California

We made a trip this summer down the Oregon coast into northern California where we saw the redwoods. We left California by way of the Redwoods Highway (US 199), following the Smith River into the California Siskiyou Mountains. This shot was taken along that route early in the morning as the rose over the river and the redwoods. ronaldhanko-orchidhunter.blogspot.com/2012/08/california-...

We took our vacation this summer by way of driving down the Oregon coast into northern California where we saw the Redwoods at Jedediah Smith Redwoods Park. This photo shows the remains of one old tree, which still dwarfs my wife (I'll be posting other pictures of living trees as well). These trees, some of the oldest living creatures on the planet, leave one speechless and feeling very small and transitory. No picture or words can really describe them. While there we learned that the Coast Redwood (Sequoia sempervierns) is taller but not as large in diameter or bulk as the Giant Sequoia. It can grow to 380 feet, live for 2000 years, has fire- and insect-resistant bark that is twelve inches thick, and has a cone about the size of a large olive. The park we visited is part of a complex of parks jointly administered by the state of California and the National Park Service that reaches for more than fifty miles down the California coast and provides a sanctuary for these amazing and wonderful trees. ronaldhanko-orchidhunter.blogspot.com/2012/08/california-...

In July we were in northern California to see the redwoods at Jedediah Smith Redwoods State Park. As I said in a previous post, it is almost impossible to convey in photographs the size and majesty of these 2000 year old trees. This was one of my more successful efforts, though even this is inadequate. Walking quietly among them that afternoon and evening reminded me of James Russell Lowell's poem, "The Cathedral, where he writes of being "safe in the hallowed quiets of the past." ronaldhanko-orchidhunter.blogspot.com/2012/08/california-...

Taken while hiking last spring near the nature center north of Whitewater.

Photographed in Jedediah Smith Redwoods State Park in Northern California. It is difficult in any photograph to do these magnificent trees justice. They look like nothing out of the ordinary in this photo, but the impression they leave is indescribable, except that one feels very small and very impermanent when walking among them. ronaldhanko-orchidhunter.blogspot.com/2012/08/california-redwoods.html

This was one of the larger trees we saw in Jedediah Smith Redwoods State Park when we visited there last summer on trip through Oregon and northern California. The older trees often had these fascinating stumps and this was the best picture I was able to get of them. ronaldhanko-orchidhunter.blogspot.com/2012/08/california-redwoods.html

Sequoia sempervirens, the Coast Redwood, is one of the tallest living things on earth, up to 380 feet (116 m) and as large as 25 feet (8 m) in diameter. It is also one of the oldest living creatures, living an estimated 1200-1800 years. Its bark, up to a foot (30 cm) thick, protects the trees from insects and fires. Once estimated to cover nearly 2,000,000 acres in California and Oregon, most of them were cut for timber before they were protected. They are now considered an endangered species. This photo was taken in Jedediah Smith Redwoods State Park in northern California. ronaldhanko-orchidhunter.blogspot.com/2012/08/california-redwoods.html

I believe I've found out what these are. When visiting the Redwoods in northern California last summer we found trees that had these unusual growths at the base. If I am not mistaken, these are burls. Theya re formed when the tree is stressed or injured and are highly prized for their beautiful wood, though harvesting them can harm the tree. They are often formed underground and in that case are not discovered until the tree falls. We were attracted by the colors and patterns they made at the base of the tree.

Smith River is in northern California and this photo was taken along the Redwoods Highway which follows the Smith River. We were driving from Jedediah Smith Redwoods State Park into southern Oregon early in the morning last August and stopped for pictures as the sun rose. ronaldhanko-orchidhunter.blogspot.com/2012/08/california-...