We have big trees in my state in Australia. There’s a giant karri that has a firewatching tower near the top. It is 201 ‘ or 61 m tall. I have climbed it, in fact. It was one very scary climb even back in those days before I had wonky knees… Then there are Malaysian rainforest trees of which the Tualang Koompassia excelsa gets up to about 288′ or 88m, and other species equally tall.
And then there are the sequoias. At over 100m and over 2000 years old. And they are really something. Did you know that the cones stay on the tree for 20 years or more? I guess they just live at a different tempo to we poor mortals…
Above: Younger daughter and me.
Above: A dead one.
Below: The Grizzly tree.
Below: And what one looks like when it falls over….
Redwoods. Magnificent. They put you in your place in the scheme of things.
They are magnificent. Just curious, was the dead one dead before or AFTER they cut a dirty great big hole through the middle??? *grin*
The trees are so beautiful ! How can we prefer some reinforced concrete Tower ? Here on my travel checklist: ‘see the sequoiasall around the world’.
In France it was quite ‘in’ this summer 2008 to have a holiday trip in a wood cabin perched in the trees, many people around me did so, and many paper magazines talked about it, it was seen as a way to come back to childhood or to discover a night in a tree, quite a nice idea ^^
I am getting enviouser and enviouser (don’t copy that word Gynie) I didn’t have a chance to see the California Redwoods when I was there and have regretted it ever since. Wonderful pictures again Glenda, you do look tiny against those massive trees.
Oh yeah! Redwoods are one of my favorite things about California.
Has anyone explained to you that their roots are very shallow, and the only reason they don’t all fall over is that the roots all knit together in the forest? Those trees are all holding hands underground.
And when they do fall over the root systems look just like the exhaust of some pulp-era space ship. Remember the Muir tree ships from Hyperion?
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That’s interesting Cheryl, I didn’t know that about their roots.
Gynie – there’s something about trees. I have so many chilkdhood memories of climbing trees and building “cubbies” in them to play in.
I didn’t know that about the roots either, Cheryl.