How Oregon's iconic smiley face in the trees appears every fall
In 2011, Hampton Lumber planted a mix of Douglas firs and Larch trees, and every fall the now iconic bright orange smiley face emerges for people to enjoy while driving along the highway
Oregon's Happy Hillside: Giant smile returns every fall
A giant smile returns every fall in Oregon thanks to a lumber company that planted the trees in 2011. The creation comes from Hampton Lumber co-owner David Hampton and now-retired forester Dennis Creel.
BEND, Oregon - Fall foliage can brighten someone's day and perhaps provide a smile - even if the smiley face is coming from the trees.
People driving along Oregon's Highway 18 between the towns of Willamina and Grand Ronde get quite the treat every fall as a natural smiley face forms in the trees.
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The creation comes from Hampton Lumber co-owner David Hampton and now-retired forester Dennis Creel.
In 2011, Hampton Lumber planted a mix of Douglas firs and Larch trees, and every fall, the now iconic bright orange smiley face emerges for people to enjoy while driving along the highway.
"Believe it or not, the smiley face has gone worldwide," Hampton said on FOX Weather Wednesday morning. "It's an absolutely amazing phenomenon. We have customers in Japan who sent us pictures of a newsreel that they shot."
When they planted the trees, Hampton said they had no idea what would actually happen.
"We just thought that we ought to show folks that, you know, an open space like this where we harvest can be a happy place," he said.
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Watch: Giant smiley face returns to Oregon's trees every fall
A giant smile returns every fall in Oregon thanks to a lumber company that planted the trees in 2011.
The Larch trees' needles change colors in fall and create the body of the face. Douglas fir makes up the mouth and eyes.
Unlike the Douglas fir, Larch trees are deciduous. In autumn, the needles of Larch trees turn golden and then drop off the branches to save nutrients for later, the U.S. Forest Service says.
"It wasn't rocket science," Hampton said. "But the thing that's amazing is, is that it really came out so good. You know, we stuck a stake in the ground, went around, made the circle and then planted all the trees.
And hopefully, the trees will last for years to come.
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"It will last as long as it lasts," he said. "Honestly, those trees will last an awful long time. So in 40 or 50 years, we'll probably harvest it, and that's how it will go. It will be a sad day, but that's how it works in forestry.
As far as any other projects in mind, Hampton doesn't see any in the near future.
"We don't have any other logos in mind right now, but it will get reforested again if we harvest it, it will get reforested again," he said. "And who knows, maybe somebody else will get real creative and make something different."