Mark Hendricks, a professor of psychology and co-director of the animal behavior program at Towson University, is the author of “The Central Appalachians: Mountains of the Chesapeake.”
Do you have a favorite tree?
In the expanse of Big Meadows, one of the most popular areas in Virginia’s Shenandoah National Park, stands a lone gray birch tree. It is a beautiful tree. It emerges from the ground with multiple trunks sculpted by the wind, its form mimicking the veins of one’s hand. Its bark is white, rather unusual for the area, and it is adorned with triangular leaves that turn a golden hue come October.
