Old Dead Trees
I noted in an earlier post that I’ve estimated we have about five old dead trees standing on each of the 80+ acres at Roundrock. This is only an estimate, based on casual ramblings through the forest, and not an actual survey, but I think it’s pretty reliable.
Here is a typical snag standing on the high, level ground near the entrance to Roundrock.
(I seem to have tilted the camera a bit when I took this NW-looking shot. The ground here is actually level. Sorry.)
These old snags are important for the wild things that live at Roundrock. They serve as dens for opposums, raccoons, and squirrells. Some birds will nest in cavities they find or construct in these dead trees. Insects slowly devour the wood. Birds perch on them. These snags are busy, useful places.
Back in the days before the four kids scattered to the four winds, we used to drag them with us on occasional trips to Roundrock. They would come along, reluctant but dutiful. Then they would have a wonderful time dashing about the forest. Building campfires. Cooking weenies and ‘smores. Sometimes I could even get them to do a little work.
On one Thanksgiving Day visit we were hiking the trail to the pond and we approached a snag similar to this one (only a bit smaller). #2 Son (who must have been 17 at the time) ran ahead of us and threw himself against the gray sentinel. To his surprise, it uprooted and fell with a crash to the ground. Then, as all of us watched, a tiny flying squirrel darted out of a hole in the fallen snag and dashed away. (Here is a great photo of a flying squirrel.)
#2 Son was much chagrined by his deed. He had pretty much destroyed the home of a little forest resident. And since this was Thanksgiving Day, winter would be arriving soon.
We never learned the fate of that little critter, but each time we hike the path to the pond, we can see the tree our son took down and remember another family adventure.
August 25th, 2005 at 5:24 am
Thursday night here…Thursday morning there. As usual!
Somebody told me that Charles Schultz of Snoopy fame once said:
“Don’t worry about the world coming to an end today, because it is already tomorrow in Australia!”
Couldn’t help but make a comment about snags.
Here “snags” are sausages, but not of the weenie kind, which are frankfurters. Snags are the kind of sausage you put on the BBQ. (Never seen anybody do that to weenies here – but maybe you do there. I have heard of a weenie roast and wondered what it is?)
Snags are also things your fishing line encounters; but, I’ve never heard the term used for dead trees, but I can get the drift. Doesn’t matter.
As usual, I’ll check tomorrow for another page of the Journal.
Glad you liked the spear point.
August 25th, 2005 at 5:48 am
I forgot to ask what ‘smores are ?
I wan’t some more?
August 25th, 2005 at 6:54 am
I’ve never heard the term “snag” in this context either. As you’re walking the woods, keep an eye out for an Indian trail tree. If there was a trail through your woods the Indians would have purposely trained on of the branches into a 90 degree L, as in a bent elbow.
August 25th, 2005 at 7:05 am
Tjilpi – Here a weenie is a hot dog, and they are thrown on the outdoor grill (barbecue) with great regularity. A ‘smore is a sugary concoction of graham cracker, chocolate bar, and melted marshmallow, all pressed into a sandwich. The marshmallows are generally melted over a campfire, on the end of a stick, thus they are a common camping treat. The word’s origins are a bit murky, but most contend as you noted that once you have one you want ‘smore.
Wife – Didja get my email?
August 25th, 2005 at 7:57 am
I’ve knocked over trees like that just leaning against them! I felt pretty bad, but they do fall in time, after all.
Just don’t try to secure a tent or tarp line to one while camping. It’s a big mistake if a storm comes through. Trust me.
August 25th, 2005 at 1:44 pm
out here on the left coast a snag is a dead tree, possibly an imperfection in women’s hose, or something complicating a situation. a weenie can be a wuss, or wimp, as well as a hot dog; which can be a daredevil or showoff, as well as an inferior (my personal opinion) sort of sausage.
pitching camp within the falling range of a snag is also unwise.
August 25th, 2005 at 2:17 pm
I first heard the word snag in the context of where ospreys usually build their nests. It was said by some forest service people so I thought it was an insider’s slang. I was always too embarrassed to use the word because I didn’t work for the forest service, and I thought it sounded “made up”. Turns out, it really is a word for a dead tree. Such a cool word.
Nice story, Pablo. Your family outings always sound like a lot of fun!
August 25th, 2005 at 6:51 pm
No, no mail……perhaps the stupid spam blocking thing on AOL filtered it out. Send again….please?
August 25th, 2005 at 9:14 pm
Tjilpi asks “How do you cook weenies on a BBQ?” at his web site, under the heading Exploding Snags.
We have a common event for kids called a Sausage Sizzle where sausages are cooked on the grill plate of a BBQ; but we normally don’t cook frankfurter / hotdog sausages that way. Our hotdogs usually come with a fairly thick red skin and are normally boiled in water before being smothered in Heinz Tomato Sauce (ketchup), as too are the sausages cooked at a Sausage Sizzle.
Thanks for the recipe for ‘smores. My kids just love setting marshmellows on fire on the end of a stick too. “Oops, it was an accident!”
August 26th, 2005 at 7:02 am
I’ve inadvertently evicted flying squirrels while I was cleaning out nesting boxes for birds. I eventually learned to look for the squirrels’ nesting materials, which they typically stuff to block the entry hole, later in the season. But #2 need not feel bad – flying squirrels usually have someplace else to go.
My father always asks me why I don’t cut those snags down – I have a number of them close by the house that he notices. It’s odd, because he was a forester and should know their value. But he’s conflicted, I think, with his military background and acquired requirement for order.
When I was a lawn-mowin’ kid, I used to drive him nuts by mowing in curves rather than straight lines.