Among the Fallen Trees

Given the wet trail conditions following yesterday afternoon’s hike, we decided to travel south to Duluth to hopefully find trails in better condition.  Starting from the Hartley Nature Center promptly at 10:00 a.m., we headed out to Martin Road, approximately three miles north.

(All business this morning: Left… Left…  Left, Right, Left)

The first mile and a half were along paved and gravel roads through quiet neighborhoods and two cemeteries (quieter still).  Cemeteries typically elicit interest from soil scientists since many are placed on undisturbed lands previously in native vegetation.  Given the forested area along the North Shore, it’s doubtful there are cemeteries on undisturbed land, though their land use history may not involve agriculture.  In any case, we captured our soil for the day between the Forest Hill and Park Hill cemeteries.

(Approximate location of today’s soil)

(Alfisols and Entisols yesterday; Inceptisols today)

Our hike became a bit challenging once we entered the singletrack trail in Downer Park.  The uneven rocky terrain made us appreciate our footwear choices (or not), though the elevated walkways were a welcome respite for all of us.

(Taking a quick break near Vermillion Ave.)

(Smooth sailing along this stretch, and definitely not representative of what was to come)

We were amazed by the amount of work that had been done to clear the trail following the massive windstorm on July 20^th that felled so many trees in the area.

(This would be impassable otherwise)

The fallen trees did provide a unique opportunity to view the soil, however.  Dark mollic colors and granular structure dominated the surface 6-8” of soil, only to give way to tan hues and numerous rock fragments below.

(Shallow roots and sandy soil…   …not a good combination for strong winds)