From the moment we entered this enchanted forest, we were filled with awe. Tall and stately, they shot up from the forest floor. More than three hundred feet above us, they spread their upper branches to greet the sun, collect the rain, and provide a home for high soaring birds. We had arrived in northern California which is home to the world's tallest living trees ... the Redwoods.
The term ''Redwoods'' actually refer to three distinct redwood species that share a common ancestry and many similar characteristics. The Dawn Redwood is the smallest of the family and found in China. The Giant Sequoia, found on the western slopes of the Sierra Nevada Mountains in Central California, is not as tall as the Coast Redwood but has a greater trunk circumference thus making it the most massive living thing on Earth by volume. Here on the west coast of California, we were about to be introduced to the tallest trees of this subfamily ... the Coast Redwood.
California State Parks has teamed up with the National Park Service and together they work to preserve these giant beauties. Come join us as we walk amongst the giant redwoods at Redwood National and State Park and go for a drive under the canopy of redwoods on the Avenue of the Giants.
Arriving into northern California, our first stop was the Hiouchi Visitor Center in Jedediah Smith Redwoods State Park. There we picked up our map and got some information from one of the helpful volunteers. She recommended driving a short distance on the old stage coach road to Stout Grove. Baby Beest may have just barely fit on the narrow gravel road, but there was plenty of space for her to park under the Redwoods.
After lunch we continued our trip south on California's Highway 101 and took a side trip through Prairie Creek Redwoods State Park. There we not only found ''Big Tree'',
... but lots of helpful advice about where to find even more ''big trees''!
Our ''campsite'' for the the next two nights was at a Boondocker's Welcome home in Rio Dell, California. We didn't realize how fortunate that decision was until our host told us that the Avenue of the Giants, a thirty-two mile redwood-lined road, was just a few miles away. So we were grateful to be able to have another day to enjoy these massive beauties. As I walked among them, I was reminded of one of my favorite poems, Trees by Joyce Kilmer. With some minor changes, here is my rendition ...
I think that I shall never see
A blog as lovely as a tree.
A tree whose hungry mouth is prest
Against the earth's sweet flowing breast;
A tree that looks at God all day,
And lifts her leafy arms to pray;
A tree that may in Summer wear
A nest of robins in her hair;
Upon whose bosom snow has lain;
Who intimately lives with the rain.
Blogs are written by fools like me,
But only God can make a tree.
With the faint smell of wildfire smoke in the air, we thought about what a privilege it is to be able to walk among the Redwoods, and how we as humans need to do all we can to preserve these giant treasures so that future generations can be filled with the same awe as we were.
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