Jones Gap State Park SC

Jones Gap State Park SC

Rainbow Falls.jpg (83857 bytes)
Rainbow Falls

The forest at Jones Gap is second growth with a mixture of hardwoods and conifers. Generally hardwoods dominate. Various oaks, dominated by Chestnut Oak dominate the slopes. Maples ( Red and Striped ) and hickories are common here too as is basswood. The conifers include Shortleaf and White Pine as the dominant types, however Eastern Hemlock, Pitch and Virginia pines are found here in significant numbers also. Hemlock is found primarily near the Middle Saluda River while Pitch and Virginia pine are mostly on the slopes. White Pine seems mostly confined to the bottoms while Shortleaf is widely scattered everywhere.

Treated Hemlock.jpg (71124 bytes)
Treated Hemlock

The hemlocks here are not doing well. Most are considerably defoliated. However I found one very healthy one near the bathrooms that had almost certainly been treated. It had alot of new green growth. That was so nice to see.

130.6 foot Hemlock

The understory was dominated by Rosebay Rhododendron and the more azalealike Carolina Rhododendron. Mountain Laurel was present also. Both Carolina Rhodo and Mountain Laurel was in bloom. Flame Azalea was present also but past bloom. Joy really enjoyed Rainbow Falls.

Beech.jpg (58092 bytes) Beech

Joy and I found a really interesting old Beech tree. It was partially hollow on the inside of it's trunk and had actually sprouted roots on the inside and seemed to be utilizing its own decomposing wood. In other words it had roots inside its trunk! I have seen birch trees do this as well.

American Chestnut.jpg (49616 bytes)
American Chestnut

After leaving Jones Gap we drove on up the escarpment and stopped and went on a fairly short hike before nightfall on the Raven Falls Trail. We did not have the time to make it to the falls but enjoyed the hike nonetheless. We were entirely alone the whole hike to enjoy this wonderful forest on the very edge of the Blue Ridge Escarpment. One thing I noticed is that along with the Mountain Laurel and Rhodo ( Carolina and Rosebay ) in the understory was that American Chestnut sprouts were common! The largest I found was about 10 feet tall. I found one blight killed one that was 15 feet tall. I had to wonder if a larger one was in there somewhere. Chestnut Oak and Maples are very common here. So was Pitch pine.

http://www.southcarolinaparks.com/park-finder/state-park/962.aspx

Here are some trees measured at Jones Gap.

CBH Height

Chestnut Oak 9' 11" 91.47'
Shortleaf Pine 6' 10 1/2" 109. 30'
Shortleaf Pine 6. 5" 117. 45'
White Pine 10' 10" 121.50'
White Pine 8' 7"
White Pine 7' 9" 131.06'
Virginia Pine 3' 7 1/2" 89.39'
Eastern Hemlock 6' 10" 130.58' ( largely defoliated )
Oak ( Scarlet? ) 94.5'
American Beech 9' 8" ( Hollow and rotten inside of trunk. )

It was a nice trip.

James Parton

== 2 of 2 ==
Date: Fri, May 16 2008 10:01 pm
From: James Parton

ENTS,

To add. The 130.58 hemlock that Joy is posing with actually goes
taller than the top of the picture, though it is hard to see.

JP

== 2 of 2 ==
Date: Sun, May 18 2008 9:16 pm
From: James Parton

Bob Smith,

Jones Gap is really worth a visit. Put it high on your list.

I visited the Mt. Jefferson Natural Area yesterday. It was a very nice
area with great views. Oaks, Red and Chestnut were dominant, as well
as Birch and American Chestnut. American Chestnut is very common in
the understory there and I found 4 living chestnuts over 27 feet tall.
The tallest was a canopy tree at 40.20 feet tall! That's good
considering the tallest of the oaks struggle to make 60 feet tall
here. The Park Service knew of the tree and had a pink ribbon circling
it.

But it is not the largest I found this weekend. Following up on a lead
from a bear hunter and with my pastors help I located two huge
American Chestnuts in Big Ivy ( PNF ). The biggest is 62.82 feet
tall! The only Chestnut I have seen taller is a 75 ft tall one Will
showed me in Cataloochee Valley.

I will post both the Mt. Jefferson report and Big Ivy Chestnuts report
in the near future.

James P.

==============================================================================
TOPIC: Jones Gap State Park SC
http://groups.google.com/group/entstrees/browse_thread/thread/e382f22bcf81ecc6?hl=en
==============================================================================

== 1 of 2 ==
Date: Mon, May 19 2008 3:30 pm
From: "Jess Riddle"

James,

Nice to see someone appreciating one of my old stomping grounds. The
park's diverse geology, aspects, elevations, and position right on the
Blue Ridge Escarpment, where the Appalachians meet the Piedmont,
foster a wide variety of forest types, and some of the less productive
ones on rugged terrain escaped logging. The extensive trail network
also provides easy access to that diversity. Did you get a chance to
check out the Rim of the Gap, Pinnacle or Fall Branch Falls trees?
Within a couple miles of the parking area, each of those trails passes
through a forest that is exemplary for its type in South Carolina.
The Rim of the Gap Trail, just before it reaches the crest of Little
Pinnacle Mountain, passes through a rich cove forest with yellow
buckeye, tuliptree, silverbell, and black walnut in the canopy. The
forest would be less noticeable in North Carolina, but because most of
the higher elevations in SC are south facing, the state has few sites
cool enough to support well developed rich cove forest. As the
Pinnacle Pass Trail climbs up from the Middle Saluda River to its
namesake mountain, it traverses a thin soiled, north facing slope that
supports a nearly pure stand of uncut chestnut oak. Across the gorge,
the thin soiled, south facing slopes along the Fall Creek Falls trail
support a more unusual old-growth forest dominated by Virginia pine
and pale hickory. One description of Little Pinnacle Mountain,
http://www.nativetreesociety.org/fieldtrips/south_carolina/little_pinnacle_mountain.htm,
was the only write-up I posted that covered Jones Gap State Park. I
hope you have a chance to go back and explore more of area.

Jess

== 2 of 2 ==
Date: Mon, May 19 2008 8:30 pm
From: James Parton

Jess,

Joy and I hiked well up the Jones Gap trail and also hiked up to
Rainbow Falls on the Rainbow Falls trail. You are the second one to
recommend the Rim of the Gap trail. I will definitely return there.

In addition to the above trees I included in my post, I also found
some Sweetgum trees there too. It is rare in the forests near my home
outside of Hendersonville NC.

James P.

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