Tuesday, July 7, 2009

Traveling on the Big Tree Scenic drive

We started the day with a trip to the Trees of Mystery attraction which features many novel attractions associated with the Redwood Trees in the area. Of prime importance to Orinda was the Paul Bunyan and Babe, the Blue Ox statues -- in Redwood scale!


Once we left that attraction, we took the Drury Scenic drive which passes through many old growth Redwood trees. One tree, aptly named Big Tree, really lived up to its name. It is about 25' in diameter and 300 feet tall.

Rick and Cody try to show the scale of these trees which are massive.

This tree has survived a forest fire which resulted in the hollow center of the tree.

The Redwoods need constant moisture and a stable climate. This also allows many other plants to grow, especially ferns which are all over. This will give you an idea of the moisture that is present.

The redwood is also very adaptable and can grow on many different surfaces. This large tree started by growing on a downed tree and then spread roots out to the ground. Amazing.

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