From Fall into Winter on the Farm Life Nature Trail

I was thrilled when Moore County Schools featured this article

about our nature trail this fall. In the blog post that follows, I'll 

take you through the tumultuous journey that is the "tale of the

trail" in 2020. It's quite a ride!

In April of 2020 straight line winds tore through the
trail and nearby Whispering Pines, pulling down power
lines, blocking rural roads, and wreaking havoc on
many sturdy trees.  Because of Covid-19, schools were
already virtual, so I began clean-up right away.
 

The first week of August, winds associated with 
Hurricane Isaias ripped up a massive white oak tree
right beside Andy Paris's boardwalk. It came up by 
the roots, crushed a chain-link fence, and sprawled 
across the ball field. It was a mess!

I cut away the sections I could get to and a crew from 
the county removed the portion on the ball field. I had
them leave the huge sections of trunk beside the trail
for a learning tool for trail walkers.

The rotten core shows why this tree was susceptible
to the high winds. Its loss, though tragic, offers
educational opportunities.

As you pass through this section, contemplate the
story this aged tree could tell, and how even in death
it will play a part in the life of the trail.

During the summer, my grandchildren enjoyed 
bouncing on this tree. But by fall, it had rotted to the
point that much of it had to be removed.

I tagged this and other trees for removal, but left
enough that children could visualize what had been
there and ponder how nature can change quickly
and dramatically.

Though fun to climb on, these trees had to be at
least "pruned" a little or no teacher would take the
risks of having students on the trail.

The sections I removed were carefully planned. Every
teacher knows how to make lemonade out of lemons.
We added several nice "benches" and "balance beams"
while making the trail passable again.

I thought about leaving this one, because even a
kindergartener could easily vault it, but I bit the bullet
and made the trail "user-friendly." Below are a few
more areas marked for clearing.

In the midst of all this clean-up, I began brainstorming
how to utilize what seemed like a disaster into a rebirth
of sorts.

With several episodes of heavy rain in summer and
fall, I put a few old boards in this chronically wet
section of the trail between the bridge and Big Rock.

Next on the agenda would be some improvements on

our bridge. I added some slats between the planks to 

make it a little less likely to trip while crossing. I

had previously anchored the bridge, which had been

floated downstream several feet a few years ago.

Now, the bridge needed leveling.  This wasn't meant to

to be an obstacle course. Back to the drawing board!

I had plenty of tools and raw materials that helped me
carry out my plan.  Jennifer Kirby's little red wagon
(circa early 1980's) came in handy.

I was having great difficulty raising the bridge to 
place stumps under it. But on one of my trips to the
car for materials, I had an AHA! (former students
know what I'm referring to) I used my CAR JACK
with a sturdy board under it to raise the bridge. Then
I positioned the stumps, attached the stumps to the
bridge in the most rudimentary way, and lowered it.

Did I mention I'm a minimalist? I'm also cheap.
I bought NOTHING for any of this work.

Compare this picture to the one earlier. I'm NOT
adding railings, so don't ask!

Back to the other work. The trail gradually began

to seem like a trail again!

The section on the ground is the same section my
grandkids had bounced on a few months earlier.
But this tree was rotting fast! It has now been
christened The Diving Board!

The cut sections do make nice benches. The fungi
which cover them are a marvel!

Things quieted down a little for a while.

And THEN, Old Man Poplar decided he had shared

the headlines for too long. Uh oh!

On two different occasions, lengthy sections of our
dying, iconic poplar tree fell. I always said I didn't want
to be under it when that happened. There was inner rot,
as with the white oak tree that had fallen earlier.

Cutting and moving these sections of trunk to the
side was much easier than clearing the healthy trees
that fell during the spring and summer.

Along with the "reconfiguration" of the trees of the
trail, heavy flooding from several major rains had
an impact. Tons of sand and pebbles from the stream
have been washed up out of the creek bed, telling
their own story of rushing torrents of water gone amok.

After the last big flood, my makeshift boardwalk, 
which I never anchored (and don't plan to), was washed 
into the woods. But with the little red wagon, it wasn't
hard to set things right again. Maybe we're through
with floods for this season.

I took this picture after one of the floods. The water 
had obviously been OVER the bridge, the preceding
night. I had to make minor repairs to level it again.

Fall wasn't all disasters. I enjoyed every minute I

spent there, reminding myself that the land where

our trail is had been there since before these lands

were ever settled, and change has been a constant,

not a rarity. I've observed constant change since

first walking these woods in 1975. Students who

built the first "formal" trail in 1985-86, can readily 

see even more changes. And I'm eager to see how

many more changes are in store while I can still

traverse the winding paths (another 33 years will

satisfy me).  

With that in mind, enjoy some of our fall colors.

This cinnamon fern took on a beautiful hue in fall.

Hard to top the coloration of sugar maples.

This is sourwood. Old-time students will remember
Sourwood Sally in the Graveyard of the Pines. Sadly,
those are not part of our current trail, since they would
be off school property, but I call every sourwood tree
Sourwood Sally. Even as late as November, I enjoyed
a sourwood snack.

More sugar maple.

Yep, sugar maple.

Blackgum, with a little of the dreaded kudzu off 
to the left.

Enough about damage, etc. The trail is in great

shape and ready for winter walks. In fact, winter

hikes are very rewarding. You can see forever

with most leaves off the trees. Let me share a

few of our trail highlights and improvements.

I've added a board to our entrance sign for this very
special year. 35 years and counting!

Our blackgum may very well be the oldest tree on 
trail now that its neighbor, the white oak, has fallen.
Or perhaps it's Old Man Poplar. Who knows?

This is the curve of the blackgum as you enter the
trail beside the ball field.

It's not the largest tree, but it has quite a history.

It wasn't the coronavirus that got our white oak,
but 2020 was definitely more than it could handle.
R.I.P.

Here's a new and more informative sign you're 
sure to see.

Any doubt about this tree's name?

Jack, Will, and Tom, named from Richard Chase's
Jack Tales, are a 3-in-1 poplar tree that is a strong
contender for the "star" of the trail.

Don't visit the trail without checking out this
amazing view. Bring your camera, too.

It never ceases to amaze me!

When students first saw this tree they instantly
dubbed it the "Alligator Tree." I couldn't argue with
their logic.

Don't dare to get too close, now!

One tree that survived my ruthless "pruning" is
this fallen white oak, which is still alive (as of this
writing). It is a low bridge, but both children and
adults can easily go under. If you insist you can't,
there's a detour just to the right.
"Low Bridge" makes me think of the lyrics to the
old folk song "Erie Canal": "Low bridge, everybody
down . . ."

You can do it, I know you can!

With so many of the fallen trees near each other,
there was quite of pile of logs criss-crossing each
other. This is at a cut-through of the trail.

Logjams got their name when sawmills felled giant
trees in the American northwest and floated them
down the river. Lumberjacks had to labor to unjam
them when the river got clogged. Also, Six Flags
Over Georgia had a favorite ride called the Log
Jamboree when it opened in the late sixties.

There's a hollow at the base of this "Wishing Well"
tree where you must drop a sweetgum "stickerball"
if your wish is going to come true. Don't miss it!

As the Diving Board continues to rot, I'll keep it
trimmed to keep it safe. But study those fungi.

Sorry it's not easier to access our dear friend Big
Rock. But there are times you can get to it, as many
a student can testify. Sometimes the stream actually
runs dry.

But not this year!

No, I haven't been cut off at the knees. But I set
up my tripod and realized that either me or the 
bridge would have to give in. I caved.

We have lots of aging poplars. This young one
should be around for many years.

There are NO longleaf pines on our trail (though 
there are some elsewhere on the campus). But 
there are a few loblollies. I don't expect to see their
babies sprouting. Hardwoods are taking over this
forest, as is nature's way.

Let's visit Old Man Poplar once again.

This picture illustrates how Old Man Poplar is
leaning heavily on the neighboring sweetgum tree.

Bumpy Old Man Poplar should still be around
for a few more seasons. But who knows?

I remember when this tree was upright and have 
seen it lean more and more each year. And that
good neighbor sweetgum is now leaning itself!
Keep following this emerging story!

What a winter view from the school parking lot!

I was invited to give an invitation-only tour to

six masked children of school staff. They were

fantastic, full of wonder, insight, and thoughtful

queries. One said that he and his mother had come

to the trail to clear away briars and pick up limbs.

That meant so much to me. This trail will be in

good hands in the years ahead. Maybe it will be you

or your children who carry on.

This girl is in awe of the massive root ball of this tree.

These boys want to be "Keepers of the Trail," both
now and in the future.

We had to break from social distancing just long
enough for the obligatory boost to Old Man Poplar.
I think the old man went up several millimeters.

I'm delighted to say that interest in the Sandhills
Farm Life Nature Trail remains high 35 years after
it was dedicated. I've had more time to work on it
myself since I retired. And Mrs. Kim Hilliard,
SFL music teacher, has taken it upon herself to 
introduce the trail to students. She has promised
that when it's safe, we will once again have nature
walks on Heritage Day.
Yes, a new generation is falling in love with their
nature trail. Anytime is a good time to get acquainted
or re-acquainted with your trail. Please visit only
when school is not in session; late afternoons or
weekends, and holidays. And if you get in touch,
I'll be happy to hear of your experience.
Happy Trails!