Jim & John's Junket

Friday, July 13, 2012

Today we left our basecamp in Redding, California and drove nearly 500 miles in Magellan II to get to see the "TREE"mendous Redwood Forest National Park. We made this complete loop due to encountering heavy smoke from a forest fire on our original route. We stopped for breakfast in Trinidad, California to wait for the fog burn off, so we could enjoy the sight of the immense Redwood trees and see at least some of the Pacific Ocean. Redwoods are the tallest trees....some reaching up to 380 feet tall, compared to the Sequoia topping out at 300 feet tall. The age of the Redwoods is up to 2,000 years, while the Sequoia age up to 3,200 years. Bark on the Redwood is 12 inches thick, with bark on the Sequoia up to 31 inches thick. Diameter of Redwoods at the base, 22 feet, while diameter of the Sequoia up to 40 feet. Redwoods reproduce by seed or sprout, while Sequoias reproduce by seed only. Redwood cones are the size of a large olive, while Sequoia cone size is that of a chicken egg. Redwoods do not suffer insect damage. If a Redwood is felled or is badly burned, a ring of new trees often sprout from burls around the base of the trunk. These so-called family groups can form, leading do a cluster of trees. These saplings use the root system of the parent tree. The Redwoods have no taproot, but have a root system that spreads out 60 to 80 feet underground.
Due to our long detour through southern Oregon, we also enjoyed the beauty of Smith River National Recreation Area, especially the scenic river branches.