FORESTER

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WHERE TO GO; WHAT TO DO

• Learn how to measure tree heights. (Boy Scout Handbook.)
• Visit a local nursery or tree farm, or an orchard in production.
• Contact a local tree service and ask if you can watch their crew in action. Watch a tree felling or brush clipping operation. Find out about the safety features used.

Some Local Places:

HOYT ARBORETUM:

4000 SE Fairview Blvd., Portland (503) 823-3655 Open dawn to dusk. Guided tours 2pm Sat. and Sun. For groups please call ahead for reservations. Free admission. Self-guided tour books available with 10 miles of trails. This is a walking tour, not a place to run around in.

MAGNESS MEMORIAL TREE FARM:

25 miles south of Portland, OR near Wilsonville, OR. Information from World Forestry Center (503) 228-1367 70 acres of forest, 2 miles of hiking trails, picnic areas, fire lookout, 9 separate forest management units. John Nagle trail for disabled persons for a nature experience. Some tent camping and 3 bunk houses. Call for costs. Classes available for Webelos Program for Forester activity badge by staff forester. Call early for reservations. You must make reservations thru the World Forestry to use this facility

Visit a lumber yard, saw mill or tree farm. Talk to the salesman or operator about the different woods available for use. How is wood treated for gardens, etc. What are the standard sizes of boards and plywood? How does a contractor know how much wood it takes to build a house?

CAMP 18: -

On Hiway 26 (Mile Post 18, naturally) Elsie, OR., A restaurant and outdoor logging museum on the way to the coast. Great rest stop or place to visit on the way back from another activity. Allow time for kids to roam the yard full of old-time logging equipment. 1-800 874 1810 See how timber was harvested in the early days. As a side trip, visit the largest Sitka Pine in the Unites States a few mile to the west.

WORLD FORESTRY CENTER:

4O33 SW Canyon Rd., Portland, OR. (503) 228-1367 Open: daily 9 to 5. $2/scouts and $3/adults. 1 hr self guided tour.

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CAREERS/SPEAKERS

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ACTIVITIES

SERVICE PROJECT

Ask your local park if your den can plant trees if they provide them. They park will designate where to plant them.

ADOPT A TREE

For a long-term project, adopt a tree in the back yard where you meet. Measure its girth, estimate its height if it cannot be measured, record its buds, what color it turns, when it loses its leaves, bird's nest, etc. Keep the information in a diary. Measure it every month.

DIRECTIONS

Can you walk a straight line? Nine out of ten people will veer sharply to the right if not focusing on a landmark. Now imagine what that means to a person who becomes lost in the woods.

Mark a line about 50 feet long with a flag at both ends. One at a time, blindfold the boys and have them start at the first flag, pointed in the direction of the second. After walking a given distance, tell them to stop and remove their blindfold.

Boys stand in place, moving slightly if a blindfolded boy is coming near. How many veered to the right? Who was closest to the line?

MEET A TREE

Work in pairs. Blindfold your partner and lead him through the forest to any tree. Ask the blindfolded Scout to feel the tree so that he can identify it later without his blindfold.

After five minutes, walk him back to the starting place and remove the blindfold. Now the Scout must find the tree he explored.

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CLOSINGS

The other day in Colorado a great tree fell. It was nearly 800 years old. It was a mere sapling when Columbus lived.

It had been stuck by lightning 14 times. It had braved the storms of five centuries. It had defied earthquakes and hurricanes. It had laughed in scorn at the winter's blizzards.

But in the end, tiny beetles killed it. They bore under the bark, dug into its heart and finally, one day when the mighty king tree could stand no more, down it came.

We have a lesson to learn from this. It is the little things that make or break us in our homes, and our lives.

BB, Viking

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TREE QUIZ

• Find tree name hidden in the following sentences:
• The ranger's map led us safely through the woods.
• Will owls hoot in daylight?
• It's fun to hike and tramp in every direction.
• Forest rangers wear white helmets.
• We saw a honey bee checking clover blossoms for honey.
• Many forest fires are caused by human carelessness.
• We got soaked when we were caught in a cloudburst.
• The boy's face darkened when she kissed him on the cheek.

Answers: 1. Maple 2. Willow 3. Pine 4. Elm 5. Beech 6. Fir 7. Oak 8. Cedar

C-10

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