I am a bit late but just finished your latest report and cannot wait for the next one! I agree with Ed put out a book,
On Aug 2, 6:19 pm, "Will Blozan" <[email protected]> wrote: > WNTS/ENTS, > > The image of the massive broccoli-topped sequoia upslope from Barad-Dur was > with me all night. Naturally, that night I dreamed of the climb the day > before and was excited to get into another big tree. Odin, at 21.7 feet > diameter was not a super giant but was among the largest in Whitaker Forest. > Bob later looked up the cubage and it was over 28,000 ft3 in trunks alone. > Steve felt it would be around 32,000 cubes with limbs and branches included. > It stands 281.2 feet tall. > > Close-up of the top of Odin from Barad-Dur > > Base of Odin > > The short drive to Odin put us at the tree in the relative cool of the > morning. The mosquitoes were awake and hungry and kept us on our toes while > setting up the climbing lines. The area surrounding this giant tree was > cleared of all brush so the view of the lower trunk was open and imposing. > The huge fire cave and wide trunk flare was enhanced by the slope of the > ground. The rising sun began to spill light down the trunk and the cinnamon > orange bark was radiant against the clear blue cloudless sky. The Sierra > color palette was mixed and ready to paint the day. I was able to get a > decent panoramic stitch of nearly the entire tree. > > Stitch of Odin. Note Marie and Steve at base > > Steve and Marie went up first and set another rope for Bob and me to work > off of. The slight lean of this giant was noticeable when trying to drop a > rope straight down one side only to have it come down on the other. Such > differences are not noticed from the ground and are visually masked by the > massive trunk. > > Steve ascending in front of the fire cave > > Steve working his way up Odin. Here he is about 100 feet up. > > The ascent into Odin was humbling. Massive, complex and ancient can't > adequately describe this tree. The trunk had impressive lack of taper and > carried the thick, furrowed bark far up the main trunk. I noted excavated > nesting holes in the thick bark likely inhabited now and then by owls and > squirrels. A large cavity with nesting material in it was speculated to be > an abandoned goshawk nest. Only trees of this size and age will have such > biological significance to offer other forest inhabitants. Viva the > old-growth! > > Goshawk nest cavity in Odin > > As I approached the "broccoli zone" I met an imposing assemblage of dead > trunks, living trunks and strips of dead bark from old lightening strikes. > Steve commented that this species likely has the physical potential to be > the tallest species of tree on earth- they just don't get the chance to > achieve their maximum due to lightening. Maybe the second-growth forests > will set the records in the future. > > Mapping the "Broccoli Zone" at ~240 feet up > > Steve began to map a large dead piece of trunk as I went to the top for a > view. The clear air offered a breathtaking vista over the varied forests of > Whitaker, the granitic outcrops and the transition to chaparral and the vast > Central Valley in the distance. The border with Kings Canyon National Park > was clearly defined by the line of ancient sequoia contrasting with the > second-growth and scattered giants of Whitaker. Odin was but a few hundred > feet from the National Park and fortunately spared from the saw. The immense > fire cave and huge trunk may have convinced the loggers to move elsewhere. > > Steve mapping the dead chunk in the top of Odin. You can just see his arm. > Look back at the photo of the top taken from Barad-Dur. You can hardly even > see this huge piece of deadwood! > > View over Whitaker Forest and out to chaparral and Central Valley > > Tippy-top of Odin > > View into Kings Canyon National Park and old-growth sequoia. Note Tyrolean > traverse to next tree > > I saw the tops of the tall trees below which were climbed the day before. > The rounded domes allude to the difficulty in obtaining accurate height > measurements from below. These western tree hunters have more of a challenge > than those of us out east- especially on flat ground. The extreme height and > wide crown spread mandates that you get far from the tree to even begin to > see the top. The steep slopes help but the dense forests do not. Still, an > elevation change of 150-200 feet to find a sighting for each tree will wear > you down quickly. > > "Two Towers" below Odin; Barad-Dur on right, Orthanc on left > > Look familiar? Sherrill Tree Catalog cover shot of the same trees (the white > specks in the tops are people) > > Back to the purpose of the climb. We were measuring and mapping dead > portions of the tree not just for a 3-D model but for a biomass calculation. > Since I will be discussing mapping in the next post I think now is a good > time to elaborate on the process, at least the terminology for now. In the > mapping process distinctions are made as to the woody parts composing a > tree. For example, limbs and branches are not the same. A branch is a part > of the tree that supports the leaves. Branches originate on one of two > structures; a trunk or a limb. Likewise, a limb can originate on two > structures; a trunk or another limb. Branches typically end in foliage; > limbs are segments of a larger system that supports the branches. A limb > often bifurcates (splits) into a structure that distributes the foliage > where needed. > > Bob's feet are on a trunk, his back on a limb segment, and branches are > coming off the reiterated trunk below > > As for trunks, these can be almost anywhere on the tree. Their function is > to support the limbs and branches, and can be the main "conventional" trunk > or originate on limb segments. These are called reiterations and as > secondary trunks support a smaller sub-crown of more branches and associated > limb segments. When a branch sports a reiteration (new trunk) the section > from the origination trunk or limb and the base of the reiterated trunk > becomes a limb segment. This is not just a nomenclature distinction but a > physiological one as well. The wood and connective tissues change to reflect > the formation of a sap-hungry vigorous new trunk. > > Furthermore, like limbs, trunks can bifurcate into more than one ascending > top or leader. These splits are called bifurcations and when numerous can > form virtual forests in the tops of these ancient trees. > > Marie on one of the "new" bifurcated living tops of Odin; old dead main > trunk to left > > One more feature I will be mentioning is epicormic sprouts. Epicormic > (literally "on the bark") sprouts are a mechanism in many trees to re-grow > new foliage to replace lost limbs and branches. Sequoia is very adept at > this feature and after centuries of crown damaging events the resulting > canopy can be very complex. In fact, some of the very old sequoias have > virtually no original branches; their crown is almost entirely composed of > much younger sprouts. These sprouts are often reminiscent of an octopus > draped over the old stub- with tentacles of re-growth slithering around > foraging for light. As will be seen in the post on the climb of the tallest > known sequoia, the relic bases of the original limbs often persist after > their death by fire or storm. The skeleton remains of the original tree yet > it is now composed of young growth. I imagine that the main trunks of the > ancient trees can be 5-10 times older than their crowns. They apparently > scoff at crown loss. > > Epicormic sprouts in Odin. Note dead original branch stubs > > We had a splendid day mapping Odin. I felt as if in a living museum with the > relics of history on display. You really could see the recorded history in > this tree- the breaks, strikes, and rebounding efforts to live. But I never > felt it was a museum of tragic struggle and difficulty. The tree never dies. > The wounds become life for other creatures and the dead wood "feeds" the > forest below. These trees are life givers and are not defeated. They embody > time and speak of the past with clarity. > > After the climb of Odin I had some time left to explore near camp. I asked > Bob and Steve how tall second-growth sequoia could get. Basically, it sounds > like no one had ever bothered to really find out. I had a mission! With > Whitaker being the oldest second-growth I figured the forests around the > camp would be a good place to start looking. I went armed with my Nikon and > Bob's Impulse laser. The Impulse was great for scouting and the Nikon for > penetrating the dense canopy. Of course, I was measuring the other species > as well and they may represent some of the tallest second-growth specimens > known. > > 216.7 foot sequoia at camp > > It became quickly evident that 200 feet was nothing for a 140 year old > sequoia. The first sequoia I completely measured was a gorgeous tree right > in camp that was 216.7 feet (66.0 m) tall and 91" (2.31 m) diameter. I > roughed out several others of similar height as I walked down the road to a > flat area with seepages. A lone ponderosa pine roughed out near 160' on a > slope above a steep ravine. At the base of the ravine grew a dense stand of > sequoia and fir. One caught my eye and after much diligence to find a > sighting spot in view of the top and the base I shot this one to 233.6 feet > (71.2 m) tall and 72.9" (1.85 m) diameter. The top, as with all these young > spunky sequoias, was spire-topped and vigorous. It was not even close to > being done with height growth. > > 233.6 foot sequoia pushed up by the dense surrounding forest > > Upslope from this new record sequoia was a mixed conifer grove dominated by > fir and sugar pine. The sugar pine reminded me of eastern white pine- only > multiply it by 2.5. The cones were huge! I selected one fine tree to measure > and it came out at 188.6 feet (57.5 m) tall on a young trunk 58" (1.47 m) > diameter. As I was scouting a measuring spot for the pine I spotted and > measured a perfect California white fir; 182.7' (55.7 m) on a slender trunk > only 38.3" (97.3 cm) diameter. > > 188.6 foot sugar pine > > 182.7 foot California white fir > > My thanks to Bob Van Pelt for his review of this installment. Next up- the > three day mapping project of Bruno- the ... > > read more » > > image001.jpg > 52KViewDownload > > image002.jpg > 79KViewDownload > > image003.jpg > 101KViewDownload > > image004.jpg > 49KViewDownload > > image005.jpg > 98KViewDownload > > image006.jpg > 63KViewDownload > > image007.jpg > 70KViewDownload > > image008.jpg > 71KViewDownload > > image009.jpg > 47KViewDownload > > image010.jpg > 65KViewDownload > > image011.jpg > 56KViewDownload > > image012.jpg > 112KViewDownload > > image013.gif > 60KViewDownload > > image014.jpg > 88KViewDownload > > image015.jpg > 69KViewDownload > > image016.jpg > 80KViewDownload > > image017.jpg > 73KViewDownload > > image018.jpg > 87KViewDownload > > image019.jpg > 99KViewDownload > > image020.jpg > 80KViewDownload --~--~---------~--~----~------------~-------~--~----~ Eastern Native Tree Society http://www.nativetreesociety.org Send email to [email protected] Visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/entstrees?hl=en To unsubscribe send email to [email protected] -~----------~----~----~----~------~----~------~--~---
