The Whitney State Forest Saga

There has been some interest on the blog as to what the future of the Whitney State Forest holds and more specifically what may be done concerning some of the invasive species found there. Here is a short synopsis of planned activities:

approximately 1 acre of kudzu control
approximately 15 acres of understory herbicide application in a Yellow Poplar stand to control invasives (Multiflora Rose, Wineberry, Bittersweet)
Approximately 11 acres of bittersweet control in the thinned area (cut and spray vines running up trees)
Burn the field (winter)
Plant shortleaf in the clearcut
Herbcide release of shortleaf seedlings over the next several years
Gravel for the parking lot
New kiosk
Replace stream crossing with engineered ford crossing

Also it is worth noting that we do know about the trail becoming overgrown for about 1/2 mile where it crosses one of the fields. Currently our tractor with the bush hog is down for repairs but as soon as that is back in service this portion of the trail will be tended to.

If you have interest in helping state forest staff with invasive control or trail work at the Whitney please contact Terry Lasher or Joe Rossetti at the Faquier County office at (540) 347-6358. We are more than happy to have volunteers on board and you can even earn a free forest use permit good for one year from the completion of the necessary hours.

Regardless of the content of the comments, I am very happy to see that so many people are concerned about the Whitney State Forest. Concern equals care, if no one cared then no one would be concerned. Thank you for the love and devotion to this wonderful resource!

PS...If you would like to know more about identifying and controlling invasive plant species consider attending the Good Green, Bad Green Invasive Plant Control for Habitat Restoration Conference in Front Royal on September 16th and 17th. The website for more information is: http://www.forestryforthebay.org/ggbg/. This should be a very information workshop and well worth your time.

The Whitney State Forest Saga

There has been some interest on the blog as to what the future of the Whitney State Forest holds and more specifically what may be done concerning some of the invasive species found there. Here is a short synopsis of planned activities:

approximately 1 acre of kudzu control
approximately 15 acres of understory herbicide application in a Yellow Poplar stand to control invasives (Multiflora Rose, Wineberry, Bittersweet)
Approximately 11 acres of bittersweet control in the thinned area (cut and spray vines running up trees)
Burn the field (winter)
Plant shortleaf in the clearcut
Herbcide release of shortleaf seedlings over the next several years
Gravel for the parking lot
New kiosk
Replace stream crossing with engineered ford crossing

Also it is worth noting that we do know about the trail becoming overgrown for about 1/2 mile where it crosses one of the fields. Currently our tractor with the bush hog is down for repairs but as soon as that is back in service this portion of the trail will be tended to.

If you have interest in helping state forest staff with invasive control or trail work at the Whitney please contact Terry Lasher or Joe Rossetti at the Faquier County office at (540) 347-6358. We are more than happy to have volunteers on board and you can even earn a free forest use permit good for one year from the completion of the necessary hours.

Regardless of the content of the comments, I am very happy to see that so many people are concerned about the Whitney State Forest. Concern equals care, if no one cared then no one would be concerned. Thank you for the love and devotion to this wonderful resource!

PS...If you would like to know more about identifying and controlling invasive plant species consider attending the Good Green, Bad Green Invasive Plant Control for Habitat Restoration Conference in Front Royal on September 16th and 17th. The website for more information is: http://www.forestryforthebay.org/ggbg/. This should be a very information workshop and well worth your time.

New Trail at Cumberland State Forest

Last Thursday and Friday I had the great pleasure of working with the Youth Conservation Corps (YCC) group from Bear Creek Lake State Park. These young men spend three weeks of their hard earned summer vacation performing various work for the state park including maintenance, moving the archery range, and trail work. In a welcome partnership with Bear Creek Lake State Park, park ranger Joey Dayton, offered me two days of service from these hardworking gentlemen.

Led by three team supervisors the group showed on Thursday morning not knowing fully what to expect except that it was going to be HOT! In near 100 degree temperatures I led them to Arrowhead Lake on the Cumberland State Forest. Our goal was to clear a one mile trail that would take users on a loop around the lake. The trail was designed to give fishermen better access to different parts of the lake as well as provide a short nature trail for enjoyment. The plan is to eventually put a picnic shelter at the parking area for the lake which would allow forest visitors a chance to enjoy a meal and then enjoy the woods.

The YCC group was an absolute pleasure to work with. They were constantly talking and laughing all while digging in the heat. They chopped small trees, cleared brush, and dug a trail down to bare dirt in no time. The high temperature did take effect on the crew by the early afternoon, but I was more than happy to turn them loose early to go back to the park and get some swim/free time in. The next day the crew showed up ready to work and quickly found their rhythm. The trail is approximately halfway done, reaching from the far side of the dam almost to the creek that feeds the lake. I didn't expect them to finish the trail in only two days but they certainly put every effort towards it.

Words cannot express my gratitude towards the YCC group as well as the state park for allowing me to use them! I look forward to participating in the YCC program in the future as this is a great opportunity for young men and women to gain valuable experience in a natural resource career. THANK YOU YCC!

New Trail at Cumberland State Forest

Last Thursday and Friday I had the great pleasure of working with the Youth Conservation Corps (YCC) group from Bear Creek Lake State Park. These young men spend three weeks of their hard earned summer vacation performing various work for the state park including maintenance, moving the archery range, and trail work. In a welcome partnership with Bear Creek Lake State Park, park ranger Joey Dayton, offered me two days of service from these hardworking gentlemen.

Led by three team supervisors the group showed on Thursday morning not knowing fully what to expect except that it was going to be HOT! In near 100 degree temperatures I led them to Arrowhead Lake on the Cumberland State Forest. Our goal was to clear a one mile trail that would take users on a loop around the lake. The trail was designed to give fishermen better access to different parts of the lake as well as provide a short nature trail for enjoyment. The plan is to eventually put a picnic shelter at the parking area for the lake which would allow forest visitors a chance to enjoy a meal and then enjoy the woods.

The YCC group was an absolute pleasure to work with. They were constantly talking and laughing all while digging in the heat. They chopped small trees, cleared brush, and dug a trail down to bare dirt in no time. The high temperature did take effect on the crew by the early afternoon, but I was more than happy to turn them loose early to go back to the park and get some swim/free time in. The next day the crew showed up ready to work and quickly found their rhythm. The trail is approximately halfway done, reaching from the far side of the dam almost to the creek that feeds the lake. I didn't expect them to finish the trail in only two days but they certainly put every effort towards it.

Words cannot express my gratitude towards the YCC group as well as the state park for allowing me to use them! I look forward to participating in the YCC program in the future as this is a great opportunity for young men and women to gain valuable experience in a natural resource career. THANK YOU YCC!

Volunteer Pass Now Available!

Do you enjoy the outdoors? Do you want to help make the State Forests more enjoyable for yourself and others? Then consider volunteering with the Virginia Department of Forestry on one of our 20 State Forests. Most of our forests have trail systems that offer a users a variety of enjoyable activities from hiking, mountain biking, horseback riding, bird watching, physical fitness, and peace of mind. Many of our trails, however, are in need of a little bit of tender love and care.

The Virginia Department of Forestry now has the ability to reward you for volunteering on our forests. With just 10 hours of volunteer time you can earn a free forest use permit which allows you to hunt, trap, fish, bike, and ride horses on our state forests. This is normally a $16 annual fee. The permit will be good for one year from the date of issue. All you have to do is fill out a volunteer form and timesheet and have a local forestry official sign off on your volunteer hours; your pass will then be mailed to you.

So how can you volunteer? Talk to a state forest employee or county forestry official to see if any specific tasks need to be done. To be honest, we aren't very picky. You can pick up trash along our roads, help remove invasive plants, cut brush from trails, or a number of other activities. Virginia's State Parks consistently ranks highly among America's State Parks because of the hard work of their many volunteers; we hope to be able to maintain the same enjoyable atmosphere in our forests. So put on some bug spray, smear on some suntan lotion, grab your gloves, and come on out to a State Forest near you!

Volunteer Pass Now Available!

Do you enjoy the outdoors? Do you want to help make the State Forests more enjoyable for yourself and others? Then consider volunteering with the Virginia Department of Forestry on one of our 20 State Forests. Most of our forests have trail systems that offer a users a variety of enjoyable activities from hiking, mountain biking, horseback riding, bird watching, physical fitness, and peace of mind. Many of our trails, however, are in need of a little bit of tender love and care.

The Virginia Department of Forestry now has the ability to reward you for volunteering on our forests. With just 10 hours of volunteer time you can earn a free forest use permit which allows you to hunt, trap, fish, bike, and ride horses on our state forests. This is normally a $16 annual fee. The permit will be good for one year from the date of issue. All you have to do is fill out a volunteer form and timesheet and have a local forestry official sign off on your volunteer hours; your pass will then be mailed to you.

So how can you volunteer? Talk to a state forest employee or county forestry official to see if any specific tasks need to be done. To be honest, we aren't very picky. You can pick up trash along our roads, help remove invasive plants, cut brush from trails, or a number of other activities. Virginia's State Parks consistently ranks highly among America's State Parks because of the hard work of their many volunteers; we hope to be able to maintain the same enjoyable atmosphere in our forests. So put on some bug spray, smear on some suntan lotion, grab your gloves, and come on out to a State Forest near you!

Volunteer Pass

Volunteering your time has many benefits. Now the Department of Forestry can reward you for all of your hard work. For just 10 hours of your time, the VDOF can issue you a free state forest user permit good for one year! While we are still working out our volunteer program and time recording, if you let me or one of our staff know that you are doing volunteer work or organize a volunteer workday, we will gladly reward you for your efforts. We hope to eventually come up with a volunteer program that strongly mimics the state parks, after all they are experts at getting volunteer help to keep Virginia Parks rated at the top nationally. Let me know any ideas you have for local volunteer efforts or workdays. We have plenty of projects to go around!

Whitney State Forest trail closure/reroute

Last week, forester Joe Rossetti, technician Chris Clayton, and myself helped to close a small section of trail on the Whitney State Forest. The trail followed the natural fall line of water and went almost straight downhill causing major erosion and creating an unstable tread. With the help of a local eagle scout and some boyscouts we were able to close that section of trail and reroute it along the contour of the slope. The eagle scout project involved building brush impoundments on the closed section of trail using hazard trees cut from the trail. They even added a creative hand etched rock sign telling users to turn. They installed water bars on both sections to help prevent future erosion. A big thank you goes out to the scouts and staff involved!

While we were up there we were able to open all of the trails on the forest which had been blocked by fallen trees. The forest should now be completely open for use. Please let me know of any additional problems that anyone comes across out there.