Adirondack Old Growth Forests
Old growth. No, I’m not referring to my 76 years on the planet but rather big and old trees. They make me (and my daughter-in-law) weep. The oldest trees in the world are bristlecone pines in the White Mountains of California, exceeding 4,800 years. The tallest is Hyperion, a coast redwood in an undisclosed part of Redwood National Park, reaching 380 feet. And the largest single-stem tree by volume is the 52,500 cubic foot giant sequoia General Sherman in Sequoia National Park. All in California!
Closer to home, we have some pretty impressive specimens in the Adirondacks. The New York Department of Environmental Conservation began a five-year study in 2023 of old-growth forest in the State lands of the Adirondacks and Catskills. They have documented 75,000 acres old growth out of an estimated 275,000 to 860,000 acres.
Wait!! 275,000-860,000 acres? Their definition includes trees 150-200 years old. Sorry, but that doesn’t cut it for me. I’m talking trees 350 years old, over 130 feet tall and 5 feet in diameter. Big AND old.
This isn’t a hoax!
“Bigfoot” found and photographed in the Moose River Plains Wild Forest by Erik Danielson.
Used by permission.
A wonderful collection of these giants in the Adirondacks are the 50 or so white pines in the Elder’s Grove in Paul Smiths which have been carefully documented by the college. They’ve maxed out and are starting to fall. I’ve been there twice and it’s well worth the effort. It’s sad they’re dying but those lying on the forest floor give you an idea how incredibly tall they are. You can often use the standing trees as a kind of compass since most of the Adirondack microbursts blow from the southwest.
Standing tall
Large Eastern white pines are frequently seen in the Adirondacks.
There are other pockets of old growth around the Park. For example, along the trail up Ampersand Mountain and Cathedral Pines between Seventh and Eighth Lakes. I’m fortunate enough to have discovered a small grove of about 6 old monsters in the Curry Wildlife Safety Zone very near where I live in Elizabethtown. Most of the Adirondacks has been logged since European settlement but these pockets survived for various reasons. The grove near my house would have been very difficult to harvest as they are on a steep hill. The area around Bigfoot (see above photo), has even larger trees than those in the Elder’s Grove in a plot of white pines 200 acres in size.
This has all been terribly subjective. Erik Danielson, a naturalist who works for the Western New York Land Conservancy straightened me out on a number of points. Most important, the oldest trees — including both coniferous and deciduous — aren’t necessarily the biggest and range from 2-4 feet in diameter and 70-90 feet tall. And, the tallest trees, those over 150 feet tall are often 2nd growth trees (i.e., after logging) and significantly younger.
That said, I love all trees and especially the Adirondack forests. They’re cool in the summer and no need for a cap or sunglasses. Not to mention supercharged oxygen levels. There are even some studies claiming shinrin-yoku, or forest bathing mindfulness, improves health. And, in the wilderness areas where no tree cutting is allowed, they will eventually become old growth.
