In the latest Long Read on the Outside Podcast, we read Nick Davidson’s investigative story about an investigation to bust tree poachers in the Pacific Northwest.
Published October 29, 2026 03:43AM
Deep in the woods of the Pacific Northwest, criminals scour the forest for rare and valuable trees. Wood from a single bigleaf maple can fetch thousands of dollars on the black market, before its treated and used to produce rare violins. In 2018, the federal government investigated allegations of bigleaf maple poaching in Olympic National Forest after timber thieves accidentally started a wildfire. Using DNA from a felled tree, they traced wood back to the men who they believe did the crime. In our latest Long Read on the Outside Podcast, we read Nick Davidson’s investigative feature on the crime and the aftermath.
