Burnwood Trail Stop 4: Decoding the Old-Growth

Research team from Concord University led by Thomas Saladyga

NPS / Chance Raso

Quick Facts

Location:

38.07722, -81.07581

Significance:

Old-Growth Forest Network

Old-Growth Forest Hike Stop 4 - Decoding the Old-Growth

How do we know that the Burnwood forest is old-growth? The presence of numerous species of large trees made park rangers at New River Gorge National Park & Preserve believe that the forest could be considered old-growth. During the fall of 2022, the National Park Service partnered with Dr. Tom Saladyga, Professor of Geography at Concord University in Athens, West Virginia. Dr. Saladyga is a dendrochronologist, or a scientist who specializes in using the annual growth rings to accurately date trees and study changes in the environment, such as past fire, climate, storms, and human activities.

Dr. Saladyga led eight of his students for a class project to classify Burnwood as an old-growth forest and write a research report published by the National Park Service titled, Documenting Remnant Old Growth at New River Gorge National Park & Preserve: A Pre-Industrial Legacy Forest at the Burnwood Area.

The study confirmed that the forest should be considered old-growth. Fourteen of the fifty trees that were sampled were at least 250 years old, with five individuals dating to the 1670s, indicating the forest has had minimal human disturbance and escaped the industrial logging period of the early 20th century.

The team posed in the old-growth forest of Burnwood in the above image. From left to right: Ricardo Chinea-Pegler, Thomas Saladyga, Alexis Foster (documentarian), Joseph Duffer (in front), Mitchell Roush, Madison Cook, Haidyn DePinho, Madison Cornett, and Andrew Trump. Not shown: Keiley Dudding.