|
|---|
Three Falls Forest
Three Falls
rest stop on the ancient path
Sweet Road & Seneca Turnpike
Manlius, New York
|
|---|
Three Falls are an ancient waterscape carved into the Onondaga Escarpment bedrock at the end of the last great
Spring Floods Ancient Forest Escarpment Bluestone Mystery Spot Lime Kilns Slide Show |
Geological history written in Three Falls Forest bedrock is highly relevant today, because it's about climate change—how sudden small, shifts in global temperatures result in massive changes in ocean currents, polar ice caps, sea levels, weather, vegetation, and life on Earth.
Glacial Legacy
hanging waterfall canyon
Twelve thousand years ago, when the Ice Age ended, the massive continental ice sheet began to melt and recede northward.
|
|---|
|
|---|
Eventually, the retreating glacier's melting ice opened a lower drainage channel below the Escarpment. Quickly, water levels dropped below the cliffs. Almost overnight, the huge waterfall dried up. Suddenly, the massive cataract shriveled to three small streams falling into the top of the half-mile long ravine.
In recent centuries, rain and melting snow sheeting off the surface of the Onondaga Limestone ledge converged on this ancient crease in the bedrock, then cascaded into the head of the ravine. Uniting in this hollow,
|
|---|
The Ancient Way
warrior-path-east-and-west
For a hundred centuries since the last great ice sheet retreated, the principal path to travel between the Hudson River in the east, and Lake Erie in the west, ran across the north end of the Finger Lakes along the upper edge of the Escarpment. From Limestone Creek, this ancient footpath climbed steeply west, up out of the valley and through a break in the Escarpment cliffs. This traditional trackway reached the crest near this post-glacial canyon with its trio of waterfalls.
Three Falls was the convenient rest stop for travelers after their steep ascent out of Limestone Creek Valley. In our modern time, this prehistoric path is now Seneca Turnpike, labeled NY 173 by the Highway Department.
|
|---|
Today, Three Falls Forest is an unexpected treasure of geology, nature and history hidden in suburbs only seven miles southeast of downtown Syracuse, and just east of the largest open pit mine in the eastern United States: the gigantic Jamesville quarry.
Sylvan Sanctuary
secret of Sweet Road
This 175-acres between Seneca Turnpike and Sweet Road is the largest contiguous forest left standing in the Town of Manlius. This natural area consists of a variety of fragile, valuable, unusual, and unique geological and biological landscapes. While some of the forest are severely disturbed, a few areas are intact, with minimal man-made disruptions—thick carpets of moss, hip-high fern beds and centuries-old trees. Most of this forest is protected as a buffer between residences and the quarry in a Covenant agreed to by the quarry in ton the land title he 1980's after considerable pressure from Manlius residents.
Largely forgotten and invisible, this woodland shelters several magnificent features, including an Ancient Forest Cathedral in a Sinkhole Sanctuary, 200-year-old Lime Kiln antiquities, cliffs and ledges of the Onondaga Escarpment, remarkable ringing Bluestone bedrock, and other post-glacial landforms.
Restricted Access These woods are privately owned. Respect the owner's stewardship of this forest: step lightly take nothing away leave no disturbance |
This undisturbed Escarpment landscape may be the refuge of the oldest trees in central New York—stunted, knarly cedar, hophornbeam, cherry, and other species growing directly out of crevices in the limestone ledges, clinging tenaciously to moss-carpeted bedrock for several centuries.
|
|---|
Onondaga Escarpment
peeks of post-glacial past
Three Falls is the east end of the Onondaga Escarpment—limestone ledges that run west to Butternut Creek Valley, then through Rock Cut canyon to Onondaga Creek Valley. This line of cliffs and steep slopes is created by the Onondaga Limestone Formation, and continues all across the Finger Lakes, and beyond to the Genesee River, and on to the Niagara River near Lake Erie.
This thick bed of hard, resistant, alkaline rock forms cliffs and ridges that are the Onondaga Escarpment—first foothills to rise from sandy swamps of the Lake Ontario plain. These rocky ridges climb south into the Alleghany Plateau, which is itself foothills of the Appalachian Mountains, eastern North America's folded spinal axis.
In the Middle Devonian Era, 450 to 550 million years ago, Onondaga Limestone began as seafloor sediments. In warmer waters of Earth's early ocean, a prolonged outburst of biological life occurred. Simple, single-celled organisms evolved, lived and died in the ancient sea.
|
|---|
As the last Ice Age ended 12,000 years ago, this limestone ledge at the receding glacier edge was etched by torrents of post-glacial meltwater flowing west to east. Rushing rivers scoured the hard rock into deep channels with unique geological formations found few places on earth, including hanging waterfalls and plunge pools. Today, three waterfalls drop 70 feet over this Escarpment, then unite as one tributary to join Limestone Creek above its floodplain.
Glacial Meltdown
shrinking watershed
Since that ice mountain meltdown 12,000 years ago, Three Falls are a ghost of its post-glacial thunder and glory. Today, water flow is meager and irregular.
The watershed draining to Three Falls is small, and most consists of exposed ledges of rounded, water-worn, impermeable limestone bedrock. Fissures and crevices allow some surface water to drain below Escarpment bedrock before reaching Three Falls. Until the last century, four small streams fed the Falls, but late in the 1900's, quarry expansion ate up and shut off the westernmost tributary.
|
|---|
Today, the three remaining streams must squeeze through culverts under Sweet Road and Seneca Turnpike, and no covenant, regulation, or policy extends any serious protection or sustainable management practices on land in the surviving Three Falls watershed.
Spring Floods at Three Falls during peak snowmelt runoff |
Very little soil, humus or forest duff exists to intercept and store rain and snow, and thus slow the outflow of groundwater. The consequence of this very low waterholding capacity is that waterflow is highly variable and seasonal, with spectacular spring snowmelt runoff that dies to faint trickles by mid-summer. Waterflow can also surge after a significant rainfall of a few inches.
|
|---|
The easy, short route around these obstacles was to follow the high road—along the top edge of the Escarpment south of Oneida and Onondaga Lakes. Beyond Onondaga, the trail traveled north of the other Finger Lakes, beginning with Otisco Lake and on west. This route follows dry, hard Escarpment rock, and natural channels cut in steep cliffs that line most valleys. This avoids quagmires and mosquitos on the lake plain, while treating travelers to vistas north onto the lake plain. For 100 centuries, human feet pounded a solid, well-worn, well-known path through this extra-ordinary, beautiful and sacred landscape.
Three Falls was the convenient rest stop for travelers after their steep ascent out of Limestone Creek Valley. In the least of times, a campsite was tucked in a cozy niche amid the cliffs and forest. In peace time, a small settlement nearby was inhabited most of each year. In times of war, the heights at Three Falls was a gateway, guarded by sentinels. In prehistoric times, this trackway was "the-warrior-path-running-east-and-west." After The Peacemaker brought The Great Law of Peace, this well-worn way was the Ambassador's Trail.
In modern time—since the early 1800's—this ancient pathway is known as Seneca Turnpike. Most recently it is NY 173, from Manlius to Jamesville, along the south edge of the gigantic open pit limestone mine.
Quite recently, in 2005, an extra-ordinary stone tool was discovered by a hiker near the Three Falls. The stone (see below) is a near-perfect oval, wider than thick, smoothly rounded, symmetric, and balanced. On one flatter side are two offset notches. On the opposite side is a double rounded groove.
Most people, after taking this stone in hand, turning and testing it, quickly grasp it with one hand,
|
|---|
Rest Stop
corncake & tea at the top of the falls
This indigenous woman's universal kitchen tool was recognized right away by Onondaga Nation Chief Irving Powless, Jr., who called it "a prehistoric cuisinart—a haudenosaunee blender." Among Southwest Pueblo tribes, this essential household implement is called the "mano." Its working partner was a wide, flat stone—a "metate"—to strike and grind the mano against. Every household had two appliances: hearth for fire
|
|---|
This stone tool is rather heavy, and its partner—the "metate"—is much heavier. Both tools were kept near the hearth, and never wandered far from their place of daily use. Discovery of this stone tool near the top of Three Falls is powerful proof that before Europeans arrived, a settlement was sited in a sheltered spot near Three Falls. This implies Three Falls may be a sensitive prehistoric, archaeological site. To our knowledge, Three Falls hasn't been professionally surveyed for artifacts and antiquities in modern times.
For many years, Three Falls Forest was quietly protected by common belief in a Covenant placed by quarry owner Allied Chemical on title to its "Manlius lands" that there would be "no new and different future use of the Manlius lands, other than to leave said lands in their natural state" as a buffer between the quarry and town residents. This Covenant was established after long and costly legal action by Manlius residents concerned quarry expansion, blasting, drilling and heavy equipment, will damage their lands and buildings.
|
|---|
Quarry Covenant
convenient case of legal amnesia
Thus, this inaccessible woodland retreat faded into a well-kept secret among neighbors. With five miles of trails to hike, jog, ski, showshoe, Three Falls Forest was an unofficial recreation park for the nearby neighborhood. And with several special habitats for bird watchers, and acres for other to hunt for over 65 species of mosses and many ferns, this forgotten forest was taken for granted as a nature preserve for Manlius residents. The tranquil silence of this greenspace was a magnet that convinced many residents to purchase homes and settle in the neighborhood.
But Three Falls Forest's continuation as a community greenspace is threatened. Private developer Bill Camperlino acquired the former "Manlius lands" from Allied in 1980s, and recently revealed a plan to build 180 houses on the last contiguous forested greenspace in the Town of Manlius, claiming the Covenant does not affect land east of Sweet Road. Very soon, pristine common space will be chopped into private lots. The Sinkhole Sanctuary will be sliced and filled to create eight suburban backyards. Three Falls will be the private property of one very lucky—and very wealthy—homeowner for a personal backyard—a critical community resource sold off as a private pleasure.
|
|---|
Time to Choose
preservation or devastation?
Very soon, bulldozers will flatten this unique forest with its delicate botany on fragile geology—the last intact natural community in Manlius. Flowforrn glacial topography formed 10,000 years ago in geological history will vanish under hard fill for buildings, lots, lawns, driveways, and roads.
Unless intervention occurs to inject large doses of ecology awareness and democratic mettle into members of the Town of Manlius Board and Zoning Board, and their Attorneys, this unique habitat and special biodiversity refuge will be extinct. Longstanding members of our local natural community will be evicted. In some cases, entire biological species and ecological families will be refused their longtime homes—or any place at all—by more subdivision-style human community.
Citizen Activism
democracy by the people
This threat of an imminent end to this local sylvan sanctuary mobilized residents to form Manlius Greenspace Coalition to advocate that Three Falls Forest is a unique geological, biological, ecological, historical, and archaeological resource that must be protected as a permanent Nature Preserve, and developed as a community Nature Education Center.
|
|---|
Clearly, there is much in Three Falls Forest that needs to be protected, preserved and extended. And clearly, the Town and Zoning Boards see no need to protect nature from development. To these money-minded leaders, open space is empty space waiting for a builder, owner and taxpayer.
Realizing they are indeed witnessing "the end of Nature" in their own community, Coalition members meet frequently to collect information, share strategy and devise a unified open space preservation plan for both Village and Town.
So, the wraps are off the secret of Sweet Road—the backyard wilderness known simply as "Three Falls Forest". Tuesday, August 2, 2005 the Syracuse Post Standard featured a page one story:
to keep pristine woods wild
click here for the full story
on Three Falls Forest as a community ecological resource Manlius Greenspace Coalition P.O. Box 131, Manlius, NY 13104 www.ManliusGreenspace.org Manliusgreenspace@earthlink.net |
—
| see also:
Three Falls — Spring Floods — Ancient Forest — Escarpment Bluestones — Mystery Spot — Lime Kilns — Slide Show |
|---|
The Earth Restoration & Reforestation Alliance — www.championtrees.org — updated 12/20/2005