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Hercynian
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Post Farewell to Lothlorien
on: July 13, 2014 02:16
In a fortnight my family and I will be leaving Minnesota's North Shore of Lake Superior for Indiana where my wife will return to school. I know most of you do not have a multi-million-acre boreal forest in your backyard, but I do. And I can say the experience has been life-changing.

Imagine a hoard of orcs overrunning Lothlorien and destroying the beautiful forest. But then the orcs are driven back and the forest grows back, but only to half its former glory. That would still be quite a forest, no?

So it is up here. During the 19th and 20th century, the majestic white pine forests of New England and the Great Lakes region were systematically destroyed. And an 11-hour attempt to replant using an exotic European white pine only introduced a disease, which blunted that effort. Today, you can see some old white pines, but due to the influx of non-boreal-native whitetail deer which eat the seedlings and the ongoing problems with blister rust, the white pine is not really coming back. Instead, we have what we euphemistically call "aspen deserts," i.e., the scrubby, brittle aspen which quickly take over disturbed areas like weeds take over a vacant lot. That along with equally scrubby pioneer species like balsam fir means vast stretches of the northern forestlands look like hell. Especially now that the birch--a more elegant, long-lasting pioneer--seem to be dying off, due to invasive bugs and global warming.

Fortunately, two species remain: white cedar and white spruce. Along with that, the understory and ground are coming back, especially with the mosses and mycelium. The white cedar were largely left alone, due to the timber industry's disinterest, likewise the white spruce. Neither is particularly well suited as lumber. And yet the clear-cut logging continues--more out of habit and vindictiveness than any real profit. With no real quality timber left, loggers can only hoover up great tracts of lesser trees to sell at low prices for paper pulp and chip board. The only real money-maker is the red pine, which has been planted en masse as sterile, unappealing tree farms.

But of course there is fierce denial of any talk of how we "destroyed" the forests. These sorts also complain bitterly and continually at the one-million-acre Boundary Water wilderness set-aside. But of course, the only way this place will ever recover is to be left alone, plus reintroduction of the original main species, like the white pine -- neither of which will happen without a miracle.

And yet there are still very Lothlolien-like places up here. The forests are amazing in their ability to put off that vibe Tolkien so magically describes. Some areas are so wonderful that you really feel like an Elf communing with the forest. But another sad irony is how few people up here are of that mindset. The vast majority are either redneck, right-wing exploitation-minded idiots, or some strange modern American liberal who wants to act like a Hemingway or Jack London quasi-tough guy. It's a strange thing to hear college-educated people siding with redneck loggers.

In closing I'll share something I found:

"The Land was not obliged to offer humans, the runt of Nature's litter, a living, but the Land always gave, despite our increasing greed and disrespect. There is a Spirit to the Land. The Land is like an aching phantom limb to our tortured psychic body. She remembers us and still calls to us. Many of us hear, many yearn and long, but do not know how to respond. Meanwhile, our race goes ever deeper into the void of nihilist materialism. And when our schemes finally fail, when we realize that spiritual damage is far worse than any physical deprivation, we will once again turn to the Land, we will turn back and ask for succor. Let us start beseeching the Spirit of the Land."

Namarie, Lothlorien nin!
pv
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on: July 14, 2014 09:04
Good luck in Indiana, Herc! (Although I have never lived there, I have a weird sort of affection for Indiana, because that was where my parents set up their first home.)
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