A Mighty Maple Takes a Fall....

Jim in Bridgehampton, NY   October, 2010

Take a look @ this tree. It came down on the front yard of a property in Bridgehampton.

The tree stood like a sentinel for more decades than anyone can remember.  With an enormous canopy that dominated nearly every other tree on the street, it was one of only two Silver Maple trees that are known to be in Bridgehampton. This tree was on the spit of land between the sidewalk and the street in Mrs. Di Petris' front yard. She is very familiar with this tree, having spent many decades on the same property together. She happened to be home on Thursday and was in her sun room in the front of the house, when she heard a strange crackling sound.

Upon peering out the window, she actually saw this mighty tree uproot itself and fall slowly to the ground. There wasn't a storm and no high winds going on @ the time. The tree just fell over. It pulled down wires and crushed everything in its path on the way down, which was mostly just other small trees. The gigantic canopy filled the entire roadway. It is nothing short of a miracle that no one was walking or driving by @ the precise moment that this majestic tree decided to give up. It is any body's guess as to how old the tree is.

I hope before they cut it up and cart it away, that someone will determine the age of it. It gave me great pause to stop for a moment, and think about all that had happened in the world since this tree first took root. It has to be well over a hundred years old. It must have survived the 1938 hurricane, not to mention countless snow and ice storms, disease, etc. What a mighty strength it had to have survived all of these years.

Here is Jim, who stands @ 6'1", in the crook of the tree.

Expect good things....