Visiting giant sequoia trees

Some groves of giant sequoia trees have good trails through them, and some even have paved trails, such as Trail of One Hundred Giants, in Giant Sequoia National Monument.


Walking amidst a grove of giant sequoias is not the same as walking through any old forest. In some groves, there are true giants, with trees over 15 feet in diameter. Then there are the incredibly huge trees that have trunks over 30 feet in diameter, although only a handful of such trees still exist today. Many were cut down during the logging haydays of the latter 1800s.



Trail of 100 giants has quite a few large trees, and the area was groomed and cleared of many smaller pines and firs a few years ago, then the trail was paved, making it easy to walk. The road to this grove takes a while to drive, as one must climb from the central valley of California up a very windy road to reach the area where sequoia trees live.




The rewards of taking such a drive are pretty amazing, with huge trees of such immense proportions and deep red color as to take the breath away. No matter how many times I have walked amidst a grove of these giants, their size and beauty still capture my attention and I return over and over again.






The images in this series were all taken along the Trail of 100 Giants, which winds about a portion of the Long Meadow Grove. And indeed, there are at least 100 very large giant sequoias in the area, and many of lesser size. A small meadow sits in the middle of the trailed area, with greenery and flowers during summer months.



The mountain road that takes you to this grove of giant sequoia trees is a good mountain road, although it is quite windy. Once the road reaches 6000' or so, it straightens out considerably and becomes very pleasant.

Fishing Bears

How do bears catch fish anyway? What is their technique. Think of how fast a fish moves, or "the big one that got away". Yet bears, huge and ponderous as they are, catch many fish. Are the fish they catch healthy and fast, or slow and worn out? Grizzly Bears thrive on salmon, with bears flocking to rivers during salmon runs, entering the rivers and somehow catching fish. Watch this video documentary to see some beautiful underwater bear fishing technique.

Fire in a Giant Sequoia tree

Walk amidst a grove of giant sequoia trees and their size astounds the senses. Walk around a number of these behemoths and the fire scars that extend deep into the interior of the still living trees, astounds even further. Fire is part of the natural cycle, and for trees that reach immense age and size, sooner or later a fire will burn at the base of a tree. And sometimes, in the top of a tree. And sometimes, an entire tree will burn from the inside out.

Many giant sequoia trees have huge fire scars, yet the trees continue to live for centuries, not rotting, and not diseased, just burned and recovering. The chemical makeup of sequoias keeps disease and many insect pests away, allowing a damaged tree to recover and thrive. Indeed, old denizens of a giant sequoia grove almost all have burn scars.

Lightning often strikes trees, sometimes shattering a tree into thousands of pieces, other times knocking out the top half of the tree. I've encountered shattered pines (heard the thunderclap and went searching for the hit tree), I've seen trees with spiral burn scars where the lightning left a burned path twisting down and around the tree. And I've seen trees that have lost their tops due to storms, winds, fires.

Lightning storms often visit the Sierra Nevada mountain range, and at times, giant sequoia groves. Last week, such a storm brought lightning and a giant sequoia caught fire. The USFS issued a press release and photos of the burning tree which is in Evans Grove, in Giant Sequoia National Monument. According to the press release, the fire cannot be safely put out so the tree will burn as it will.

Giant sequoia trees thrive with fire. Their seeds disperse and sprout with fire. Seedlings successfully grow after fire. The behemoths need fire, without it no new fire scars would lend personality to the old trees.



Images are from the press release:



Recent Fire Discovered Burning in Giant Sequoia Tree

SEQUOIA NATIONAL FOREST On Monday, June 1st Buck Rock Lookout reported seeing a fire in the Evans Giant Sequoia Grove on the Hume Lake Ranger District, Giant Sequoia National Monument. By noon firefighters were on scene to find a 12 foot diameter giant sequoia tree on fire with about a 10th of an acre ground fire smoldering around the tree. It is a hollow tree with fire burning inside from the base all the way to the top. Given the nature of the tree and its position on the landscape, the options of trying to put out the fire in the tree using aircraft or ground delivery water sources would be ineffective and unsafe for firefighters.

It was determined that about 60 feet of the top of the tree was knocked out when it was struck by lightning. There were several thunderstorms reported in the area the day prior with a significant amount of lightning and rain associated with those storms.

The “Burton Fire” is burning in a remote section of the Evans Grove and presently does not pose a threat to the general public or private property that is located in this area. A 5-person engine crew and 10 person handcrew as needed are assigned to the fire.

Forest officials have decided to suppress this fire using a confine/containment strategy based on fuel and weather conditions. By using natural barriers and openings, a containment line has been established that encompasses approximately 2 acres surrounding the tree. According to District Ranger John Exline, “If this fire had occurred later in the summer, the district may have chosen a different strategy and tactic based on weather, time of year, smoke dispersal, and burning conditions in relationship to resource benefit resulting in a larger confine/containment area.”

Weather forecasts are for continued thunderstorm activity and the possibility of precipitation, crews will continue to monitor this fire. For more information on the Burton Fire please contact the Hume Lake Ranger District 559-338-2251.

Fawn in the Road

So there I was, driving down the windy road to get to the big city when I round a bend in the road and lying there was a lifeless, tiny little fawn. Pulled over, walked back and lifted the little thing out of the road. Carried it off to the side. It was still warm and limp, just a bit of blood on its nose. Must have fallen from the extremely steep cliff above, or maybe the mom just chose a bad way to climb and the tiny thing simply couldn't climb the long expanse of steep granite, slipped and fell. It didn't look like a car hit it.

Perfect little body, with fluffy, soft fur. Couldn't have been but a week or two old it was so tiny. I hated the idea of cars smashing it, or of scavengers also dying trying to eat it, so I let the little thing roll down the steep slope off the road, down toward the river. I never touched a brand new fawn before this. Kind of a bitter sweet moment.