Interpreting Catskill Forest History: Culturally Burnt and Old Growth Sites

Join us for a unique field trip that combines the expertise of the preeminent Catskills Forest historian, Michael Kudish, with the specialized knowledge of Justin Wexler, a scholar of the ethnoecology of the Catskills region. Over the course of this full-day field trip, we will visit and compare two very different forest sites: a forest that was shaped by centuries of Native Peoples' prescribed burns, and an ancient forest that shows little evidence of human impact.

Field Trip Logistics:

When: Thursday, April 30^th; rain date: Thursday, May 7th from 10 AM to 4 PM

Where: Meet in Margaretville and carpool to two locations in the Central-Western Catskills. Maps & locations will be sent to participants after registration. Carpooling from our meeting place in Margaretville will be necessary, as parking is limited at field trip sites.

Who can register: Anyone! This field trip is open to the general public.

Logistics: Please bring your own a bag lunch and water/drinks. No bathrooms will be available during the field trip (just the great outdoors). Plan to wear sturdy closed-toes shoes and bring a backpack with your lunch, water, extra layers, and essentials, as we will be outdoors for the entire field trip and navigating off trail at times.

Field Trip Leaders:

• Michael Kudish – Catskill Forest historian, retired Paul Smith’s professor, author of ‘The Catskill Forest: A History.’ https://www.nysbooks.com/product/the-catskill-forest-a-history/; Mike focuses on forest, wetland, and land-use history in the Catskills going back thousands of years, having extensively researched first growth and old growth forests, ancient bogs, cultural burn history, railroad history, etc. of the Catskills region.

• Justin Wexler – independent ethnoecologist who focuses on the historical lifeways, culture, languages, and land management practices of regional Native Peoples in the past and their present-day descendants in Ontario, Oklahoma and Wisconsin. He can be found teaching all over the region through his organization, Wild Hudson Valley, which strives to reconnect people with the earth by opening up our eyes to historic land stewardship practices.