I Write - Hope is Growing

 At our monthly Writing is Fun meetings we decide a prompt for writing for the next meeting. Length is set at 2 pages so we can read them at the meeting. There is quite a diversity of writing. Some are real life recollections, some fictional vignettes, and sometimes there's a poem.

The prompt for January 2025 was New Beginnings. Here's what I wrote.

Hope is Growing - Carol Kagan

Hadrian's Wall, built in 122 A.D. on Emperor Hadrian's order to hold out Roman challengers, is considered an historical marker celebrating the fierceness of the Scots to prevent a Roman foothold in what is now Scotland. It is a symbol of strength that has withstood the test of time.

John Clayton’s family bought property that fell across the Wall. The family's mansion house included a Roman fort in its front garden and his early exposure to the historic site ignited a lifelong passion for archaeology and preservation. As he grew older he used his wealth and influence to preserve this important piece of history for future generations.

It was early morning in 1873 when John carried the sycamore maple sapling to Hadrian’s Wall to plant. His eyes followed the rugged stone wall riding the ridge of the rolling landscape as he recalled the first time his father brought him here at age four. They sat in the sun and enjoyed their time together. He was enchanted by the natural beauty and sense of serenity he felt.

  Quite simply it was a single sapling planted in the open, sunny curve between two small hillsides, a curve that was much like the waist of a beautiful woman. The sapling was a thin, short sliver of wood, planted to be a landscape feature, a tree that would thrive in the open sun and withstand the winds across the moors.

In the dramatic gap, sitting next to the ancient Roman wall, the tree stretched upward, growing bit by bit each year. Its broad, rounded crown carried by three large branches with smaller, gnarled ones reaching out above the weathered trunk. The sky spread wide from breaking sunrise to golden sunset over the open Northumberland landscape. This tree, well-known for its beauty, resilience, and adaptability became an iconic symbol in the landscape luring many to the site. Its striking presence captured the hearts of many visitors and photographers, and it became known as the Sycamore Gap Tree.

Cameras were a common sight at the tree, documenting marriage proposals, weddings, family photos of celebrations and the like. Tourists and researchers moved along the wall and stopped at the tree. The site was popular among astrophotographers and stargazers with a full view of the open sky . Movie cameras and the accompanying equipment met there to record movie scenes such as in a 1991 Robin Hood movie, earning it the nickname of the Robin Hood Tree. It became one of the most photographed trees in England and won the 2016 England Tree of the Year award. By 2023 it was 150 years old and 49 feet tall.

It was September 27, 2023, when Alice Whysall hiked down the path and took a photo of it at twilight. The next day Catherine Cape, a local resident, was hiking along the wall and discovered the tree had been cut down. A large stump remained, and the tree was laying across the Wall. The local communities were devastated and as the news spread well beyond Northumberland, many people shared memories about the tree. It became obvious that the Sycamore Gap Tree was more than a landscape feature or historic marker - it had deep emotional and cultural significance for many people.

Local law enforcement arrived at the scene to address the vandalism. They secured the area and began their investigation by gathering evidence to identify who was responsible. In questioning those in the community locals provided important information but also shared their emotional connections to the tree.

Evidence at the scene was examined by forensic officers who took samples and measurements and were heard saying “in 31 years I’ve never examined a tree.” The tree appeared to have been cut with a chainsaw and the characteristics of  the cut indicated it had been done by someone with considerable skill. Material collected from the scene included the tree trunk which had to be cut into smaller pieces in order to be moved out by crane. It was stored in a secret location to protect it from souvenir hunters.

The National Trust, which looks after the site, stepped in to address the situation. They immediately collected seeds and branch cuttings that showed signs of growth from the felled tree. As the Trust began to consider what to do with the tree remains, and the now barren site, great consideration was given to what the Sycamore Gap Tree meant to so many people.

A New Beginning

The National Trust committed to ensuring that the legacy of the Sycamore Gap Tree  would live on. The Trust grew 49 saplings in a rare plant propagation nursery from the seeds collected. They represent the 49 feet height of the tree and are part of the "Trees of Hope" initiative to be planted in publicly accessible spaces.

In 2024, to mark the first anniversary of the tree's felling, the National Trust began accepting applications for one of the 49 Sycamore Gap saplings.  “Each sapling will carry a message of hope with it as it starts a new chapter not just for the tree but for the 49 people and communities that will receive a sapling next year.”

The Trust has advised visitors to treat the stump at the current site with “respect.” Eight new shoots have emerged from the remaining stump. It will take several years to find out if the tree may regrow although it will not be the same as the original single trunk.

Many different projects have been developed using the remains of the tree.

Prints have been created from a cross-section of the heart-shaped trunk. An artist created four wooden panels and the lengths of them when combined equal the 49 foot tree height. Each panel represents a season, and a trunk piece sits with the autumn panel relating to the season it was cut. The summer panel is filled with white paper sycamore-shaped leaves painted by school children at workshops.

The legacy has spread as prints of an artist’s painting of the tree are sold with proceeds funding the planting of trees at a local public estate in an effort to produce a new woodland to revive the area. 

The Sycamore Gap Tree has found many new beginnings and, perhaps, in another 150 years it will have brought communities together and hosted milestones for people multiplied by 49. 

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