Saturday morning Nov 19

[Jon Holcombe]

While waiting at Hampton Furnace for the sun to get higher this morning, I saw a diagonal streak of light and a silent explosion in the dark sky. It looked just like fireworks but had to be a meteorite. I guess that is one of the benefits of getting up before sunrise. A duck hunter had already taken position in the pretty glen I intended to shoot so I walked down the branch looking for shots.

 

[bobpbx]

Nice shots.

But, that is beaver damage in 1 and 3. I'm 95% sure.

 

[Jon Holcombe]

I noticed quite a few areas of "slanted" trees along the branch, mostly in the tight, dark areas. Did the beaver gnaw each tree individually, or somehow undercut the roots by flooding?

 

[ecampbell]

I know exactly where you were, we kayak it. Those trees were undercut by the Skit. There are many beaver dams upstream.

 

[bobpbx]

I noticed quite a few areas of "slanted" trees along the branch, mostly in the tight, dark areas. Did the beaver gnaw each tree individually, or somehow undercut the roots by flooding?

Yes, Ed is correct. The flooding from dams undercuts the roots, and in a hard rain, it exacerbates the problem. The first photo is clearly slack water created by dams.

 

[bobpbx]

In the new land purchased by NJCF in Mount Misery, the beavers have also created a lot of flooding, undermining long-standing trees. Many of you may know the pristine stream that comes from a beautiful area upstream of the lake by the conference center. The first 100 yards of that stream are destroyed unless the beaver are removed. The dam is on the Methodist property. The first photo is the stream. The photos after that are what a portion of the stream downstream of that shot looks like now.

 

[Teegate]

This is Bob going to great lengths to check out the beaver damage in his photos.

 

[SuperChooch]

I noticed quite a few areas of "slanted" trees along the branch, mostly in the tight, dark areas. Did the beaver gnaw each tree individually, or somehow undercut the roots by flooding?

Ha! Those same trees caught my eye too!

 

[Jon Holcombe]

At first, I thought they looked like a primitive druid altar built by the Wharton Forest Bog Witch, but now I just see beaver damage.