It’s shocking how the beauty is juxtaposed with destruction—we’ve seen a lot of that the last few days we’ve spent in our focal conservation areas along the SE coast.In the Green Swamp it was painfully obvious.One side of the road there is mystical, majestic longleaf pine savannah which takes you away to another world.On the other side of the road, and comprising much of the tens of thousands of acres that makes up the Green Swamp, is land dominated by single-species pine plantations—not a pretty sight.It’s completely bizarre, the trees are actually in rows and there is not wildlife to be seen.It’s sad and shocking.
Lake Waccamaw is the same way, this amazing area is surrounded by IP land—it’s as if the paper company is just waiting for someone to take their guard down so they can sweep in and steel it
away to make more packaging for fast food restaurants.
Luckily, there are people who love these areas, whose culture is defined by these areas, and who will do anything to protect these areas.There are people like us, and people like you who hold these companies accountable when they attempt to make such atrocious acts.
The goal of the weekend was to make it up the coast from the Green Swamp area up to Virginia
to the Zuni Pine Barrens and The Great Dismal Swamp—both areas which represent the forests we are working to protect. Along the way we plan to talk to folks about the impacts of packaging on
Southern forests.
Today we made it Pettigrew Lake after a beautiful drive through rural North Carolina, past farms and forests alike.Pettigrew is home to some of the last remaining old growth in the South.A lot of it was damaged in 2003 during Hurricane Isabel, but a lot of it remains standing majestically. Along the road driving into Pettigrew Lake are rows of 150 year old cypress trees—astonishing.
Joshua with the Virginia Sierra Club met up with us today, and after camping this lovely evening we plan to spend Sunday heading to Virginia to see one of the most unique ecosystems in the South—the Zuni Pine Barrens (if we can find it—it’s not on any map so hopefully we find it before IP does!)
Till tomorrow,
Eva
