The Mossy Maple Grove is a small grove of enormous old-growth Bigleaf maple trees – some as much as 7 feet (2 meters) in diameter – completely draped in hanging gardens of mosses and ferns. It’s found along a creek just south of Cowichan Lake on Vancouver Island, BC, in the unceded territory of the Cowichan people, who are a part of the Hul’qumi’num First Nations group.
Unlike most other spotlighted old-growth forests in BC that have all been coniferous or needle-leaf trees (Douglas-firs, Sitka spruce, western redcedars, etc.), this is an old-growth deciduous rainforest, making it one of the most unique old-growth forests in coastal BC. Diverse herbaceous plants, including spiny-stemmed giant devil’s club, grow here. Abundant tracks and scat reveal that legions of elk, deer, wolves, cougars, and black bears make this area home. This area has also been nicknamed “Fangorn Forest” after the forest in The Lord of the Rings.
The grove is found on private land owned by the logging company Mosaic. Most recently, the forest has been deferred from logging for at least 25 years through Mosaic’s BigCoast Forest Climate Initiative. This is a good step forward and a direct result of our campaigns. Now, it’s up to the BC government to create a Provincial Land Acquisition Fund to help purchase and permanently protect these scarce and valuable old-growth forests.
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