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What's extraordinary is how ordinary massive trees used to be in North America. http://www.oldgrowth.ca/the-past-isnt-what-it-used-to-be/ http://www.oldgrowth.

What's extraordinary is how ordinary massive trees used to be in North America. http://www.oldgrowth.ca/the-past-isnt-what-it-used-to-be/ http://www.oldgrowth.ca/the-past-isnt-what-it-used-to-be/ Even in Ontario we used to have forests where a large portion of trees were above 50m high, some close to the size of coast redwoods. The entire west coast looked like this before clear cutting in the 1800s

canadiantim 3y ago
That's wild, I had no idea (and I live in Ontario). Thanks for sharing!
- Althuns 3y ago
  Lived in North Idaho for a time and int the forests you can still see a ton of massive stumps that don't match anything currently surviving nearby. It's a surreal and saddening experience.
  - pfannkuchen 3y ago
    Assuming the trees were used for construction and are either still in place or in a landfill, at least cutting down the trees probably resulted in a larger net carbon sink!
divbzero 3y ago
Are there any swaths of land on Earth where old growth forests have not been clear cut? Perhaps parts of northern Canada?
- knodi123 3y ago
  sure- parks and such. maybe "swath" is bigger than I pictured....
- thresh 3y ago
  Uh, Siberia and Russian European North.
- smallerfish 3y ago
  Borneo has a huge area of primary forest, though it has been extensively logged. And of course the Amazon, the Congo, areas of Uganda, and many others.
  - canoebuilder 3y ago
    Human habitation and influence on the landscape in the Amazon seems far more extensive in scope and duration than previously thought, based on recent discoveries. https://duckduckgo.com/?q=Amazon+mounds+archaeology&t=ffip&ia=web https://duckduckgo.com/?q=Amazon+mounds+archaeology&t=ffip&i... https://duckduckgo.com/?q=Amazon+australasian+dna&t=ffip&ia=web https://duckduckgo.com/?q=Amazon+australasian+dna&t=ffip&ia=... The significance of the second link is ancient peoples further north and in other parts of the Americas don’t share this genetic link, indicating a longer timeline of human habitation in the region than previously thought.
    - smallerfish 3y ago
      For sure! While there were definitely civilizations there, there are still huge areas that were likely never clear cut. And even the areas where pre-colonial civilizations had developed have been reforested for 600+ years, which by itself makes it interesting forest.
- jspash 3y ago
  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Białowieża_Forest https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Białowieża_Forest on Poland. Unfortunately, if some people have their way a good portion of it will be cut for profit. Battles over the wood have been going on for years. If you are ever in the region it's worth a visit.
- crotchfire 3y ago
  Yes, huge swaths of them in Olympic National Park. Washington State, USA. Here's the giant spruce: https://www.scenicwa.com/poi/quinault-rain-forest-worlds-largest-sitka-spruce https://www.scenicwa.com/poi/quinault-rain-forest-worlds-lar... https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Olympic_National_Park https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Olympic_National_Park The park is almost a million acres; it's enormous -- larger than small countries like Luxembourg. There are two entrances; most visitors go to the North entrance near Port Angeles to see mountains. If you want to see trees and beaches take the Southwest entrance at Lake Quinault instead. I recommend the North Coast hike from La Push to Chilean Memorial. It's a multi-day hike, and you need to get a permit from the Park Service office at Lake Quinault beforehand. But it's worth it. Remember to get a copy of the tide charts so you don't get trapped by the tides. https://www.wta.org/go-hiking/hikes/north-coast-beach-travelway https://www.wta.org/go-hiking/hikes/north-coast-beach-travel... https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/chilean-memorial https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/chilean-memorial
phkahler 3y ago
>> Even in Ontario we used to have forests where a large portion of trees were above 50m high There are still some in Michigan: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hartwick_Pines_State_Park https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hartwick_Pines_State_Park

canadiantim 3y ago

That's wild, I had no idea (and I live in Ontario). Thanks for sharing!

Althuns 3y ago
Lived in North Idaho for a time and int the forests you can still see a ton of massive stumps that don't match anything currently surviving nearby. It's a surreal and saddening experience.
- pfannkuchen 3y ago
  Assuming the trees were used for construction and are either still in place or in a landfill, at least cutting down the trees probably resulted in a larger net carbon sink!

divbzero 3y ago

Are there any swaths of land on Earth where old growth forests have not been clear cut? Perhaps parts of northern Canada?

knodi123 3y ago
sure- parks and such. maybe "swath" is bigger than I pictured....
thresh 3y ago
Uh, Siberia and Russian European North.
smallerfish 3y ago
Borneo has a huge area of primary forest, though it has been extensively logged. And of course the Amazon, the Congo, areas of Uganda, and many others.
- canoebuilder 3y ago
  Human habitation and influence on the landscape in the Amazon seems far more extensive in scope and duration than previously thought, based on recent discoveries. https://duckduckgo.com/?q=Amazon+mounds+archaeology&t=ffip&ia=web https://duckduckgo.com/?q=Amazon+mounds+archaeology&t=ffip&i... https://duckduckgo.com/?q=Amazon+australasian+dna&t=ffip&ia=web https://duckduckgo.com/?q=Amazon+australasian+dna&t=ffip&ia=... The significance of the second link is ancient peoples further north and in other parts of the Americas don’t share this genetic link, indicating a longer timeline of human habitation in the region than previously thought.
  - smallerfish 3y ago
    For sure! While there were definitely civilizations there, there are still huge areas that were likely never clear cut. And even the areas where pre-colonial civilizations had developed have been reforested for 600+ years, which by itself makes it interesting forest.
jspash 3y ago
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Białowieża_Forest https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Białowieża_Forest on Poland. Unfortunately, if some people have their way a good portion of it will be cut for profit. Battles over the wood have been going on for years. If you are ever in the region it's worth a visit.
crotchfire 3y ago
Yes, huge swaths of them in Olympic National Park. Washington State, USA. Here's the giant spruce: https://www.scenicwa.com/poi/quinault-rain-forest-worlds-largest-sitka-spruce https://www.scenicwa.com/poi/quinault-rain-forest-worlds-lar... https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Olympic_National_Park https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Olympic_National_Park The park is almost a million acres; it's enormous -- larger than small countries like Luxembourg. There are two entrances; most visitors go to the North entrance near Port Angeles to see mountains. If you want to see trees and beaches take the Southwest entrance at Lake Quinault instead. I recommend the North Coast hike from La Push to Chilean Memorial. It's a multi-day hike, and you need to get a permit from the Park Service office at Lake Quinault beforehand. But it's worth it. Remember to get a copy of the tide charts so you don't get trapped by the tides. https://www.wta.org/go-hiking/hikes/north-coast-beach-travelway https://www.wta.org/go-hiking/hikes/north-coast-beach-travel... https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/chilean-memorial https://www.atlasobscura.com/places/chilean-memorial

phkahler 3y ago

>> Even in Ontario we used to have forests where a large portion of trees were above 50m high There are still some in Michigan: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hartwick_Pines_State_Park https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hartwick_Pines_State_Park