The Redwoods - May the Forest Be With You!

Tuesday, July 22nd



Northern California and the mighty Redwood Tree.  There are not enough adjectives to describe these magnificent trees.  You have all seen pictures, and they can give you an idea of what these massive trees look like, but it isn’t until you get up close and personal that you grasp the enormity of these organisms.  


I am humbled by their beauty and presence.  I cannot grasp the thought of actually cutting one of these trees down but back in the day it was a normal thing.  The number of board feet one of these trees surrenders is mind boggling.  One of the largest redwood trees ever known was the Lindsey Creek Redwood which was estimated to weigh over 4 million pounds and contained over 80,000 cubic feet of wood which equates to about 6500 board feet.   A more typical tree weighs about 50,000 pounds and contains about 2500 board feet.



While any old growth redwood trees are now protected you can still purchase redwood lumber as it is now a farmed commodity like any other wood.   It is a very slow burning and insect-resistant wood so it is popular for wooden houses.  Only about 5% of the old original coast redwood trees remain and it is an expensive wood to use.  One typical tree can provide enough wood to build 30 two-story houses.  Amazing!  On a side note, the old hotel that Vialula and I stayed in last night called the Curly Redwood Lodge was built in 1957 and was built from one tree.







A highlight for the day was going to the Jedediah Smith State Park and going out and walking the trails among these massive and magnificent trees.  These are all old growth trees that tower and stretch as high as you can see.  The canopy is so full that the sun has a bit of trouble getting any light to the forest floor.  We spent a couple of hours walking around saying things like, “that’s a biggun” or “oh wow, look at that”.   The two trails we walked that morning were among the Stout Memorial Grove and then the Templeman Grove.  We saw some Star Wars characters wielding their light sabers deep in the woods as a photographer snapped away.  Star Wars: Return of the Jedi did some filming here, hence "May the Forest Be With You!"









Later that day Highway 101 took us in and out of the Redwoods and thru some very curvy roads as we followed the Avenue of the Giants.  It was a challenge to keep the car on the road as we navigated the twists and turns and tried to take in the enormous trees.  We even got some tourist trap adventures in and visited the Trees of Mystery, the home of Paul Bunyan and his trusted blue ox, Babe.  Along with many likenesses of the always elusive Sasquatch.  It’s amazing what some folks will buy to keep as souvenirs. They even sold seeds and saplings of the redwood trees and sequoias. (Ok, Vi is dying to show you her souvenir ....)





Vi's salt n pepper souvenir!


After leaving the Trees of Mystery, we drove to a small quaint seaside town called Trinidad by the Sea and had lunch at The Eatery.  I had my 3rd or 4th round of the local fish and chips because everywhere we ate, the servers always said it was "the best fish and chips" around.   The jury is still out on which one was the best. 



After lunch we drove to Meyer's Flat where we encountered the “Shrine Tree”, which is also a money-making machine.   A man sits at a drive-in window, gets $15 bucks from every car coming thru and then we pull our mirrors in and slowly drive thru a tree!  You can stop and take pictures of the event, but it is a one-way trip and you can’t back up for more trips thru the tree. 






After we made it through the tree, we came upon the "Famous One Log Home" ... we didn't tour it, but it seemed to be a precursor to the current phenomenon known as "tiny home living."


A couple more hours driving, and we finally landed in Ft. Bragg where we stayed at the North Cliff Hotel, right on the water.  A nice place to spend the night until the fog set in and …. then, the foghorn went off ... all night long.



Real life adventures here, and memories for a lifetime.  Tomorrow is wine country, and we will need it after this night!!!










LeRoy and Vialula
Location: Jedediah Smith Redwoods State Park, Crescent City, CA 95531, USA

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