When I was a young boy in grade school, I remember reading about the giant Redwoods that grew in California. I’ve always wanted to see them and since we were here I wasn’t about to pass this opportunity up. Though the nearest Redwoods were 4 ½ hour’s drive away, we got up early and took a drive there. It turned out to be an exceptional day and one of our best here in CA.
The long drive took us over two lane country roads most of the way and we weren’t disappointed by the view. We saw wild turkeys, elk, bison, and even Big Foot!
After leaving the interstate and farmland, we started to climb into the mountains that line the Pacific coast. We first saw wild elk just grazing off the side of the road. The dominant male stayed up on the hillside, but kept a watchful eye on us while we took pictures. I had never seen an elk before except on TV and was amazed at the size of them. They make our northeastern deer appear so small. My first experience with elk was when our professional associate, Blossom, shared some of her elk steaks with us that she had successfully hunted and killed. Yes, she’s a deadly Blossom, and knows how to use a gun. Sarah Palin would be proud of her. I know Gypsy and I enjoyed cooking up the steaks she gave us and am looking forward to more of them in the future.
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During our drive we came across many wild turkeys and some deer. Both groups of animals moved too quickly out of site for me to get a picture. The turkey seem smaller than the ones I’ve seen in the northeast but much more prevalent. The deer are the same size as their northeast cousins with a darker colored hide.
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We passed a Bison Ranch in Ukiah CA that had a sizeable herd of Bison. Image may be NSFW.
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The main bull was easily the size of our SUV and couldn’t care less about us taking his picture. He was too busy relaxing to take notice of us. Image may be NSFW.
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The other bison we took pictures of were smaller, yet still larger than cows, and about 10 months old. We stopped on our way back and bought two large steaks to grill later on. My mouth is still watering at the thought of grilling those babies!
We passed a large lake that encompassed literally miles of area. It was called Clear Lake and reminded me of Tappan Lake in Ohio that I used to swim in as a boy, but this one was bigger.
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We finally arrived in Redwood country and first stopped at the Drive Thru Tree in Legget CA. The Redwood is called the Chandelier Tree and is 315 feet tall, 21 feet in diameter, and over 2,400 years old (The tree was a sapling a good 400 years before Christ was born). Gypsy drove the SUV through the tree with ease while I took pictures. The height and size was incredible and we knew that this one was one of the “smaller” ones. They had a tree that had been cut down and hollowed out and I could stand inside of it with plenty of head room. It was about the same diameter as the engine bell on the Space Shuttle Main Engine.
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- The first time you let Gypsy drive and she goes right through a tree!
The record Redwood is nearly 400 feet tall and as big around as a Saturn Moon Rocket. The VAB at KSC is 500 feet tall and grant that tree another 500 years and it could probably match the VAB’s height. I believe that tree is nearly 3,000 years old matching the pyramids of Egypt.
We next drove to the Richardson Grove State Park and got to walk in the groves of Redwoods there. The ground was covered in compost from the forest waste from the trees and very wet. The topsoil was deep, dark, and very rich for growth. Redwoods can only grow in the Pacific coast area due to the cool moisture that comes off the Pacific Ocean. The forest gets on average, about 5 feet of rain each year, and will give off its own “fog” as water vapor, that it eventually recaptures and reuses.
The grove we walked through was like a primeval cathedral. You could just feel the ancient age of the place and almost expect some prehistoric creature to come out from behind a tree. The trees had branches that were as big as the biggest maples I’ve seen before and those branches had actual decomposed soil on them and actual trees growing in that soil many feet up above us. They say a single Redwood can support a whole ecosystem and I believe it.
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Some of the trees have opening at their base and the old settlers called them “goose pens” because they would actually keep their geese in there to prevent them from wandering off or being preyed upon. I could step inside one and still have enough room to lie down if I wanted.Image may be NSFW.
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Many of the trees had scorch marks on their base. When a forest fire comes through, they will scorch the trees, but can’t kill them. Redwood seeds are designed to sprout only after they have been burned removing the tough outer coating. Redwood seeds are only the size of olives.
We left the Redwood grove and started to make our way to the coast. That was when we came across a tree house that was on the ground. One enterprising shopkeeper made his shop inside a living redwood tree.
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Another shop owner did chainsaw figurines made out of redwood trunks and that is how we saw Bigfoot.
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We proceeded onto CA Route One and had one of the most twisting rides we have ever experienced. The road climbed quite high and then descended and then ascended once again, meanwhile switching back and forth on its self many times over and over. I was glad we were in the SUV and not the RV for this part of the drive.
Suddenly, we popped out of the mountains and woods and there was the Pacific Ocean in all her wild glory! It was a beautiful sight and we were overlooking the ocean from a cliff top about 200 feet up. Large rocks were at the base, some with holes eroded by the waves big enough to sail a ship through, but you wouldn’t since the waves were about 20-30 feet high.
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The coastal highway wound across the entire coast high up on a cliff with an occasional side route that would give you access to the black sand beaches. The beaches had many tidal pools and rock formations, including one large cave. The pictures on the website just can’t do it justice. You can tell the Pacific is a much older ocean than the Atlantic and much bigger.
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All along the road you came across signs warning you that the area was in a tsunami hazard zone. That makes sense since this entire coast is part of the “ring of fire” that surrounds the Pacific.
We returned home late that evening happily checking off multiple items from our “bucket list.” It was a good day and even better day because I got to share it with Gypsy.