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FiresideChats
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PostFri May 22, 2020 9:27 am 
Ecology in the Pasayten I'm plotting some loopy excursions in the central and eastern Pasayten and I know massive amounts of forests burned in the Diamond Creek fire I'm 2017. I've been up Robinson Creek once, to Ferguson Lake, but further east has been on my list for a long while. I'd like to know more about the basic Ecology of the Pasayten and what it will be like in the near middle and distant term. Then I'd like to keep this in mind as I hike this area over the rest of my lifetime. I know we'll be passing through large snag fields this year. Anyone have books or articles to recommend? Or thoughts and observations on the subject? Most of the burned tree snags I see in trip reports are pretty small. Is is there a natural fire regime as there is in the boreal forests to the north? If so, what is the average interval? Does it vary by latitude and predominate tree species? Will we have much larger open areas for a long time or will the forest grow back quickly? Why it why not? I have found a few things online: I enjoyed this overview of the shift from intensive grazing back to wilderness in the 90s. https://botanicgardens.uw.edu/wp-content/uploads/sites/7/2019/03/Ohlson-Recreation-Pasayten-Wilderness-2019WBS.pdf I'm reading this text too, a forester's perspective from 50 years ago. https://talltimbers-org.exactdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/09/33-Fahnestock1974_op.pdf

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treeswarper
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PostSat May 23, 2020 7:37 am 
FiresideChats wrote:
Most of the burned tree snags I see in trip reports are pretty small. Is is there a natural fire regime as there is in the boreal forests to the north? If so, what is the average interval? Does it vary by latitude and predominate tree species?
You might want to read up on the tree that gets no respect--Lodgepole Pine or Pinus contorta. It is short lived and depends on fire, although I've seen cones open in hot sun, for reproduction. It grows for about 80 years, gets to about 8 inches in diameter, then becomes attractive to bark beetles and tends to burn up. The cones then open up from the heat and the area is reforested and the cycle starts again.

What's especially fun about sock puppets is that you can make each one unique and individual, so that they each have special characters. And they don't have to be human––animals and aliens are great possibilities
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Brushbuffalo
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PostSun May 24, 2020 7:48 am 
Something else to keep in mind in lodgepole pine forests is that after a fire eventually the trails will ( hopefully) be cleared of fallen logs. However, the standing dead trees will continue to fall for several more years, so a trail once-cleared will usually be in need of maintenance for a while longer.

Passing rocks and trees like they were standing still
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FiresideChats
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PostSun May 24, 2020 12:07 pm 
Right. And many of the trees can be cleared by a modest saw i would think.

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Sallie4jo
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PostSun May 24, 2020 7:47 pm 
And..do believe when a map says not maintained..at least in the 90s..the lodgepole pines are the 1st trees to grow after a fire..and most of the trips i took out there..had several if not longer miserable weather conditions in August..including snow. I love it out there.

I choose to live in a landscape of hope. Terry Tempest Williams
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Arete
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PostThu May 28, 2020 1:18 am 
Fire ecology of Pacific Northwest forests by Jim Agee Google Wenatchee national forest fire ecology US Forest Service. The USFS has many publications on fire management in those forests that have good ecological material. Keep good records of your observations and take repeated photos from the same place over the years. Long term observations like that are very valuable. Good luck!

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FiresideChats
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PostThu May 28, 2020 11:18 pm 
Arete wrote:
Fire ecology of Pacific Northwest forests by Jim Agee
Looking forward to it, thanks. At $50 on kindle I will wait it out with the library closure. I keep telling myself the high country is under snow, right?

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Cyclopath
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PostThu May 28, 2020 11:52 pm 
Northwest Trees by Stephen Arno, Mountaineers Press It's not specific to the Pasayten, it's our region overall. Beautiful sketches for identification. Some entries go on for several pages about the ecological niche, human of himself use, etc. Others are brief. I would recommend this to anybody who hikes. Mounties | Good Reads | Amazon

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