Earlier this year, the city of Tuscaloosa, Alabama suffered a direct hit from a tornado. The storm also wiped out many acres of national forest timber. So, this week we are working on tornado clean-up in Alabama. The basic idea is that we get what wood we can from the trees that are on the ground, while preparing the site for a new forest of, hopefully, southern yellow pine, which is greatly favored.
The Talladega National Forest is more open, more hilly, and more piney than I expected. I thought we would be working in a deep, dark swamp, but we're not. It is a lot like the ponderosa pine forests of the west: Many relatively open stands, maintained by fire, and full of big, pumpkin-colored pines. Aside from the fact that I don't understand the language they speak here, it is a nice place to work during the winter.
Put some chewing tobacco in your cheek and you'll be able to understand the language. If you make it to Tuscaloosa, there's an excellent bbq restaurant, Dreamland (http://www.dreamlandbbq.com/Tuscaloosa.aspx) that you need to visit.
ReplyDeleteI'm in Tuscaloosa right now. I've already been to Archibald's. I'll try Dreamland tomorrow. BTW, I'm working with an Auburn grad. She says that people from Tuscaloosa who want to study forestry have to go to Starkville. The rivalry is so intense that a 'bama fan would never take so much as a single class at Auburn. It's like a foreign country around here.
ReplyDeleteWe watched an ESPN special on the 'bama-Auburn rivalry. I guess we humans just have to hate on someone. The poisoning of the Auburn trees is a perfect symbol of that bizarre, twisted environment. The documentry ended with a pretty uplifting response to the Tuscaloosa tornado by Auburn players/fans, though.
ReplyDeleteYeah, I've wondered if Alabama and Auburn fans would bury the hatchet in response to an external threat. What would happen if an enemy nation, say Louisiana, threatened to interrupt the republic of Alabama's ownership of the BCS championship trophy?
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