Hurricane Matthew Boardwalk Repair

In our previous post regarding Hurricane Matthew, we showed the three boardwalk issues related to the storm. Yesterday, with the water finally low enough to use the chainsaw on the oak's trunk, we began the final repair.

Oak tip-up damage - Image Mark Musselman

For the beginners out there, the first rule of boardwalk repair is to avoid the venomous Eastern Cottonmouth. If you cannot see the snake, we will remove you from the boardwalk repair volunteer list and you can scroll down to the bottom of the blog for a helpful image.

Eastern Cottonmouth supervising repairs - Image Mark Musselman

With the oak resting in two places against separate trees as well as on a branch impaled in the earth, calculating the direction in which the tension would release was the largest concern. Not only did we not want to pinch a saw, we wanted the root ball to drop back in place and remove itself as an obstacle.

Crown of oak - Image Mark Musselman

Mike Dawson cutting trunk - Image Mark Musselman

With some scrap lumber supporting the trunk on the crown side of the cut, the root side of the cut stood up and dropped the root ball back in its hole clearing the way for the boardwalk repair.

Root ball dropped in place - Image Mark Musselman

Supported boardwalk - Image Mark Musselman

Mighty oak - Image Mark Musselman

Only one mid-rail was broken by the uplifting. However, the intact section of boardwalk was too heavy for two men to move as a unit.

Boardwalk in the breach - Image Mark Musselman

Therefore, the railings and deck boards needed to be removed...

Removing deck boards - Image Mark Musselman

...and reassembled once the supporting boards were lifted back in place.

Attaching stringers - Image Mark Musselman

Decking complete - Image Mark Musselman

This morning, we returned to ram the lifted 4x4s back to level and reattach the mid-rails and handrails. All sections of the boardwalk are now repaired and open! After some repairs to a nearby rest stop, the boardwalk will be back to pre-Matthew form.

Final touches - Image Mark Musselman

For those who missed the snake earlier:

Cottonmouth revealed - Image Mark Musselman

Hurricane Matthew

The wind and rain of Hurricane Matthew visited the Francis Beidler Forest October 7-8, 2016. In preparation for the storm, we put shutters on the windows, unplugged the electronics and went home.

Shuttered windows - Image Mark Musselman

Neither the wind nor the rain alone would have caused much damage to the swamp. However, in combination they brought down some mighty trees, mainly oaks. It rained through the night of October 7th, which saturated the ground and set up the shallow-rooted oaks for the morning winds of October 8th.

We knew there would be trees along driveway that would need to be cleared before we could access the buildings and boardwalk. There were twenty-one trees across the driveway and all but two simply tipped over.

Trees across driveway - Image Mark Musselman

The vast majority of the trees across the driveway fell adjacent to the recent clear-cut on our neighbor's property to the north. With absolutely nothing to slow the wind, the narrow strip of trees in the drainage along the north side of the driveway took the full brunt of the storm's winds.

Neighboring clear-cut visible in background - Image Mark Musselman

With help from the staff of the Silver Bluff Audubon Center and Sanctuary, the driveway was clear the day after the storm. No buildings sustained damage. The boardwalk had three damaged sections along the backside.

Driveway after clearing - Image Mark Musselman

The boardwalk damage spanned the spectrum from major to minor to emotional. One section sustained only damage to a few deck boards and was quickly repaired. Another portion of the boardwalk (image below) had an oak destroy the entire 12-foot section, but the repair was straightforward.

Damaged boardwalk - Image Richard Covey

Major damage was inflicted upon the boardwalk by an oak tipping from alongside the boardwalk with the root ball uplifting an entire section like a drawbridge. Full of soil, the root ball cannot be chainsawed without damage to the saw nor can the root ball be easily dismantled by other means. The crown end of the heavy tree is still supported by at least one other tree upon which it fell, so cutting through the trunk without pinching a saw will be tricky. This repair has yet to be attempted as the water level, which rose over the boardwalk after this image was taken, is only now receding below the fallen tree.

Damaged boardwalk - Image Richard Covey

Finally, the emotional damage occurred when the living-yet-hollow bald cypress, into which visitors could step, folded over upon itself. Search a visitor's photo library and they likely have an image of someone in their group peering out from "the hollow tree."

The Hollow Tree - Image Richard Covey

After the storm and most of the cleanup, the water continued to rise. In the image below, a sign on the boardwalk rail shows the water level from last October's historic rain. Just beyond that sign at the base of the hickory tree is a nail denoting the high-water level from 1979's Hurricane David. Hurricane Matthew's water level crept slightly higher than what can be seen in the background, but fell short of Hurricane David's mark.

High-water levels - Image Mark Musselman

The next two images show the boardwalk before the rising water came up over the deck boards.

Rising water - Image Mark Musselman

Rising water - Image Mark Musselman

The following images show the high water from last October's historic rain. Although slightly higher than the Hurricane Matthew water level, the images give an idea of how the boardwalk appeared.

Boardwalk directly behind nature center - Image Mark Musselman

Boardwalk at #1 - Image Mark Musselman

Boardwalk near #2 - Image Mark Musselman

Boardwalk at fork near #3 - Image Mark Musselman

Boardwalk near #4 - Image Mark Musselman

Boardwalk back to #14 - Image Mark Musselman

Boardwalk at #18 - Image Mark Musselman

Boardwalk at #19 hollow tree - Image Mark Musselman

Boardwalk at #11 Goodson Lake - Image Mark Musselman

Beyond some road erosion, the only other damage yet detected occurred in our young longleaf pine stands. Seedlings that may have been planted in wet areas or areas with poorly consolidated soils after logging operations were unable to stand up to the storm's winds as 12-15' trees.

Fallen longleaf pine - Image Mark Musselman

Leaning longleaf pine - Image Mark Musselman

Boardwalk Construction Continues

The construction of the new boardwalk at the Audubon Center at Francis Beidler Forest continues with workers reaching the high ground between the nature center and the boardwalk fork. The lack of rain over the last week has allowed the construction bypass trail to dry out, so the boardwalk is open again except for individuals with certain mobility limitations. Once construction reaches the fork, there will be no need for the off-boardwalk bypass trail and access will be regained for all individuals. You can keep track of the construction progress by visiting the boardwalk map here.

Boardwalk Construction - Mark Musselman

Boardwalk Handrails - Mark Musselman

While checking the boardwalk for fallen limbs and damage, we noted some birds in migration and other wildlife on or near the boardwalk. American Redstarts have been seen recently and we spied both a Northern Waterthrush (also calling) and a Louisiana Waterthrush along the edge of the swamp between #174 and #179.

Near the Meeting Tree at #120, we observed a juvenile Yellow-crowned Night Heron on the boardwalk handrail and later spotted it picking at crayfish-filled raccoon scat near the hollow tree at #179.

Yellow-crowned Night Heron - Mark Musselman

It posed nicely for some additional shots, which we can add to our library.

Yellow-crowned Night Heron - Mark Musselman

On the second platform out at Goodson Lake, we found a large, non-venomous, fish-eating Brown Water Snake taking advantage of the sunlight and the low visitor count.

Brown Water Snake - Mark Musselman

How can anyone be frightened by this mug?

Brown Water Snake - Mark Musselman

Come High Water!

The rain over the last weeks has produced water levels not seen along the boardwalk at the Audubon Center at Francis Beidler Forest since the spring of 1997.  Although feet below the aftereffects of Hurricane David in 1979, when walking on the boardwalk would put one knee deep in water, this has been a significant water event for Four Holes Swamp.  We have posted a video at the end of this blog.

Hurricane David High Water Mark - Mark Musselman

A nail about a foot above the base of the Mockernut Hickory tree marks the extent of the water dumped by Hurricane David.  The current rain event has pushed water up to the base of the tree.

Marsh Rabbit - Mark Musselman

Although Marsh Rabbits (Sylvilagus palustris) are comfortable swimming, they apparently have their limits.  This individual was high in the pine woods directly behind the Loblolly Pine sign.

Water in High Pine Woods - Mark Musselman

Water often pools in the pine woods, mainly in depressions created by tip-ups when Hurricane Hugo knocked down 80% of the canopy.  However, during this rain event, the high ground was flooded and the water was running across the pine woods.

Water in High Pine Woods - Mark Musselman

White Ibis in High Pine Woods - Mark Musselman

A trio of White Ibis (Eudocimus albus) were foraging in the high pine woods because everywhere else in the swamp was too deep for wading.  We were not sure what they might be finding as the newly submerged habitat is not known for crayfish or fish.

Yellow-crowned Night Heron in High Pine Woods - Mark Musselman

A Yellow-crowned Night Heron (Nyctanassa violacea) was wading in the water on the opposite side of the boardwalk from the White Ibis.

Yellow-crowned Night Heron in High Pine Woods - Mark Musselman

Approaching the fork in the boardwalk, the water could be seen up to the cross supports.

Swamp Edge - Mark Musselman

Although the boardwalk is relatively level, the 1977 construction was mainly accomplished by volunteers not professionally certified in carpentry, so the keyword is relatively.  The low spots could be detected by the various depths of water across the deck.

Approaching Fork in Boardwalk - Mark Musselman

In some cases, the water had already receded.

Water Over Boardwalk - Mark Musselman

Fork on Boardwalk - Mark Musselman

The return portion of the boardwalk parallels the edge of the swamp and is often dry under the boardwalk.  In the image below, the water can be seen close to the deck.

High Water at #20 - Mark Musselman

At the #3 rest area, the water is up to the deck supports though the reflection off the water gives the impression of space below the boardwalk.

High Water at #3 - Mark Musselman

If any Prothonotary Warblers had nests below the level of the nest boxes on the signs, the nests were submerged and a loss.

Sign at #3 - Mark Musselman

Looking out from the rest area at #3, not a single one of the thousands of cypress knees can be seen due to the high water.

No Knees Visible From #3 - Mark Musselman

The cypress tree felled at #4 by Hurricane Hugo was under water except for a small portion at the root end.

Water Over Fallen Cypress at #4 - Mark Musselman

 Looking back at the Meeting Tree, the water can be seen approaching the boardwalk deck.

High Water at Meeting Tree - Mark Musselman

High Water at Meeting Tree - Mark Musselman

The high water limited the above-water options and made it treacherous for emerging aquatic insects.  A Dark Fishing Spider (Dolomedes tenebrosus) made a meal of a dragonfly that had selected poorly and emerged on a boardwalk cross support.

Dark Fishing Spider - Mark Musselman

Dark Fishing Spider - Mark Musselman

The large knee at #5, which many state looks like a wave, is barely exposed above the water's surface.

"Wave" Knee at #5 - Mark Musselman

 Though the knees in the channel at #5 are quite tall, not a one could be seen above the water.

No Knees Visible at #5 - Mark Musselman

Approach to #6 - Mark Musselman

Rest Area at #6 - Mark Musselman

No Knees Visible Beyond 7' Knee - Mark Musselman

High Water at #8 - Mark Musselman

 The shadows make it difficult to see, but the water is just below the deck at the #9 rain shelter.

Rain Shelter at #9 - Mark Musselman

High Water at T on Boardwalk - Mark Musselman

High Water at T on Boardwalk - Mark Musselman

 Animals of all sorts took advantage of any resting spots out of the water.

Yellow-bellied Slider with Eastern Mud Turtle - Mark Musselman

High Water at #10 - Mark Musselman

Bald Cypress at #10 - Mark Musselman

View of Second Platform From #10 - Mark Musselman

Tower at Goodson Lake - Mark Musselman

Tower at Goodson Lake - Mark Musselman

The average water level at Goodson Lake is 4.0'.  The level at the time of the image on Tuesday was 7.53' down from the morning level of 7.6'.  The heavy rain yesterday will likely counter some drop in the water level.

Goodson Lake Gauge - Mark Musselman

Looking back from the tower at Goodson Lake to an area that is almost always dry or extremely shallow, the water can be seen covering all the cypress knees, including one that had been used as a nesting site by Prothonotary Warblers earlier in the season.

Boardwalk to Second Platform - Mark Musselman

 A Southern Toad (Bufo terrestris) could find no dry ground except for the boardwalk.

Southern Toad at #10 - Mark Musselman

Elsewhere, a small Eastern Cottonmouth (Agkistrodon piscivorus piscivorus) also sought high ground on the boardwalk.

Eastern Cottonmouth - Mark Musselman

The high water has basically eliminated all above-water basking sites except for the boardwalk we installed.  Fear not!  After taking the first image from a significant distance, the snake quickly retreated as we tried to get a more artistic ground level shot.  Dry is nice, but humans are huge and scary and retreat is the best option.  Remember, the majority of people have problems with snakes once they begin to mess with the snakes.

Eastern Cottonmouth - Mark Musselman

If you have not seen the swamp with high water, do not wait another 15-20 years for the next event!