CRANBERRY WILDERNESS

“Its looking like its going to rain on us to..

http://www.meetup.com/THRadventure/calendar/9741350/

'32oz”

“What do ya mean, "us"?”

“A bunch of 'us' are doing the 60 mile section of the Allegheny trail just North of Durbin WV...

We did the 60 miles south of it last year... Should be an awesome trip...

'32oz
last edited: 5/18/09 5:28:28 AM”

“I'm going out to day to test the knee--maybe if Sunnydayz shows up we'll have good weather? Or maybe just a lot of fun toasting to the weather!”

“Aw shucks, I thought you might grace us with your presence, 32.

It would be great if you join us, Sunny!”

“Yeah, it would have been fun Mark, but I want to get the Allegheny Trail done, and this was a good opportunity to rip 60 more miles out...

'32oz”

“yeah..................you go ahead and rip out those 60 miles.”

“yo MarkO... I sold your sticks man.....on ebay! Now trying to sell your reflectex pad for a buck.”

“Friday: Mostly sunny, with a high near 75.

Friday Night: Partly cloudy, with a low around 53.

Saturday: Partly sunny, with a high near 75.

Saturday Night: Partly cloudy, with a low around 54.

Sunday: Partly sunny, with a high near 74.

Sunday Night: Partly cloudy, with a low around 56.

Memorial Day: A chance of showers and thunderstorms. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 71. Chance of precipitation is 30%.”

“That's OK Refrigitater, I know you gots to eat.

Be careful where ya stick those sticks.”

“Looks like some great weather for the weekend!”

“Indeed it do!”

“The Cranberry Glades is the largest area of bogs, or acidic wetlands, in West Virginia, a unique and exotic ecosystem on 750 acres. This spectacular and beautiful area was established by the United States Forest Service in 1965, to protect and preserve over 60 unique plant species, many of them descended from seeds that took root here over 10,000 years ago.
Whether you are looking at an individual fuchsia-colored Wild Orchid or taking in the beauty of the bog plains, there is a special tranquility found only here.
The Glade’s fascinating sphagnum bogs are similar to that found in “Muskegs” of the Artic Tundra. When you first enter the area, you will notice Red Spruce, hemlock and Yellow Birch trees.
Carnivorous or insect-eating plants also make their home in the bogs. Bishop’s Cap, Jewelweed, False Hellebore, Indian Pipe, Turtlehead, Wild Raisin, Sundew, Grass Pink Orchid, and the Pitcher Plant.

Keep a watchful eye as you walk through the area and you might spy some of these wild animals: American Black Bear, WV Northern Flying Squirrel, Red-tailed Hawk, American Bald Eagle, Red Fox, coyote, White-tailed Deer, Cooper Hawk, and Eastern Screech-Owl.
The geological history of the Glades has been traced back at least 12,200 years ago. Apparently, a forest of conifer-northern hardwoods replaced tundra. Over time the Glades formed into what it is today. Now, most of the bog is underlain by peat that is up to 10 feet (3.0 m) thick. Under the peat is a layer of algal ooze and the ooze by marl. Since a limestone source in the surrounding rocks is indicated, an ample source appears to be present in the underlying Hinton Formation, a circumstance that also has significant implications for the Glades' flora.
The area is not entirely a glade, but a bog or wetland covered with all sorts of decaying vegetation. The peat and decaying organic matter is more than ten feet thick under the dense plant cover. The ground is not as much as quicksand or swampy, but spongy. It is in a high valley, about 3,300 to 3,400 feet (1,005 to 1,036 meters) above sea level, surrounded by the Cranberry, Kennison, and Black Mountains.
The water from the Glades drains to form the headwaters of the Cranberry River, a popular trout stream joined by the Yew and Charles Creeks. It starts at about 4,600 feet (1,400 m) above the sea, and then it meanders through the glades and recedes through a narrow gap between Kennison and Black Mountains. It then joins the Gauley River 25 miles (40 km) down the mountains at about 1,920 feet (590 m) above sea level.

The plants found in the glades resemble those in the northern region of North America. They are descendants of seeds that took root over ten thousand years ago. Of these are two rare species of carnivorous plants that thrive in the area. The purple pitcher plant and native sundew turned carnivorous because of practically no root food in the spongy soil. Two very rare boreal plants, bog rosemary and buckbean live in the 59-acre (240,000 m2) opening in the area called Big Glade. The smallest, Little Glade is 1-acre (4,000 m2) in size.
Much of the area provides a home for all sorts of mosses. These include a cover of sphagnum moss, bird-wheat moss, bog moss and reindeer lichen. Hummocks of these plants reach a height of 3 feet (0.91 m). Over top of these grow prostrate cranberry vines that bloom nice pink flowers in the summer and a bunch of fruits in late September. Several species of orchids and carnivorous plants grow here. Rose pogonia and grass-pink colored orchids are in full bloom in July.
The bog forest is composed mainly of red spruce, hemlock, and yellow birch. There are also a lot of rare, northern herbs that populate the area. These include oak fern, blue joint, drooping wood reed grass, Millet Grass, Rattlesnake Mannagrass, Interior Sedge, Pod Grass, Yellow Clintonia, Canada Mayflower, White Hellebore, Northern Coralroot, Lesser Rattlesnake Plantain, Mountain Bindweed, Marsh Marigold, Goldthread, Swamp Saxifrage, White Wood Sorrel, Northern White Violet, and Buckbean. Rare herbs found in the Glades include pod grass, Frasers sedge and Jacobs ladder.
Because of the cool climate of the Glades, the amount of canopy tree species is not great. Red Spruce, Canada Hemlock, Yellow Birch, Red Maple, Black Ash and Pitch Pine are common. Upland forests immediately surrounding the wetlands are dominated by Yellow Birch, Red Maple, Red Spruce, Beech, Sugar Maple, Black Cherry, American Basswood, White Ash, Yellow Buckeye, Black Birch, Cucumber, Fraser Magnolias, White Oak, and Canada Hemlock. There are also many more understory trees.
Unlike the trees in the area, the shrubs in the area are very diverse. This is in part a consequence of the presence of shrub swamps, forest habitats, and open glades. The dominant of the shrubs is Speckled Alder. Also common are Pipestem, Glade St. Johns-wort, Great Rhododendron, Hobblebush, Smooth Arrowwood, Roughish Arrowwood, Wild Raisin, Oblongfruited Serviceberry, Ninebark, Alternate-leaved Dogwood, Bunchberry, Winterberry Holly, Mountain Holly, and the Appalachian endemic Longstalked Holly, Swamp Rose, Canada Yew, Bog Rosemary and many more. Bog Rosemary is at its southernmost limit of distribution. Oblongfruited Serviceberry is a rare northern shrub, isolated from the rest of its species. More than ten of these shrubs have markedly northern distributions and at least three are at their farthest southern limits. The Canada Yew is a special evergreen shrub that was once so common in the area, that the Yew Creek and Yew Mountains are named after it. Browsing deer has reduced its numbers to the extent that it is found only in scattered locations throughout its Central Appalachian range. This includes Cranberry Glades.
Many animals that live in the Glades are at their southernmost breeding grounds, including birds such as the Swainson’s and Hermit thrushes, Nashville and mourning warblers, and Purple finches. Other, more common birds like ravens and hawks populate the area. Other familiar animals including deer inhabit the glades, Black bears. In the evening, you have a good chance of hearing beavers working; they are mostly inactive during the day.


Cranberry Glades is known for frequent weather changes. Generally speaking, the area is cool and wet, comparable to the climates of New England and Canada. The higher mountains surrounding the Glades form a bowl, draining their cool air downhill to the Glades.
Due to the high elevation, the potential for frost exists year-round at Cranberry Glades. In some years, the frost-free period has been as short as 81 days. Still, the average summer high is in roughly 74°F-82°F (23°C-28°C). Mid-winter temperatures record as low as −26 °F (−32.2 °C), and the area often sees heavy snow.”

“hey fridge, I'm heading up to do the Devils path in NY. I would of called but my phone crapped and I lost all my contacts. I figure I could use the DP to get in shape for AK.”