Weather Service warns of high winds today, tonight

former inhabitants long before white men called the Frazer River winds the evil winds. 70 mph gusts are getting to be a regular thing here in town and its surround.

I was shocked when I inched along Enchanted Forest Road last Saturday, to see my favorite maple tree (the one I used to call “the dancer” because it always looked like it was dancing or waving) blown down, only a stump left now – Did these high winds cause its final destruction? I don’t know, but. I feel deeply sad at its loss – it leaves a big blighted hole in the friendly row of maples along the road. High winds and more wind throw will only get worse as we develop more and more and cut away at the forests and park them out to look like separate matchsticks with zero understory, as was done on Victory Hill. We will only become a worse and worse wind tunnel as we continue to disrespect what trees do. On top of that, we put high mounted spotlights on everything, destroying the dark sky, and every day I pick up road kill – small birds, squirrels, etc. So many drivers speed along these roads, killing the displaced wildlife.

Have you ever walked along on a cold blustery day, then hit a small patch of forest and been grateful at how much warmer and more sheltered it was in the forest? No wind, or very little! It’s time to get serious about protecting the remaining forests, especially in our UGA where there is water on both sides of a very narrow land mass. There was still snow and ice on the sidewalk outside of Lavender Hollow as of yesterday – Tuesday – why? No more windbreak is my guess.