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Photo Sets:
Wednesday
Thursday
Friday
Saturday
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Thursday was a big day. We boarded the bus early in the morning and climbed up through the "life zones," seeing the relationship between precipitation, elevation and vegetation types.
LOGGING JOB
Roy Lawson treated us to quite a logging show. He and his crew showed us how the cut-to-length system works. We got up close with the single-grip harvester and the forwarder which transfers logs from the harvester up to the log truck waiting on the road. One of the highlights was interacting with the crew and getting to ask them lots of questions.
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EXPERIMENTAL FOREST
From there, it was a short trip to the University of Idaho Experimental Forest. Tour Coordinator Harold Osborne managed this forest for many years as a professor at the University. The view was spectacular, and we could see several different land ownerships (federal, state, private companies, private individuals). We could also see several different age classes of forests and harvest/regeneration methods across the vista.
We walked through a recent clearcut, brushing against red-stem ceanothus (a shrub that's a favorite of elk), and examined the young trees vying for space among the lush grasses, forbs and shrubs.
Then we went into a 25-year old clearcut which has reached the "stem exclusion" stage. Many of the grasses, forbs and shrubs have been shaded out. The trees have grown big enough that not all of them can survive on the available sunlight, water and soil nutrients.
It's survival of the fittest, with the strongest trees out-competing weaker ones. Eventually, this stand will have fewer trees - but they'll be bigger and further apart.
MATURE FOREST, LUNCH AT PALOUSE DIVIDE LODGE, FOREST SERVICE MANAGEMENT
We made a quick stop to see the Giant White Pine, which died a few years ago. This forest is hundreds of years old. Some of the trees that are less than 2 inches in diameter are over 70 years old. We learned about modern forest management tools from Vaden Bloch of Northwest Management.
Then we drove to Palouse Divide Lodge, where we enjoyed a delicious lunch, and an equally delicious view, while hearing about management of U.S. Forest Service lands.
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PLYWOOD MILL
Then we went to St. Maries and toured the Potlatch Corporation Plywood Mill. We were awed by the lathe that peels logs into thin veneers, and appreciated the personal attention by the staff who led the tours and answered our many questions.
WILDLIFE and DINNER ON THE ST. JOE RIVER
We've covered a lot of miles and seen many things today.
It's time for a relaxing cruise and delicious dinner on the St. Joe River. We enjoyed a presentation on wildlife by Beth Paragamian of Idaho Dept. of Fish and Game, including the owl seen here. Numerous opsrey and cormorants provided entertainment along the river.
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