Mountain Laurel on the AT (Sec. 7)

Yesterday, the mountain laurel were in full bloom. Just north of Bear Spring, there is an entire patch of mountain laurel and the AT goes right through it. The area has a very different look from the surrounding woods ..... the maintainer name for this section of trail is "The Alpines".  Here are some pictures taken in the The Alpines and a video as well - it was hard to quit taking pictures and they certainly do not do the scenery justice. Since there were so many pictures, a separate blog post seemed warranted. A note on the video - this trip was the first time video was taken (new camera) and the quality is not great .... lesson learned: move the camera very, very, very slowly when taking shots!

 

 

 

 

 

 

Info on Mountain Laurel (Kalmia latifolia)

Note: (from Wikepedia ) Mountain laurel is poisonous to several different animals due to grayanotoxin and arbutin, including horses, goats, cattle, deer, monkeys and humans.

(Photos & video: Merlot)

Fall in the Mountains

Massanutten Mountain - way north of our AT territory 

I'm in the Shenandoah Valley this weekend which required a trip over Afton Mountain and gave me a look north at the mountains where our section of AT runs.  The fall leaf color has started to happen, but not in a big way. Specific trees such as maples are showing the most color, but mostly everything was still pretty green. Note: on the return trip, we went through Swift Run Gap (Rt. 33) and saw a lot more 'yellow' there.

Much cooler weather is moving in this weekend with temps in the Valley tonight around 35 and this means that at the higher elevations, where the AT winds along the mountain ridges, it will be much colder - probably getting below freezing. These colder temps will kill a lot of plants and you will be seeing brown ferns and a lot of other brown and/or 'collapsed' vegetation on the next work trip which is in two weeks.

Storm front coming over the Blue Ridge Mountains, bringing much cooler temps.

Here is a good website where you can get a Fall Foliage report, see a 'dial' that gives a number for fall leaf color in the mountain, piedmont and coast regions and helps you find a Fall Event or Activity:

Fall in Virginia

Here's the latest leaf report from this website:

From the Virginia Department of Forestry

For the week of October 29 - The rain and wind brought down some of the early turners but overall this weekend still might be good for viewing. In the New River Valley, virtually all of the trees have color. In the Shenandoah Valley, fall color is evident on more than 75% of the trees. Many areas of the Piedmont are at peak or have passed peak and their transition should be complete in early November. The Coastal Plain is expected to peak in mid-November. This will be our last report for the season.

I think the mountains are spectacular any season of the year just because I love mountains, but when the leaves turn .... well, that just makes a trip to the mountains even better. Put the work trip for Nov. 17th on your calendar!


(Photo credit - all photos by Merlot 10-6-2012)

Sassafras - It's Not For Root Beer Any More

Sassafras tree leaves (Photo: Merlot)

Sassafras albidum

When you are doing maintaining work, especially when it's something that takes a lot of time and is tiring like swinging weeds, it's the small, unexpected, pleasurable moments that are like stepping stones across a creek, little hops that interrupt the stretches of physical labor and get you through the day.  One of those little moments and one of my favorites, is to catch a whiff of fresh sassafras on the breeze as the swing blade takes out sassafras saplings that are encroaching on the trail corridor.

Sassafras is a member of the laurel family and is aromatic: leaves, twigs and roots. The wood is brittle so larger trees are subject to breakage and indeed, it is fairly easy (if you don't have your loppers with you) to break off a sassafras branch that is hanging over the trail. Sassafras suckers from the roots and where you find one sassafras along the trail, you are likely to find many more. They are easy to swing blade when young and tender so if the trail is maintained regularly, they don't get big enough to cause a problem.

Most people associate the smell of sassafras with root beer and sassafras tea. Ground sassafras leaves also makes a thickening flavoring that is used in Cajun cooking called file (file gumbo). In the 1970's, the use of sassafras in making rootbeer was banned when it was discovered that the substance safrole that naturally occurs in sassafras can cause liver cancer (tumors) in rats.  Sassafras used in tea is considered 'natural' so that is still allowed. Safrole can also be a hallucinogenic in high doses and animals given high doses developed "difficulty walking, signs of nervousness and confusion, and difficulty with body temperature regulation" (from 2nd link) .

I had no idea sassafras was so interesting and such a complex subject. The next time I'm on the trail swinging weeds and catch a whiff of sassafras, I'll have more than root beer to think about.

For a fascinating, educational, and sometimes humorous read on all aspects of sassafras, including instructions for making file: 

Sassafras: Root Beer Rat Killer

Brief, but more specific information on medical issues regarding sassafras:

It's All Natural, But Sassafras Tea Can Cause Liver Cancer

Tree notes:

Sassafras: The Root Beer Tree

Constituents, Medical Actions & Usage:

Sassafras (from Botanical.com)

Note: 'Hat tip' to Karl H. who gave me the idea for this post when he mentioned to me on the last work trip that real sassafras was no longer in root beer due to the safrole/cancer issue (something I did not  know). This caught my interest and got me digging a little deeper into the subject of sassafras.