impressive West Virginia white oak   Dale J. Luthringer   Feb 17, 2004 18:22 PST  Bob, As I chauffeured my wife and sister to Kentucky over the weekend, I was also brushing up on Will's advanced old growth ID course: 'Old Growth 401: Old Growth/Ancient Tree Delineation at 70+MPH'. Now I know why they have those rumble strips at the edges of the berm on the interstate. On the way south on I-79 to Charleston, I noted a number of very small old tree pockets and old individual trees. There were some impressive white oaks along the interstate. One in particular was a jaw dropper. It was on the northbound sound of the interstate, so I made a mental note of it and thought I'd try to measure it along the way back. Its twisted limbs and trunk burls made a lasting impression. Needless to say, we were able to make a very quick stop to get its girth on the way back north. My wife was amazed at how someone can find one tree out of 500 miles of highway. I was just happy that I didn't get stuck on the chest high barbed wire fence I had to hop to get its girth. I'm sure there are larger documented white oaks, but this single stem 19ft CBH (even) was no slouch. It had large head sized burls on its trunk, with a nice spreading crown but thinning top. I estimate the height to not go much over 70ft with a crown spread of 75-100ft. That's all I could get considering the Sunday traffic. The tree was located on the southbound lane of I-79 about 1 mile south Exit 115/RT20 not too far from Fairmont, WV at the edge of a fallow farm field. Dale   Home