November 23rd, 2006
in the redwoods – part two
Prairie Creek
Yesterday was the first of what will probably end up being three or four posts on the redwood groves that we visited while in California in September and October.
Leaving aside the diameter and the height, the thing that blows me away about these trees is their mass. I can’t help thinking about how each tree is such an immense living organism. It’s not just a 300 foot tall vertical chunk of lumber — it’s a living thing that may have existed for at least twenty of my own lifespans. If that doesn’t give one pause for thought, I can’t imagine what will.
The feeling of being in the presence of a large mass of living organisms certainly struck while I was standing before the above cluster of Coast Redwoods. This photo cannot do proper justice to the scene. Several trunks were massed together, with a huge, slightly flattened, twisting trunk twined upward between them. Both the size and shape of this tree almost defied belief. That a tree managed to grow in such a way, the great mass of its upper section surviving for literally hundreds of years against the forces of wind, weather and gravity, seems astounding to me. When I think of it in those terms, its existence is almost unfathomable.
Another aspect of these trees that challenges the notion of what we think of as a “living tree” is that, sometimes they appear to be nothing more than standing shells — and yet, as in the example below, they will continue to support life in their upper reaches. Green grown thrives despite the center of this tree being all but gone. I’ll have something more to say about that in part three on the redwoods.
November 23rd, 2006 at 9:09 pm
When I was much younger (in my early 20s), I traveled quite regularly between Mendocino and Humboldt counties, often taking back roads to get to my destination. There were times a friend and I would take our camping/sleeping gear and spend the night in the hollow of a great redwood. Quite a cozy, crazy camping spot. It is remarkable to sleep inside a tree. Once you look at them, though, you just know it’s possible and should be done, at least when you’re 23 years old!
November 24th, 2006 at 12:03 am
robin – that’s interesting that you should write about sleeping inside of a tree. When my friend and I were on the road, one of the nights that we camped in the redwoods, it got very cold and i was thinking, “We should just find a tree to sleep inside of!” (we were just sleeping on the ground without a tent). Seemed like a good idea at the time.
December 2nd, 2006 at 6:41 pm
I’ve never seen these forest giants up close and personal and so am enjoying the series (I popped in from the Festival of the Trees).
The picture taken from Inside the tree looking upwards just blows me away…..thanks for a fascinating series.
December 3rd, 2006 at 2:15 am
Michelle – Thanks! Being inside of a tree was pretty neat! I walked through the hollow center of a fallen tree and that was quite an experience as well!
December 6th, 2006 at 2:00 am
One feels pretty small and insignificant next to something so grand and beautiful!