got stung a few times, and I was stung 2 or 3 times, plus I got two of my fingers smashed when a block of wood didn't do what I expected.  Below is what the tree looked like when we made the first cuts...unfortunately, it was too dark for photos after this point.  All in all, I got several bees and a small amount of honey comb to enjoy for my pain.