ENTS,

For me, woodland outings are chosen to serve a multiplicity of purposes. Despite appearances, it isn't only about big trees. To be sure, if a forest site includes an abundance of large and/or tall trees, computing a Rucker Index is a no-brainer. My hypsometer is going to get a workout. But, there are other forest features that I routinely look for. For instance, there is the overall forest composition to observe. Is the site good for particular species such as sugar maple, red oak, white pine, etc.? Not does the site merely exhibit those species, but are there a lot of handsome specimens, preferably spanning a wide age range? Is the site species rich? Are there scenic features that add to the visual impact of the site independent of big tree forms, wildflowers, etc.? Mountain vistas, rushing water, dramatic rock outcroppings can turn an otherwise ordinary forest into an extraordinary one.
Well, the list of forest attributes to consider goes on and from their totality, a loose criteria emerges that I employ to compute a crude aesthetics index and Mount Greylock's Hopper ranks high on all the criteria. I can find plenty of big trees to measure. The scenic setting is unsurpassed in Massachusetts. Species variety is there both in trees, shrubs, and herbs - and there is a reason. Greylock has a layer of calcium-rich rocks sandwiched into its complex, twisted geology. As a result, one can stumble (often literally) upon a patch of spring ephemerals that carpet an area of a quarter of an acre. This was the case for me years ago. A display of Dutchman's breeches was off the charts. It was the closest thing I had seen to displays that characterize some of the rich coves of the Smokies. The streams in Greylock's Hopper have a very steep gradient and as a consequence there are numerous small cataracts to enjoy, all in relative seclusion. There is always a vision of sheer loveliness waiting for the visitor. So to conclude the Saturday Greylock trip, I've attached three more forest images. They are described below.

Image #1: Mike's observation about the impressive red spruce, hemlocks, and hardwoods on Greylock sent me scurrying back to my image catalog. The first image shows some handsome hemlocks representative of what Mike spoke about.

Image #2: Early on the trail, we encountered a bigtooth aspen that had fallen across the trail. The tree may superficially look like an oak, but it isn't. I knew that aspen well. It served to remind me of the past human activity in the lower Hopper by earlier generations of white settlers. The surrounding forest is young. The lower third to half of the Hopper saw intense human use and today's re-growth woodlands are slowly healing past wounds. Besides a component of bigger trees, what is conspicuously missing in the lower Hopper is the thick, protective duff layer that one encounters higher on the slopes, abundant woody debris that help to enrich and stabilize the soils, and the mature patchwork colonies of herbs. Those features are still in an early stage of development.

Image #3: I'm always on the lookout for disease-free American beech, especially mature ones. The beech in the last image is in good shape for now. I'm keeping my fingers crossed. The number of mature beech in our woods with good form like this one continues to dwindle. Fagus grandifolia never reaches the sizes in the Massachusetts woods that I commonly see in Pennsylvania, Ohio, Michigan, etc. I have no explanation. This one is fairly large forest-grown specimen as beech go. There was no point in trying to measure its height through the dense canopy, but it is close to 100 feet, if not slightly over.

Bob

HandsomeHemlocks.jpg 663K View Download

StreamDownedAspen.jpg 589K View Download

CoolBeech.jpg 476K View Download