Animal Trails

    On my little hike upslope that I blogged about yesterday, I mentioned how I followed the animal trails through the bush.  The woods could be characterized as “Parkland” which is a term that was used when I worked at the BC Forest Service to indicate wooded areas with open and sparse undergrowth.  I didn’t really need the animal trails to get around, but over the years the animals figured out the easiest way through the woods, and it seemed crazy not to take advantage of their experience.

    At one point, one of the trails went right beside the burnt remains of an old cedar (Above).  The Cedar was pitted with numerous woodpecker holes.  A wildfire swept through the area in 1917, and you can still find charred evidence of the conflagration in the woods.  The Douglas Fir, Spruce, Balsam Fir, Cedar and Birch trees that you now see on the slope all started growing since that fire one hundred years ago.

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