Burgess, who has authored two books centered on the Mountain House, Mohonk: Its People and Spirit and Daniel Smiley of Mohonk: A Naturalist’s Life, said that Huth’s “invaluable” work and research carried on the Smiley tradition of wanting to encourage “human interaction with natural settings” — something that he said became the Smileys’ mantra over a century-and-a-half and was embodied in the “incalculable, unbelievable work that Huth has done day in and day out to keep the past in line with the present always, and the present with forethought towards our future.”
“He gets it,” said Burgess. “Yes, he’s an incredible scientist and botanist and naturalist who is a walking encyclopedia of the region’s flora and fauna. But he also understands the link between the land and human interaction with that land, and how we all share this natural environment in a complex, beautiful and often-vexing picture.”
Asked to answer some questions from the audience, Burgess admitted that he’d just had “some devastating news before I was slated to give this speech, so my apologies; I did my best.”
The news? “Eric Gullickson called me to tell me not to come downstairs, because the pinball machines had been taken out. The pinball machines were sacrificed? I was beside myself,” he said, as the room roared with laughter.
Ann Guenther of Mohonk Consultations and Shannon Smiley of the DSRC led the crowd in on a “virtual nature walk” going from the “lowlands to Duck Pond to Bonticou Crag,” and in a clever and beautiful way illustrated what one might see, hear and learn from Huth on one of his guided nature walks, which are beloved by many. They imitated him talking about a pink ladyslipper flower and how he would explain that they were unique in the sense that they needed a large insect like a bumblebee to pollinate them, because their “sac was so large,” but once pollinated, the “bumblebee can become trapped in the sac, and that’s why you might hear the flower buzzing!”
John Thompson, who took over the helm as the director of the DSRC after Huth became the conservation research director emeritus, had many words of praise for his mentor and predecessor. “Since 1977, Daniel Smiley, along with Paul and then the rest of the staff, measured the water and quality of the Mohonk Lake three times a day — at the surface, at 20 feet and at 40 feet. We talk about dedication and detail; well, I’m here to tell you that in Paul’s tenure, he has measured that lake 6,150 times! He is not only the first to come to our office, but often the last to leave. And I can’t count how many times he’s braved the snow and rain and ice to come up here and take the daily stats of our temperature and precipitation and lake temperatures and ice coverage.”
Huth is a humble man, as any number of speakers pointed out — so much so that Nina Smiley had to convince him to accept the nomination for the award. “I knew I was outmatched,” joked Huth, who in his acceptance speech spent more time thanking others than he ever did mentioning himself.
As Thompson so eloquently said, “He has spent 40 years of his life dedicated to the Shawangunk Mountains, and he has their lake waters in his veins. He is deeply rooted in the conglomerate rocks, and he comes to work every day with the philosophy and belief that he will learn something new every day.”
Huth, as many said and he himself acknowledged, has found a sense of place, believes in what nature can teach and lend marvel to and delight those who simply stop and look and listen.
“Thank you all,” he said. “Each one of you in this room helped me to carry on the legacy of Dan Smiley — and what a legacy that is!”
