Tyson Cross, Steve Sunday, Ralph Swain
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Don’t do too much
« Allow
3 to 4 Minutes per site
« Rapid assessment allows for more time searching
out new sites to complete the census portion of
Element 6
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GPS coordinates, photo-points and maps are
important for finding new sites
´ Route planning is critical
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GPS, Photo-points and maps
This is of greater importance when the person who completed the original campsite
inventories is not available. Whenever possible, completion of inventories should
be done consistently by the same person. This is often not possible, and new
evaluators will have a difficult time being confident that they are in the correct site.
GPS points have an error associated with them, and new sites may appear every
summer.
Route Planning
Good route planning will allow an evaluator to efficiently visit existing sites and
simultaneously search for new sites. Keep in mind that previous inventories were
probably not done as a census, but rather a measure of popular or heavily impacted
areas.
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The distinction between an inventory and a
census is important
´ Search for all possible campsites
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Inventory vs. Census
The distinction between an inventory and a census is critical. In order to complete
the census, 95% of possible sites need to be found. In order to accomplish this,
tracking and recording your steps is important. I personally leave the GPS unit on,
and then plot my tracks in order to see if I visited all of the possible areas. Also,
route planning is, again, important in order to complete a census.
Finding Possible Sites
To do this, look for sites near water, level spots, (benches) and follow social trails to
possible campsite locations. It is important to be diligent and thorough in exploring
drainages. It helps to formulate and adapt a solid plan for checking all possible
areas. After a day in the field review the work you have done and create a route
plan for the next day. Take into account the difficulties of steep off trail hiking. Plan
a route that will allow you to check all likely areas without retracing your steps to
much. If two people are working on the inventory together, they should fan out but
stay in eye sight of each other. Finding level 1 campsites can be tricky.
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Notes:
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Route planning
Make sure to track your route in order to avoid inventorying the same place twice
and to make sure that all areas are inventoried. The map above shows my GPS
“Tracks” as I inventoried the Lost Creek Wilderness. In the field I would leave my
GPS unit on, then download my tracks in order to keep track of the area I had
inventoried. Another way to keep track of the area you inventory is to encompass
and hatch mark the area you inventory on a topo-map.
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A consistent protocol for numbering sites is
critical
R2 will use the following:
Wilderness – 3 digit number (Infra-Wild)
Trail – 4 digit number
Campsite – 3 digit number
Numbering Campsites
Trail numbers are used in forest travel management
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Complete minimum protocol site information
sheet using NAD 83 and UTM coordinates
´ Take a macro photo of site information sheet
´ Take a landscape picture of site
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NAD 83
Using the correct units is critical. If the map Datum is not NAD 83, the GPS points
will not interface correctly with the computer software, and relocating the points will
be difficult. NAD 83 is usually not the default datum for your GPS Unit. Please
make sure you are using the correct datum every time you enter the field.
Pictures of sites
Site photos should be shot from approximately 20 ft. away from fire ring or center of
activity. Try to show a landmark such as a boulder or clump of trees. Take an
azimuth and pace to the known object. Try to keep good notes so that people can
return to the site. It is a good idea to shoot the photo with your back to the trail and
lens to the campsite.
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If you take more than one photo, make sure to take good field notes in order to
indicate the number of photos and distance
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Review Campsite monitoring procedures by
David Cole
´ Evaluate groundcover loss relative to
surrounding area
´ Document site recovery in tracking notes
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Campsite monitoring procedures
David Cole has outlined, in detail, the procedures for the Minimum Protocol for
Campsite Monitoring. This document is rich in information and contains all of the
necessary information for completing these inventories. The document is rich in
information. Read the document several times and refer to it often.
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What counts as “severe” tree damage can be
difficult to evaluate
´ Special situation: Krumholtz
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Severe tree damage
What counts as a severely damaged tree can be difficult to determine. Again,
reading through David Cole’s Monitoring Procedures will help. Concentrate on
human damage, and what can be considered human damage. Look for trees that
have hatchet marks, girdling, root damage from compaction and erosion, and
unnaturally felled trees.
Krumholtz
Krumholtz, a German term meaning “crooked wood” can be found at high
elevations in the central Rockies. These trees are usually dwarfed sub-alpine firs or
Engelmann spruce trees. The standard according to the Monitoring Procedures
is to count trees that have been cut down only if they are larger than 4 inches. In
Krumholtz stands it may be appropriate to count smaller trees as being severely
damaged.
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The tree on the left does not have 1 square foot of damage, so unless there is more
damage to the tree elsewhere, it does not qualify as a severely damaged tree. It is
important to use the written definitions of damage, and not a personal evaluation.
The tree on the right looks like natural damage. Unless there are marks that seem
as though they are caused by humans (hatchet marks etc.) then the tree should not
be counted. If marks were present on this tree, it would count because there is
more than a square foot of damage.
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Severe damage
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I was able to count over 50 rings on this tree that was 2 inches wide
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Measure out a 16’ x 16’ area to mentally
calculate 255 sq. ft.
´ What is “normal” for a given area?
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Normality
In order to better determine what counts as the disturbed area, it is a good idea to
examine what is normal in a given area. This can be tricky, so spend some time
looking around in order to get a good idea of the micro ecosystems around you
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Lodgepole Pine and other areas with little
ground cover
´ Pinion-juniper cover type
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Loge pole
Loge pole pine is often considered the “desert of the forest” ecosystem. Vegetation
can be sparse in the loge pole pine ecosystems. Again, refer to the special
situations section of the Monitoring Procedures in order to better grasp what to
do in these situations
Pinion-juniper cover type
Clues such as bare mineral vs. leaf litter, and even the flatness of the soil in the
area are important indicators. In pinion-juniper areas, look for damage to
cryptobiotic (living) soils.
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Lean to’s
Lean-to’s are recorded with the minimum protocol work if there are signs of
camping. If there are trees cut down around them, or a fire ring then they may be
counted. They may be counted with a more involved protocol.
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