National Parks are full of wonders and treasures. Many of these things you cannot take with you like wild flowers, but some you can remove like wood that is laying on the ground. Local country people have discovered how you can remove hard woods that are felled by nature and turn it into heat, but few have taken advantage of the natural fallen pine wood, which would make really nice furniture. The center of a pine tree is very firm wood and takes many years to decay. Plenty of this wood is available in National Forests for the taking. You will need to obtain a permit from the National Forest Service, to rummage around with a chain saw, but many beautiful pieces of wood can be found on the ground after storms. You can also inquire about other public treasures that can be turned into your own private sculptures. You will be able to get free stuff and you will help the Forest Service clean up fallen trees. Free nuts! Often, you will see these on the streets of your town, but I''m talking about the kind you can eat. Black walnuts are ubiquitous in the Virginia forests and adorning lawns and on old farms and most Virginians consider their big fruit a mess when they begin mowing, so most land owners will thank you for carrying out their bountiful harvest of nuts each year. Chinese chestnut trees can also be found around the country, with a harvest of spiky nuts that fall to the ground and are soon infected with insects, so you have to plan ahead to harvest these goodies. South Carolina has abandoned old trees that put out pecans each year, in orchards older and more faithful than their owners. Fall comes late in South Carolina, so you can harvest in Virginia and then go on down to the deeper South for pecans. Just ask and you can gather nuts. There are factories that will pay you for the nuts. Every year I drive over tons of black walnuts that some Johnny Appleseed type planted along the roads and streams of Virginia. They are free for the taking. Watch out. The large green husks will stain everything they touch. If you are looking for majestic scenery to film your next pioneer epic, check out the old log cabins in the National Forests of Virginia. They are kept in perfect condition with pink mud chinking between the logs and volunteers which maintain traditional practices like plowing with a horse drawn plow and playing blue grass music with an old banjo. Some keep up the old crafts and have clothing made of hand spun yarn and carry muskets ready for the civil war, so be nice, you Yankees. You can even obtain a quail egg or two, if that is your liking. Pioneers planted all kinds of wild edible plants in the forests and fresh water sprouts out of the hillsides in moss covered springs. So bring your camera and create and epic with free scenery. Things weren't tough like they were out in the windswept western plains which are usually in the movies. We had plenty of water and wood, but the indigenous population of Indians kept people on their toes. Study your history for a good story line and bring you digital recorder for some amazing scenery. When the fog rises in the early morning off the ponds, you will forget your colorful mesas and film in Virginia.