loki/Riondel 2025 BCTS kootenay lake Clearcuts

BCTS has 6 clearcuts planned for this area for 2025. This landscape unit has seen recent devastating logging all around these current cublocks. We got a pretty good idea about TA1991-3, -4, and -5, but we are still very curious about -1, -2, and especially curious about TA2303-1, which is ridiculously high up the mountain.

There is a reason we chose this panorama for the cover photo on our website. TA-1991-4 is stunning forest.  While there are not a lot of big trees, this forest is well on its way to becoming old growth.

This beautiful fir is actually dead, as were about 10 other massive fire-surviving firs in this block. These trees will be sold off as firewood for next to nothing. They are better left standing, and could very well stand another 50 years as habitat for all kinds of critters. 

This extraordinary, 1m wide DBH,  seemingly healthy Douglas fir is growing out of sheer rock. There is no apparent soil within 20' of it in any direction and it sits on the edge of a 50' vertical rock cliff. Incredibly, right below the tree there was a cave in the rock that had obviously been used as a den by a large animal.  

This massive fir, defying all odds, is exactly 100cm DBH - a meter wide!  

Count the rings! About 140 which is the age cut off for old growth for this area. This hemlock, only about 11" in diameter, was cut for the new road through TA1991-4. BCTS calls themselves sustainable but they are anything but. Do they really think there will ever be another hemlock like this on this hot, dry, west slope again?

Click "+ Show More" under this pic for more.