Calaveras Big Trees State Park - Part 2

Calaveras Big Trees State Park - Part 2

Yesterday I wrote about Calaveras Big Trees State Park and specifically the Discovery Tree. The park is home to some amazing trees, the Giant Sequoias. There are two types of redwood trees that are native to California, the Coast Redwoods along the central and northern coast and the giant Sequoia which grows in scattered locations along the western slopes of the Sierra Nevada. On Sunday 9/18/11 we walked the trail through the North Grove of Giant Sequoias at Calaveras Big Trees State Park. In the 1.5 mile loop I took nearly 100 pictures and would love to share some of them with you.

Of course before you start out on the hike you need to fuel up. The view from our picnic table was also pretty cool.

These two pictures should give you an idea of how large these trees are. The one on the left is the roots of a tree that had fallen down. The right is the base of one of the Giants.

It's hard to imagine just how large these trees are. They can grow to a height of 325 feet with a diameter of up to 35 feet.

The tree on the left is named Hercules and was one of the largest in the grove. It was blown down in a wind storm in December of 1861. The tree on the right is the Father of the Forest and fell long before Euro-Americans discovered the grove. You can actually walk inside of the fallen tree. I am 5'11" and was able to stand up and walk through it.

The photo on the left is actually of two trees. Over the years fuel will build up between two trees that are close together like these two are. The large burn scars are from when that fuel burned in a forest fire. The photo on the right is of an area that was burned in a 1908 fire. The fire created ideal growing condition for the Sequoia seedlings and today is a healthy stand of young Sequoias. Of course as Sequoias go these are just newborn babies.

The photo on the left is of a tree known as The Mother Of The Forest. Speculators removed the bark from the tree in 1854 to be reassembled as an exhibit that toured around the country. Unfortunately this killed the tree. The photo on the right is of the Abraham Lincoln Tree, which was named for Lincoln in 1865 shortly after his death.

I hope that you enjoyed these pictures as much as I enjoyed taking them. If you are ever in Central California and you have the chance to visit the Calaveras Big Trees State Park you will not be disappointed. The park is located on Highway 4 just three miles east of the town of Arnold Ca. There is an $8 all day admission (per car) to the park which is a bargain. There are several trails through the park. There are also picnic areas and campgrounds. The park is also open year round.