It has been my observation that the Corps already provides outstanding assistance and service to visitors and the general public. As a Federal Agency, the Corps is tasked with a wide range of many important and critical responsibilities. Along with accomplishing the vital mission assigned to the Corps, it is important to remain proactive, always looking for ways to improve and enhance services we provide to visitors and the public.

As a new Park Ranger, one of my primary responsibilities has been to participate in the project's Visitor Assistance Program, patrolling recreation areas, providing information about the area and facilities to the visiting public, plus reminding visitors to always remain aware of the outstanding natural resources around them and how to protect them. Along with visitor assistance, the Corps has been tasked with a broad range of natural resource management and in many ways the two are intertwined. For example, one of the most important tasks of the Corps is flood control and wetlands management. Both of these greatly impact society and nature in multiple ways, be they positive or negative. As an agency that is assigned both public recreation and natural resource management responsibilities, finding a balance can be difficult. But, in many ways, better resource management leads to better visitor assistance, recreational opportunities and public benefits.

Ideally, to properly, ecologically manage any given area it is necessary to know all aspects of that area. This includes game species, non-game species (vertebrates & invertebrates), rare and endangered species, ecosystems or habitat types (especially sensitive and rare habitats), fire dependency and frequency, exotics species present and their impact, and more. The condition, status and trends of these areas should also be monitored and managed. When broken down all this may seem like a great deal of additional work, but in many ways the Corps already accomplishes these tasks.

In reality minor changes or additions can go a long ways and have pay-offs that far outweigh the minimal amount of time that is invested. An example of such an activity is BIG trees! An inventory and list of large trees is something that can be completed on Corps lands that requires very little time and effort of the project staff. Thankfully and with the support of the Staff at Lake Ouachita, I have initiated this project at Lake Ouachita.

Through history, Corps lands surrounding Lake Ouachita have been logged many times over the years. Logging companies from Iowa, Washington and Oregon moved into this area to begin harvesting the virgin timber from the mountainsides. Dierks Lumber Company and the Caddo River Lumber Company were two of the largest logging companies that harvested a majority of the timber. While Dierks Lumber Company was one of the largest land owner in the State of Arkansas, the company established one of the largest sawmills in Mountain Pine around 1928, just east of Blakely Mountain Dam, in order to be close to the timber resources and reduce the distance to haul the logs for the mill. In 1969, Dierks Lumber Company sold all their holdings to Weyerhaeuser, who maintained the mill in Mountain Pine until 2008 before closing it. The Caddo River Lumber Company constructed railroad trams and right-of-ways through-out the Ouachita Mountains, which remnants can still be seen today, establishing large "mill towns" that were moved on these same railroads once the timber had been depleted from an area.

While a majority of the "BIG" trees were harvested, there are still some remaining large trees, while very rare to find in most areas, they provide a special opportunity for environmental education and conservation efforts. Simple lists or databases of large trees should include trees at least 8-10 feet in circumference. Such trees are easily 100-300 years old or older and are living museums and monuments! At Lake Ouachita 15 large trees have already been documented with the largest being a Sugarberry over 13 feet in circumference!