The bark on tulip poplar and hickory are similar when small. Tulip (yellow) poplar often has what appears to be a white powder in the furrows of the bark. Poplar can get some very nice coloring (rainbow) inside but usually includes green. And doesn't usually have a [distinct] brite white sapwood
Never smelled walnut in split form. It doesn’t have the white powdered look in the bark crevices. So I’m guessing hickory or walnut(more towards walnut). Does walnut like to be near lakes?
Looking at the scaly bark in the very first picture of this post, looks like hickory. I haven't seen any hickory that colorful, but I could see it happening. Walnut grows where it grows, not limited to near water. I have several walnut trees in my yard. We have black walnut and the wood is usually a consistent brownish color, nothing like in your pictures, at least from what I've seen.
I'm sticking with tulip poplar. While there is some resemblance to Hickory, I've never seen hickory with that array of colors. I have 3 types of hickory in my stacks now, shag bark, pignut and mocker nut, none has the coloring that is shown in you pictures. I no longer have any tulip in my stacks so all I have is my memory of its coloration, and, maybe, my memory ain't dat good. What were we discussing?
Tree ID! Any pics of mocketnut bark RB? The hickory i cut on Monday had really dark heartwood I thought it to be pignut, but not 100% sure. I have to go back and help split it so will check then. Shag, pignut and bitternut the three im familiar with.
Pretty large difference between the weight of hickory (and even walnut) from poplar in my experience. If I were a bettin man, and I’m not, I’d agree with the poplar guesses. If it was poplar, your saw would get through it pretty fast, hickory not so much. Walnut would be in the middle somewhere. I still think if it were walnut, you’d have clued into a smell even if you’ve never had it before. It’s distinct.
Nope, no pictures. Maybe in a couple of days when the snow melts off the stacks and the temps come up to where I can crawl out of my cave without having to put on 3 bear skins to stay warm!
Looks like a Sweetgum to me. The bark with that particular type of lichens and all other characteristics look like that. Are there sweetgum balls in the area around it?