 Named for the smoke-like wisps of clouds and blue haze that are almost always present, the Smoky Mountains are some of the oldest mountains in the world. In the Great Smoky Mountains National Park there are nearly as many kinds of trees as are found in all of Europe. After the mid-1800s, huge lumber companies took three-fourths of this vast, virgin forest before there was a public outcry to save this special place. Today, only 20 to 25 percent of the old-growth forest remains, but these "green cathedrals" are a national treasure. Why fight to protect a forest? Perhaps we should ask, "How long does it take to grow a 400-year-old-tree?" 
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