that sounds pretty cool, but I'm a little confused, isn't Gabes Mtn out of
Cosby?
So did you mean Elkmont and perhaps Meigs Mtn Trail or did you mean Cosby
and Gabes Mtn trail?
-Larry
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From: "ranger dan" <[email protected]>
Sent: Wednesday, January 06, 2010 4:56 PM
To: "ENTSTrees" <[email protected]>
Subject: [ENTS] Gabes Mountain forest
ENTS-
Here are some notes on a really fine, extensive stand of second-growth
tuliptree forest in the Smokies. It's probably the most inspiring
second-growth forest that I've ever seen, with many trees 8'cbh in
splendid groupings, and some as large as 12'cbh. I've been exploring
the Smokies for over 30 years now. What a wonderful thing it is to go
back to these recovering stands and see how much bigger the trees are
now than they were when I first saw them.
If you take the Gabes Mountain Trail from Elkmont, you'll pass through
about 7 miles of nearly-unbroken cathedral tuliptree forest on an easy
trail that traverses gentle slopes and little coves (that's the
Southern Appalachian term for a small valley). This is a band of
fertile, circumneutral soil in an area dominated by more acidic
conditions. Here there is almost no understory to obstruct long views
through the open stands of bright trunks stretching up unbranched to
high crowns. Other stands of second-growth tuliptrees have more
divided and crooked trunks. This one is exceptional. The grand
finale of the forest is an ancient remnant tree above the trail, a
giant about 5'dbh. The Park's old growth map is shaded on the
mountainside above. Can't wait to return to explore it.
Beyond this (past 2 trail junctions) is a stand of virgin forest with
many more ancient trees...but go too far and you'll enter a long
stretch of very depressing dead, ancient hemlock forest, a nearly pure
stand with a scattering of other trees. There are two exceptional
beech trees, though. The larger I measured at 13'3"cbh. Soon this
will be a wreckage of fallen trunks mostly 2-3 ft thick, a few around
4 ft. The Park Service will be hard-pressed to clear the many miles
of disaster-stricken trail. I expect that some like this, being
lightly used, may even be permanently closed. For now, the hemlocks
still stand, their limbs starting to fall. (Be warned...from here to
the trailhead at The Sinks there are 13 difficult stream fords!) Go
now if you want to see the hemlocks still standing.
Dan Miles
