Ravishing Redwoods
Redwood National and State Parks (RNSP) are a combination of one national park and three state parks, which together protect more than 45 percent of all remaining coast redwoods which are among the oldest, and one of the most massive tree species on Earth
Waking up at 4am to have my eye-lashes frozen over!
Our first stop here is the Fern Canyon which is a gem - different types of ferns clinging to the steep cliffs are ancient species, with ancestry tracing back 325 million years
The narrow 50-foot lush canyon walls, have waterfalls trickling down the edge, moss cascading down the sides, and greenery as far as the eye can see.
Felt godly here, as the sun rose through the redwoods in the canyon. Waking up at 4am on new year's made totally worthwhile :)
Doesn't it remind of Jurassic Park? Ah yes, Steven Spielberg filmed a Jurassic Park II scenes within this canyon
At more than 370 feet high, Redwoods are known for the highest tree in the WORLD and it's here in the Tall Tree Grove!! Can't keep calm. The grove has 5 trees taller than 350ft and 2 of the former tallest trees in the world!
The trail is limited to 50 people/day and thanks to off season, we could get the permit easily. Cheers to my first PERMITTED only trail.
So let's get started, getting deeper into the grove of redwoods with greenery as far as I can see!
Close cousins of the Giant Sequoias these trees are not only tall, they're pretty broad and huge in general. Wild Rohan for comparison in photos.
Me (less than 6ft) standing here with Nugget (more than 370 ft) which is the third tallest tree in the world. The tallest tree in the world, Hyperion was 100m away but inaccessible due to a raging river! So next time?
This is Howard Libbey, the OG 'tall tree' and was the tallest tree in the world until 1988 until new trees (in the surrounding areas itself lol) were found taller than it
Redwoods get their common name from their bark and heartwood, the reddish-brown color of which stems from high tannin levels
Camouflaging amongst these giants. The closer you are, the more you lose perspective how tall 370 feet means!
I loved the second part of the loop as well, where the redwoods were traded for another type of tree with these massive arms that stretched out and made for cool photos.
The day ended with a pretty sunset over the Redwood valley with the mist which keeps trees alive setting in, and the Pacific Ocean in the background
Another early morning wake up, but made worth due to the hip sunrise :)
Did some offroading and drove the Howell Mill Road - a dirt road that winds amongst very large old-growth redwood
'Nature's skyscrapers'
Trying to pose amongst these giants with the mist settling in. Even on a clear day, one can't see the top of these ~400 feet trees which is about 40 floor skyscraper.
Stout Grove is the world's most scenic stand of redwoods. It’s not all that large, and it doesn’t have the biggest trees, but for sheer photogenic beauty nothing beats this extraordinary grove
The grandeur has literally made me speechless.
A wallpaper candid of me amongst these 300 feet tall trees.
Some trees have fallen giving us the opportunity to view the gigantic root balls and base of these trees. They are relatively shallow, considering they have been holding up trees as high as a 30 to 35 story
These burls are woody material full of unsprouted bud tissue. It serves as a storage compartment for the genetic code of the parent tree
Memories shared with @NanditaGupta