This is an interesting picture from the North Rim of Grand Canyon National Park. The fire burned and killed off all the pines but, the underground mass of aspen roots and shoots survived. I wonder how a pine component could “naturally” come back, or, did Indian burning favor old growth pines? Certainly, the higher pine forests of the Kaibab Plateau are overstocked and at risk, today.
That is pretty wild…..
How long since the fire? I’m just wondering how long it will take for all the snags to tip over finally.
I think it was back in 2006, the same year as the Warm Fire, outside of the Park. I have to think it was a mixed species forest, before the fire. It now looks like a “natural” monoculture.
Are there any pine seedlings around?
I didn’t see any, and it’s not unusual that it wasn’t a good cone year during that time.
I don’t personally have a problem with aspen stands….I decided they are kind of fun to ski, there was a lot of older aspen on Steamboat (Mt Werner) when I lived there. But I like fur trees too. The tree wells make for great bank-shot fun if you have tough goggles and keep your hands up.
Still, that looks pretty nuked. No carpet of green.