LOCALadk Magazine

What's Photopoint Monitoring? Alpine biologist Matt Scott implemented the photopoint monitoring system using historical photographs that focused on highly damaged areas. ese baseline photographs were taken from the 1960s through the 1990s during Ketchledge's revegetation efforts to document soil erosion and vegetation damage. With Ketchledge's assistance, Scott located the point where each of the photographs was taken. Locations were then marked in the field with a small nail drilled into the bedrock, and directions were recorded so photos could be retaken again over time. Today the program has 59 photopoint locations spread over nine summits. Photopoint monitoring is an unobtrusive, low-impact way to track plant recovery over time. Initial project objectives were to create a library of images for educational purposes, document alpine recovery, and evaluate the success of the Summit Stewardship Program. Furthermore, these images have been used by other researchers to study vegetation trends, examine shis in treeline, and illustrate past and present herd paths. Each of these projects has added to our knowledge and understanding of Northeastern alpine areas. Holding the Line In 2009, these photographs were analyzed to estimate the percentage of visible rock, soil, and vegetation. at analysis revealed that alpine areas were recovering and that peaks with a summit steward presence since the beginning of the program (Mt. Marcy and Algonquin Peak) had recovered significantly compared to mountains without regular summit steward coverage. As such, the photopoint monitoring project and the Summit Stewardship Program were deemed a success. However, this analysis took place before the recent exponential increase in hikers. Since 2009, summit stewards have seen a 73 percent increase in the number of hikers on the tallest peaks. In 2015, summit stewards retook these photographs, and a new analysis was done to test whether traditional methods of alpine stewardship could protect the alpine ecosystem in the face of such high visitor numbers. A comparison of the photographs taken in 2009 and 2015 showed no statistically significant change in alpine plants. at might sound negative, but since alpine vegetation recovers less as the years go on, this is a hugely positive finding. It was expected that plants would be declining due to the increase of hikers, especially since the photographs targeted areas of impact around trails. ough this does not account for other potential impacts, such as climate change, the results indicate that educational outreach remains a powerful tool for protecting alpine vegetation even during times of high use. e Summit Stewardship Program established a photographic monitoring system in 1999 to better study the relationship between hiker trampling, vegetation regrowth and persistence, and hiker education and outreach. is link in recreational impacts and vegetation recovery can help us understand the carrying capacity in the Adirondack alpine zone and assist land managers in making good decisions to protect the High Peaks Wilderness. LOCALadk 31

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