Tag Archives: trees

List

Top 10 Non-Fiction Books on Trees and Forests

August 10, 2022 Raven About The Parks 2 Comments

When we compiled our last Top 10 list on National Forest non-fiction books in honor of our new publication, we realized there were many great books on forests that did not fit that category. So we created this list of the best books we have read about specific tree species and forests. Some of the selections are history, some biology, some biography, and some ecology (or a mix of all four). Click here to see all of our Top 10 lists, including quite a few other book lists.

10. Beyond the Aspen Grove (1970) by Ann Zwinger

Quaking aspen trees are special, not just because they grow huge clonal stands or turn beautiful colors in the autumn

9. Oak: The Frame of Civilization (2005) by William Bryant Logan

From Eurasia to North America, the many species of oak trees have been essential to humankind

8. The Bristlecone Book: A Natural History of the World’s Oldest Trees (2007) by Ronald M. Lanner

An in-depth look at the oldest single-stem trees on the planet—Great Basin bristlecone pines like those found in Inyo National Forest

7. The Tree: A Natural History of What Trees Are, How They Live, and Why They Matter (2005) by Colin Tudge

A great introduction to dendrology full of fun facts and figures

6. Tales from the Underground: A Natural History Of Subterranean Life (2001) by David W. Wolfe

The visible parts of forests would never grow without the activity of trillions of microorganisms in the soil

5. American Canopy: Trees, Forests, and the Making of a Nation (2012) by Eric Rutkow

The history of forests in the U.S., including the huge impact of chestnut blight and Dutch elm disease

4. The Hidden Life of Trees: What They Feel, How They Communicate (2016) by Peter Wohlleben

Unable to move, trees use pheromones and other means for intraspecific and interspecific communication; the author also published Forest Walking in 2022

3. The Golden Spruce: A True Story of Myth, Madness, and Greed (2005) by John Vaillant

Basically about a mutant Sitka spruce tree that was killed, this well-written story is hard to put down

2. The Wild Trees: A Story of Passion and Daring (2007) by Richard Preston

Mostly set in Redwood National Park, this book focuses on the people who research the tallest trees in the world

…and finally our #1 non-fiction book on trees and forests:

1. A Sand County Almanac (1949) by Aldo Leopold

The greatest ecologist of the twentieth century, Aldo Leopold worked in New Mexico’s Gila National Forest as a young man where the events of the seminal essay “Thinking Like a Mountain” took place

Honorable Mentions

Lives of the Trees: An Uncommon History (2010) by Diane Wells

A beautifully illustrated sampling of information on common trees from around the world

Tree: A Life Story (2004) by David Suzuki and Wayne Grady

The life cycle of a single tree, beautifully narrated and illustrated

What a Plant Knows: A Field Guide to the Senses (2012) by Daniel Chamovitz

An excellent summation of decades of little-known research on plants of all sizes

The Forest Unseen: A Year’s Watch in Nature (2012) by David George Haskell

A detailed look at the activity in a small patch of old-growth forest in Tennessee

Know someone who loves the National Forests? Gift them our travel guidebook Out in the Woods so they can learn more about all 155 National Forests and 155 different species of native trees.

Georgia

Chattahoochee National Forest

July 27, 2022 Raven About The Parks Leave a comment

Chattahoochee National Forest

Georgia

Managed by U.S. Forest Service, Southern Region

1,516,006 acres (750,145 federal/ 765,861 other)

Website: https://www.fs.usda.gov/conf

Overview

In mountainous northern Georgia, Chattahoochee National Forest stretches 200 miles east to west, bordering North Carolina, South Carolina, and Tennessee. In addition to the highest point in Georgia (4,784-foot Brasstown Bald), the National Forest includes the headwaters of the Chattahoochee River and one side of the Chattooga National Wild and Scenic River. West of the North Georgia Mountains, the Ridge and Valley Scenic Byway traverses the disjunct portion of the National Forest encompassing Johns Mountain, Little Sand Mountain, and Taylor Ridge.

Know someone who loves the National Forests? Gift them our travel guidebook Out in the Woods so they can learn more about all 155 National Forests.

Highlights

Ed Jenkins National Recreation Area, Ridge and Valley Scenic Byway, Keown Falls, Russell-Brasstown Scenic Byway, Brasstown Bald, High Shoal Falls Scenic Area, Lake Conasauga Recreation Area, Anna Ruby Falls, Sosebee Cove Scenic Area, Timpson Falls, Popcorn Overlook, Track Rock Gap Petroglyph Site, DeSoto Falls Scenic Area, Angel Falls, Raven Cliff Trail, Helton Creek Falls Trail, Duncan Ridge National Recreation Trail, Appalachian National Scenic Trail

Must-Do Activity

One of the National Forest’s most popular spots, 150-foot-tall Anna Ruby Falls is accessed by a short trail northeast of Helen, Georgia on State Route 356. Large tulip-poplar and yellow buckeye trees grow in 175-acre Sosebee Cove Scenic Area, even though it is a second growth forest. We will have a separate blog post on Ed Jenkins National Recreation Area, which surrounds Springer Mountain, the southern terminus of the 2,185-mile-long Appalachian National Scenic Trail.

Best Trail

Chattahoochee National Forest started when the Forest Service purchased 31,000 acres from the Gennett family in 1911 for $7 per acre. Visitors can still see their namesake Gennett Poplar (a tulip-poplar tree more than five feet in diameter) by hiking 1.8 miles out-and-back with two stream crossings on the Bear Creek Trail. The rows of holes in the old tree’s trunk were made by yellow-bellied sapsuckers, a type of woodpecker. The trail continues and connects with the Pinhoti Trail to form a 6.6 to 9-mile long loop.

Watchable Wildlife

In addition to the plentiful white-tailed deer, other large mammals found in Chattahoochee National Forest include black bears, coyotes, bobcats, red foxes, squirrels, beavers, and river otters. There are a wide variety of songbirds, waterfowl, and raptors, as well as wild turkeys. One insect species of note is the blue ghost firefly, which produces a distinctive blue phosphorescence. Panther Creek is among the approximately 2,000 miles of rivers and streams popular for fishing.

Instagram-worthy Photo

There is a small waterfall at Barnes Creek Picnic Area, which was built by the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) in the 1930s.

Peak Season

Summer

Fees

None

Road Conditions

Most of the major routes in Chattahoochee National Forest are paved. Forest Service Road 42 that accesses the Springer Mountain Trailhead is unpaved and full of potholes, but it is doable in a passenger vehicle (as are the dirt roads to Hickey Gap Campground and Bear Creek Trail).

Camping

The riverside Hickey Gap Campground is so nice that it made it into our list of the Top 10 Campgrounds in National Forests; the best part is: it is free. We once overnighted at the Locust Stake ORV Area Trailhead north of Atlanta, which was fine until someone decided to ride their motocross bike at 2 a.m.

Wilderness Areas

Big Frog Wilderness (also in Cherokee National Forest)

Blood Mountain Wilderness

Brasstown Wilderness

Cohutta Wilderness (also in Cherokee National Forest)

Ellicott Rock Wilderness (also in Nantahala and Sumter National Forests)

Mark Trail Wilderness

Raven Cliffs Wilderness

Rich Mountain Wilderness

Southern Nantahala Wilderness (also in Nantahala National Forest)

Tray Mountain Wilderness

Martin Luther King, Jr. National Historical Park (Georgia)

Ed Jenkins National Recreation Area (Georgia)

Nearest National Park

Great Smoky Mountains

Hickey Gap Campground is on Mill Creek trout stream

Conifer Tree Species

eastern hemlock, loblolly pine, shortleaf pine, Table Mountain pine, pitch pine

Flowering Tree Species

flowering dogwood, mountain laurel, pawpaw, American beech, white basswood, red maple, mountain maple, moosewood maple, tulip-poplar, sweet buckeye, yellowwood, yellow birch, cucumber magnolia, black cherry, sourwood, pale hickory, mockernut hickory, rock chestnut oak, scarlet oak, black oak, Catawba rhododendron, yellow birch, sweet bay magnolia, mountain-ash, ninebark

Explore More – How many acres are within the Cohutta Wilderness, the largest designated Wilderness east of the Mississippi River?

Learn more about Chattahoochee and the 154 other National Forests in our new guidebook Out in the Woods

Update

Thank you for attending our presentation!

June 22, 2022 Raven About The Parks 2 Comments

Thank you to everyone who attended our presentation last night at the library! If you couldn’t make it, please check out the short video we made to explain our quest to hike in all 155 National Forests (and learn more in our newspaper articles).

Please find below a gallery of the Powerpoint slides that ran before the presentation. And if you haven’t already, please check out our new guidebook to the National Forests.

We look forward to sharing more about National Forests in the future on this website.

Arizona, New Mexico

Apache National Forest

February 9, 2022 Raven About The Parks 1 Comment

Apache National Forest

Arizona, New Mexico

Managed by U.S. Forest Service, Southwestern Region

1,876,891 acres (1,813,601 federal/ 63,290 other)

Website: https://www.fs.usda.gov/main/asnf/home

Overview

Growing up in Arizona, we only ever heard this referred to as Apache-Sitgreaves National Forest since it was merged in 1974. The more eastern Apache National Forest section represents about 69% of the combined forests total acreage and partly spills into New Mexico. On its west side it borders the Fort Apache and the San Carlos Indian Reservations, only containing one side of Mt. Baldy (which is famous for its ski resort). The National Forest contains the eastern portions of the White Mountains and Mogollon Rim, a forested escarpment that cuts 200 miles across much of the state of Arizona.

Highlights

Coronado Trail Scenic Byway, Mt. Baldy, Butler Canyon, Escudilla National Recreation Trail, Hannagan Meadow, Chitty Canyon, Big Tree Trail, Eagle National Recreation Trail

Must-Do Activity

The Coronado Trail Scenic Byway (Highway 191) is a narrow, winding paved road that runs 120 miles north-south through Apache National Forest and is the best way to explore. Near the northern end of the highway, a steep unpaved road leads east up to the trailhead for Escudilla National Recreation Trail. A fire burned the 10,912-foot mountain that the trail summits and on our hike in May 2020 we counted 75 downed trees that we had to step over, both on the three miles in and the three miles out. To the east, the remote Blue Range Primitive Area was created in 1933, but has yet to receive Wilderness designation. About 18 miles south of Alpine make a stop at the historic Hannagan Meadow lodge, the only place to get gas along the route (or air if like us you have to put on your spare tire). The highway continues south dropping down from the Mogollon Rim into a more desert-like environment.

Best Trail

A short, but worthwhile hike descends west from Sardine Saddle near the southern end of the Coronado Trail Scenic Byway. At the end of the 0.4-mile trail is the largest Arizona cypress tree growing in the United States (97 feet tall with a 181-inch trunk circumference). There are also some big alligator juniper trees growing near the bottom of the canyon, and if you see their bark you will realize why they got their name.

Watchable Wildlife

We were excited to find horned lizards (a.k.a. frogs or toads) along the Escudilla National Recreation Trail. The cliffs of the Mogollon Rim provide good thermal updrafts so are a good place to looks for turkey vultures and a variety of raptors. The ranges of mule deer and Coues whitetail deer overlap in this part of the country. We saw turkeys on the road back to Rose Spring Trail (Forest Road 54).

Instagram-worthy Photo

There are great views from atop the Mogollon Rim at Blue Point Overlook on the Coronado Trail Scenic Byway.

Peak Season

Spring and fall

Fees

None

Road Conditions

Highway 191 is paved, but is a slow drive due to its many curves. Many of the side roads are very rough and a high-clearance vehicle is recommended. We got a flat tire on the rocky Forest Road 54.

Camping

There are several developed campgrounds, including one at Luna Lake and several along the East Fork of the Black River. Dispersed camping options abound, including on the road to Escudilla National Recreation Trail and we found a nice campsite near the entrance to Forest Road 54.

Wilderness Areas

Bear Wallow Wilderness

Escudilla Wilderness

Mount Baldy Wilderness

[Blue Range Primitive Area]

Related Sites

Coronado National Memorial (Arizona)

Chiricahua National Monument (Arizona)

Fort Bowie National Historic Site (Arizona)

Nearest National Park

Petrified Forest (Arizona)

Scott and his mother on Escudilla National Recreation Trail

Conifer Tree Species

Arizona cypress, alligator juniper, pinyon pine, ponderosa pine, Chihuahua pine, Douglas-fir, white fir, Engelmann spruce

Flowering Tree Species

quaking aspen, Emory oak, Arizona white oak, turbinella oak, New Mexico locust, Rocky Mountain maple, pointleaf manzanita

Explore More – The Apache arrived in this area from the north in the 1300s and their name comes from a Zuni word translated as what?

We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites.

Texas

Angelina National Forest

February 3, 2022 Raven About The Parks Leave a comment

Angelina National Forest

Texas

Managed by U.S. Forest Service, Southern Region

402,231 acres (153,180 federal/ 249,051 other)

Website: https://www.fs.usda.gov/main/texas/home

Overview

Angelina National Forest lies in the piney woods region of eastern Texas dominated by longleaf, loblolly, and shortleaf pine trees. In 1935, land acquisition began to create Angelina and the three other nearby National Forests it is co-managed with (Davy Crockett, Sabine, and Sam Houston). Sam Rayburn Reservoir bisects Angelina National Forest into a north and south section in the flooded Neches River Basin.

Highlights

Sam Rayburn Reservoir, Boykin Springs Recreation Area, Caney Creek Recreation Area, Black Branch Barrens, Bouton Lake, Aldridge Sawmill Historic Site, Sawmill Trail

Must-Do Activity

Other than Sam Rayburn Reservoir, the most developed portion of the National Forest is Boykin Springs Recreation Area. The lake, campground, and Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) structures are at the end of 2.5-mile long Forest Road 313 off Highway 63. About twenty minutes away Bouton Lake (12 acres) is located seven miles down Forest Road 303 and offers primitive camping, fishing, and an overgrown hiking trail amidst bottomland hardwoods and baldcypress trees (please respect the private property on the west side).

Best Trail

The 5.5-mile out-and-back Sawmill Trail connects Boykin Springs Recreation Area to the Aldridge Sawmill Historic Site. The trail goes through a burn and can be hard to follow in places due to multiple user trails, so be sure to follow the yellow-painted metal markers on trees. The sawmill has been heavily sprayed with graffiti, but if you aim your camera up to the second story it does not look as bad. The trail that used to connect to the sawmill from Bouton Lake has been closed since it crossed private property.

Watchable Wildlife

At Boykin Springs Recreation Area we spotted a pileated woodpecker, cardinal, robins, and crows. The endangered red-cockaded woodpecker can be found in the longleaf pine forests. On the Sawmill Trail we saw a copperhead snake near the creek and turtles in the pond at the end. Hunters seek white-tailed deer, wild turkey, American woodcock, and bobwhite quail in the forest, which also provides wintering habitat for bald eagles.

Instagram-worthy Photo

A cool rock spillway originally built by the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) in 1938 drains from the nine-acre lake at Boykin Springs Recreation Area. It was reconstructed to its original appearance in the years after Hurricane Rita hit in 2005.

Peak Season

Spring and fall

Fees

None

Road Conditions

Forest Road 303 to Bouton Lake is a very good dirt road, but the west side of the lake is privately owned and a one-lane road leads to a gate, so unless you want to drive backwards for a ways just park as soon as you get to the camping area.

Camping

There are developed campgrounds at Boykin Springs and Caney Creek Recreation Areas, plus an undeveloped (and free) area to camp at Bouton Lake.

Wilderness Areas

Turkey Hill Wilderness

Upland Island Wilderness

Related Sites

Big Thicket National Preserve (Texas)

Davy Crockett National Forest (Texas)

Sabine National Forest (Texas)

Nearest National Park

Hot Springs (Arkansas)

Conifer Tree Species

baldcypress, longleaf pine, shortleaf pine, loblolly pine

Flowering Tree Species

laurel oak, blackjack oak, post oak, overcup oak, swamp chestnut oak, cherrybark oak, water oak, black hickory, water hickory, red maple, American beech, American holly, yaupon holly, southern magnolia, sweetbay magnolia, swamp red bay, water tupelo, water elm, winged elm, Carolina ash, green ash, wax myrtle

Explore More – Other than looking cool, what function do the knees serve that protrude from the baldcypress root system?

We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites.

Chattahoochee National Forest

Apache National Forest

Angelina National Forest

Start your U.S. National Parks, National Forests, and National Monuments adventure here!