Walking Spirits?

We used to think of fallen trees in terms of loss and sadness for a beloved tree. Now we see it as a great opportunity. I was out hiking today with Forestry Engineers Manuel Viquez and Yamileth (and all the children) when we came across a large fallen tree - a Nispero. We all became quite excited because, in the great battle in the forest, a clearing to the sun is a coveted dream of every struggling forest tree trying to survive. We shall be able to use the fallen Nispero in many ways at the Finca and, at first glance around the newly sunny clearing, could recognize seedlings of Jorco (Garcinia intermedia), Calophyllum, Cenizaro, Ingas, more Nisperos and a bunch of pioneer trees. What a thrill!

One of the smaller branches became Barry's new walking stick. A few weeks ago, I broke Barry's beautifully painted walking stick into two pieces. How did I manage that? I whacked the ground with it just in front of our dog, Spotty, who at that moment was straddling and tearing into one of our chickens. A bewildered Barry reported afterwards - never get her mad! Needless to say, I felt terrible about it so asked Armando to repair his stick. By the way, both chicken and dog survived the incident. Armando tried gluing Barry's walking stick back together but realized that it was made of a soft wood, probably Guazuma. We decided to make Barry a new walking stick. Armando crafted one out of the fallen hardwood and heat dried it to make it lightweight yet very strong. This very fine walking stick is a work of indigenous art and superior function. This stick goes to Barry.

But the excitement of the fallen Nispero wasn't the only highlight of my hike with Manuel and Yamileth! We took the new trail into the old forest, which Armando had just finished this past season and soon came across an area of rocks that seemed arranged in concentric circles. Armando already knew of this place and conjectured that it was once a tool-making daycamp for indigenous people in the past. Manuel began searching amonst the rocks and soon discovered proof - a rock that clearly had been worked upon and probably discarded when it broke. Then we found another rock that looked like it had been fashioned into a large stone mortar. Now we were really excited and discussed how the Huetar people might have used the site. We imagined a group of guys sitting around, make tools together and talking just like modern guys now do on the tennis court and back at the locker room.

Armando reminded us of the time, many years ago while still a child, he came across a large, stone, animal crafted bench at the indigenous cemetary, located near the Tigre waterfalls. Next day, he returned with a friend to show him but the stone animal had disappeared. The locals describe this phenomenon as the 'walking spirits' trying to escape the humans. Did the stone walk away or was it pilfered? We don't know but I decided to hedge by bets. All stone work will remain in situ (for future archaeologists), and we will carefully screen who we take to the indigenous remains at Tigre. Thankfully, most hikers just view the sites as a common place pile of rocks so the spirits should be appeased.

We were so excited about the stone workers that we nearly missed a rare variety of Vanilla orchid vines climbing about a fallen tree. This was big news for my Forest Engineering friends because their latest mission (and they have many - elmundoforestal.com) is to rescue rare orchids and other epiphytes from the dry forest and reproduce them. We quickly made a deal. Manuel could take one complete Orchid vine, complete with root (it's hemi-epiphytic) and return to me some potted Vanilla ornamentals plants complete with trellis. Done! We shook hands on the deal and continued exploring the new trail.

And then,
WE FOUND A NEW SPECIES!!!
Actually, the species had already been identified - Diospyros digyna (Ebenaceae) - but it was the first time we had come across it at Tigre. Locals call it Sapote Negro or Mabola and it's known for its edible fruit and shiny seeds. While discussing the properties of this beautiful tree, my favorite dog Flopsy came over and began eating the fallen fruit - he clearly like it! And he's not dead yet! Also on the new trail, we also came across more Nispero (Manilkara chicle), Roble Coral (Terminalia amazonia), Ron Ron (Astronium graveolens), Ojoche Colorado (Brosimum colorado) and a bunch more already described elsewhere.

As we finished our hike, we discussed plans for documenting the new trails with GPS waypoints on AutoCad and making some new maps. We also have plans for gridding out the charrales and young forests for work into the future. Manuel and Armando will begin this work soon after I leave Costa Rica for New Orleans.

Yes - I leave TexMex and Costa Rica behind on April 8th and join Gerry in New Orleans for the upcoming Vieux Carre and Jazz Fests. Talk about a counterpoint to tropical forestry!

Now, for all you GRAK fans,
TODAY IS THE DAY!
Gerry returned to court this afternoon for his final session in this trial. I tried to go with him -even had a charming 'supportive wife' outfit all picked out - but he preferred that I stay here. He would have enough support from his entourage of lawyers and colleagues. Will Gerry manage to stay out of jail? Only the Costa Rican Judge knows for sure. If all goes well, then Gerry flies back out of Costa Rica tomorrow and returns to his beloved New Orleans.

I shall remain here at TexMex and deal with construction out at Tigre until April 8th, when I will finally join him. Si dios permite.