Great report. I can see that I've barely scratched the surface at Dunbar. I love Mohawk but Dunbar is even more what I like, fine trees, forest, and fast mountain water in close proximity. Not fair to compare the two places, each with unique qualities. I keep thinking that I have to move out to the Connecticut River Valley to be nearer to these woods. Hmm... I wonder what my wife would say if I announced we were moving to the Charlemont Inn for an extended stay? -AJ
[email protected] wrote: > ENTS, > > Today Monica and I braved thunderstorms and endured near 100% humidity > when we returned to Dunbar Brook in Monroe State Forest. First order > of the day was to retrieve my D-Tape. I had stuck it in a crack in a > large bigtooth aspen to provide perspective in the image I took of the > trunk. I then walked away from the tree, leaving my D-Tape behind. > Duh! Well, this time in addition to retrieving the D-Tape, I got a > better measure of it the aspen's height. I am pleased to report that > it is a solid 107.0 feet tall. What are its statistics? Its girth = > 8.0 feet, its height = 107.0 feet, and its average crown spread = 28 > feet. That gives the bigtooth 210 big tree points. Not bad. But > without further comment, I'll get to the five new images of this > extraordinary stream and forest. > > Image#1-PoolAndForest.jpg: Dunbar Brook is noted for its large rocks > and limpid pools. This deep woods spot is located upstream beyond the > Adirondack hut. Many favored Massachusetts stream sites feature an > idyllic spot or two, but often 100 feet beyond the spot, the forest > setting becomes undistinguished. Not so with Dunbar. Beyond the stream > banks giants lurk. The surrounding forest is superlative by every measure. > > Image#2-DunbarTwins.jpg: Here is an example of a couple of those > lurking giants. Dunbar has a number of massive pines, many are > nameless. I am now calling these to beautiful pines the Dunbar Twins. > I also measured two pines with diameters of 42 and 43 inches > respectively that I had previously bypassed. I will eventually get > down to business and measure and map all the big ones in the watershed. > > Image#3-TheGreen2.jpg: Along Dunbar, you are never far from a scene > like the one in image #3. Dunbar may well be the most photogenic > stream in all Massachusetts. I can name some strong competitors, but > none that clearly surpass Dunbar. > > Image#4-OGHemlockAndSpruce1.jpg: There is an old growth hemlock and > red spruce stand near the confluence of Parsonage and Dunbar Brooks. > The stand is awash in regeneration - so much that it is hard to > account for. I think there might have been a blowdown at the site > around 140 years ago and a new forest has grown back on the logs. Tad > Zebryk and I dated trees in the stand back in 1989. There were a lot > in the 130 to 160-year age range. But there are also trees that are > far older. In our old-growth survey, Peter Dunwiddie and I dated one > hemlock to around 400 years. The center was rotten, so we could not > get an exact age. Peter thought it was about 465. > > Image#4-OGHemlockAndSpruce2.jpg: This last image provides another look > at the old growth area. I think the hemlock in the image is between > 150 and 175 years old. I will get more shots from the hemlock-red > spruce stand on my next visit. Oh yes, it was not far from this spot > that one encounters a small, but impressive stand of hardwoods. It is > in those hardwoods that Don Bertolette and I dated a white ash to 230 > years. At the time, its girth was 10.3 feet. We also cored a rather > young looking yellow birch that proved to be 198 years old if my > failing memory serves me correctly. I realized then that I had to > re-calibrate my eye for yellow birch age characteristics. > > The lower Dunbar watershed has rushing streams, giant pines, an old > growth hardwood forest awash in big trees that push the growth limits > for the represented species in Massachusetts, an old growth hemlock > and red spruce forest, moss and fern-covered boulder fields rich in > spring ephemerals, and a wildness ambience that makes one feel that > he/she is in a much vaster forest. Dunbar also has areas that still > show the scars of past use and abuse, but nature is healing the wounds > rapidly. How could such a place exist in populous Massachusetts? > Planning? Luck? Some very foresighted individual or individuals? I'm > not sure, but one thing I do know. We are incredibly lucky to have it. > > Bob > > > > --~--~---------~--~----~------------~-------~--~----~ 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] -~----------~----~----~----~------~----~------~--~---
