Wonder of Winter
By JOHANNE KITTLE, Plant Rescue Team Member Photography by Tom Harrington

We are fortunate in our Southern Appalachian mountains to see evidence of Jack Frost's handiwork.

"Chestnuts roasting on an open fire, Jack Frost nipping at your nose…". Last year I wrote about the first part of the classic "Christmas Song" and received many responses from readers. This year I want to give readers a brief update on the Chestnuts and discuss the second part of the lyrics- "Jack Frost".

The American Chestnut Foundation (TACF) has been working diligently for 25 years to restore the American Chestnut tree to its rightful place in our forest; the tree once occupied 25% of the hardwoods. After a blight from a non-native fungus brought the tree close to extinction, the foundation has been crossbreeding Chinese chestnut trees, which have an immunity to the fungus, with our native trees. 2008 is the year for the 25 year anniversary celebration with two major events in our area: March 1-2 at Amicolola Falls State Park and late April/early May at Neel's Gap. Each chapter of the TACF plans to hike the Appalachian Trail within their state, with a hand off of hiking staffs (American chestnut) and to count the number of surviving chestnut saplings along the trail. For Georgia, the hike will start on Jan. 1, 2008 with Joe Nicolson (joenicholson02@comcast.net) in charge of the list of walkers.

Another beautiful sight is early in the morning when you look up to the mountains, you can see a white blanket on the upper portions.

Now for the second part of the lyrics. "Jack Frost" was originally Jokul ("icicle") Frosti ("frost"), the son of the Norse god of wind Kari. Jokul Frosti became "anglicized" to Jack Frost. We are fortunate in our Southern Appalachian mountains to see evidence of Jack Frost's handiwork. I say "fortunate" because the change of seasons allows many varieties of species to survive in our ecological or "eco" system. Our eco system is the most biologically diverse system in the temperate climate on the whole planet Earth!

There are two kinds of frost- Hoarfrost and Rime Ice. Even after discussions with meteorologists and searching the Internet, I am still confused as to the distinguishing characteristics. Hoarfrost is "ordinary" frost which forms slowly on the ground or other objects when air vapor condenses without going through its liquid phase and is usually in low wind conditions. Rime Ice is formed when fog droplets make contact with below freezing objects usually in moderate wind conditions. Regardless of what it is called, it is work of wonder.

When walking through the woods on cold mornings, we sometimes see frost on tree limbs that almost look like flags up to 1 or more inches seemingly all poised in the direction of the wind that helped form them. It is beautiful and awesome to see. And as the sun warms the trees, it is almost like it is raining.

Another beautiful sight is early in the morning when you look up to the mountains, you can see a white blanket on the upper portions. There is a line of white that shows where the frost line is. Sometimes this occurs when the clouds lift off the mountains.

Our area is unique in that walking from the base of Brasstown Bald to the top is like walking from Georgia to Massachusetts (in regards to "eco" systems). The change in elevation promotes the diversity of species we find in our area.

Winter also brings many clear crisp days where the skies are a deep blue. If you walk up to the top of Brasstown Bald or Blood Mountain you can sometimes see Atlanta, which is about 100 miles south of here. Now many people say (and I was one of them), why would you want to see Atlanta from the top of one of our beautiful mountains? But when or if you do see it, you will be amazed. I have seen it only once with binoculars. It looks like a com- plete miniature city. You can actually see many of the buildings. And when you realize you are viewing from 100 miles away, it is fun.

In the Great Smoky Mountain National Park, which is about 100 miles north/east of here, the experience of walking from the base to the top of the peaks is like walking from Georgia to Maine! Each year the city of Pigeon Forge hosts Wildlife Wilderness Week with many guided hikes, tours and presentations. This year it is scheduled for January 12-19, 2008. You can see the schedule of events at http://mypigeonforge. com/winterfest-wilderness. asp. Most events are free and are presented by experts in the fields of nature, photography, hiking, music, history. Motels have very reasonable off-season rates. In my opinion, it is a "best value".

The plant rescue team would like to encourage you to get out and enjoy the wonder of winter and our beautiful natural beauty. For more information on the plant rescue team, contact Jennifer Cordier (706-745- 9317) ivylog@alltel.net or you can contact me, Johanne Kittle ( 8 2 8 - 3 8 9 - 0 8 1 4 ) billjokitt@brmemc.net.