Great Grandma Tree Traditional Geocache
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Difficulty:
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Terrain:
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Size: 
(regular)
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06/23/09 NEW COORDINATES FOR CACHE: N45 29.244 W123 58.067
Oregon Champion
Champion Information:
Height (Ft): 144
Circumference (In): 576
Average Crown Spread (Ft): 93
Species Information:
Uses
Ethnobotanic: The sharp needles of spruce were believed to have special powers for protection against evil thoughts. The Ditidaht and other Nuu-chah-nulth peoples used the boughs in winter dance ceremonies to protect the dancers and scare spectators. The inner bark was eaten fresh, or dried into cakes and eaten with berries. It was also dried and grounded into a powder and used as a thickener in soups or added to cereals when making bread.
The roots were burnt over an open fire to remove the bark, then dried and split to make hats and ropes. The roots were also used by several native North American tribes to make tightly woven baskets that would hold water. A pitch obtained from the tree was used as glue or as a protective varnish-like coat on wood.
Sitka spruce was widely employed medicinally by several native North American Indian tribes who used it especially for its antiseptic qualities in the treatment of lung complaints, sores and wounds. It has been chewed in the treatment of throat problems, coughs, and colds. Sitka spruce pitch was also used as a medicine for gonorrhea, syphilis, internal swelling, and toothaches. A decoction of the roots has been used in the treatment of diarrhea.
Economic: Sitka spruce produces high-grade lumber that is the most important wood for airplane and glider construction. In World War II, this wood was utilized in the British Mosquito bombers. Other important uses are oars, ladders, scaffolding, and boats, particularly racing sculls. This wood is valued in making piano sounding boards and guitars. It is harvested as saw timber and pulpwood and processed into lumber, plywood and various paper products.
Landscaping & Wildlife: Sitka spruce is often planted as an ornamental tree in the eastern and northern states and in western and northern Europe. This forest species provides habitat for a large variety of mammals, reptiles, amphibians, and birds. It is browsed only in the spring by a variety of birds.
Description
General: Spruce Family (Pinaceae). Sitka spruce is a large, native, evergreen tree that can grow up to two hundred feet in height. The needles are yellowish-green to bluish-green, stiff, very sharp, 1 to 1½ inches long, with white lines of stomata on the upper surface. The cones are one to four inches long, hanging down, with very thin scales, rounded, and irregularly toothed. The bark is gray and smooth on small trunks, becoming dark purplish-brown on older trunks.
Park at coordinates: N45 29.325; W123 57.928
Cache is a .30 caliber ammo can filled with goodies. Please rehide well for the next finders.
Additional Hints
(No hints available.)