Bryan Moore, of the Mountaineer Chapter of Trout Unlimited, has been planting spruce on the headwaters of the Shavers Fork River for the past two seasons.

"The original goal was to plant 10,000 Red Spruce on the Shavers Fork headwaters. We are going to have to adjust that upward. In the first twelve months of the project we have planted a little over 4,000 seedlings," said Moore.

Efforts to help the spruce reestablish itself in its native range have been largely an attempt to heal a struggling trout stream. Even though the upper Shavers Fork is the highest river of its size in the eastern United States, since the watershed was logged and the river’s structure altered a century ago, the river has had difficulty keeping its temperatures cool enough to support its once thriving native trout fishery. Brook trout rely on the cold water for its high oxygen content. The red spruce is being restored in an effort to increase necessary shade along the river and provide stability for fragile stream banks.

The seedlings are taken from old roads on the Monongahela National Forest, that are being re-engineered in watershed rehabilitation efforts. This type of cooperation with the Forest Service has been a real benefit to the tree-planting project, with very little cost to government agencies for the restoration work. Groups such as Trout Unlimited, the Cub Scouts, Columbia Natural Resources, Snowshoe Resort, the Shavers Fork Coalition, the West Virginia Rivers Coalition, the West Virginia Highlands Conservancy and the Friends of the Cheat have all recently been involved in red spruce reforestation.

And the restoration has been fun! Moore said, "It is great to see the reaction among children when you tell them that they will be able to bring THEIR children back to see the trees they planted. Planting the seedlings seems to mean something very special for the people doing it."

The actual chore of planting the sturdy 14 to 24-inch seedlings is surprisingly quick and easy, giving planters a sense of accomplishment and satisfaction in a relatively short time. The spectacular beauty of the surroundings, of course, heightens the pleasure of the restoration work.

So far the effort has been well rewarded. As of this fall, most of the seedlings planted last winter and spring have survived in their new locations. This early success indicates that the spruce simply needed a helping hand to get established in the flood plain. Although the plantings have only begun, everyone involved seems to enjoy the possibility of seeing this most stately of our highland conifers reclaim its rightful place alongside the Shavers Fork of the Cheat River.

Zack Henderson is the founding inspiration and impetus behind the Shavers Fork Coalition. He fell in love with the Shavers Fork river and watershed as a Davis & Elkins College student, and wrote his senior thesis on the physical dynamics of the river. Currently Zack is in graduate school at Penn State University, studying hydrology in the department of forestry; he is a Shavers Fork Coalition board member; and he often returns to cross country ski or hike in the area.

Note: The April 21^st Mountain Odyssey 2001 outing is part of the red spruce restoration effort.