I was speaking with our late president, Dr. James Jefferson, last spring when he mentioned how he wished we could protect more culturally modified trees (CMTs) that Ute, Comanche, and other tribal families had created in the centuries before the tribes had to move to reservations. Now that he has left us it’s up to a new generation to take on the work of identifying and protecting these sacred trees.
Fortunately, this is interesting and rewarding work. In fact, you may find a sacred tree or several in your back yard or at a national or state park or forest. To help you identify and record such trees, we’ve placed two documents you can download in the "Files" section of our new web site. Click on the Files Tab and then on News Documents. There are two documents you can download and print: the Inventory Form was created by Don Wells of Mountain Stewards to record location and pertinent details about CMTs. The V Diagram was created by NASTaP co-founder John Anderson, along with Dr. Lois Adams, to help identify CMTs. You can download and print the documents or save them to your computer or phone.
At this point, don't worry about whether the trees are actual CMTs. That can be determined later (and no one can know for sure). Also, it's not necessary to share your data with NASTaP. Keep the forms with your important papers. Photograph the tree from all different angles and in each season. If you feel that the tree is endangered or at risk, however, please share your form with NASTaP, Mountain Stewards, or both.
A safety note: if the tree you find is on private property, don't venture onto the property without permission from the owner. You can, however, stand in the street or outside the property line to photograph the tree. Respect property owners' rights.