Part 2 of Redwood trees...

[Detector Man]

I took a picture of the so called Centennial Stump and it did not turn out as well as i wanted because there is a wooden fence around it and i couldnt get close to the actual stump...i did hold my monopod as high a possible and hope for a decent shot of the stump.

To give you an idea how big these trees are, their diameter is probably bigger than ANY room in your house (generally speaking)...

 

[Kelley (Texas)]

it dies, do they just leave it alone or do the park folks do something with it? I remember seeing a post card with a car driving through the tree, always thought it was a fake, but after seeing these pictures, figure it was true. I would love to see these large trees one of these days. Thanks for posting these pictures and telling us about the large trees, I enjoyed it. Kelley (Texas)

 

[Detector Man]

If a tree falls in a national park they usually leave it as is unless there is a safety issue. There was a situation about this a couple years ago where a tree fell over across a very busy and popular hiking trail. Luckily it missed buildings.. They re routed the trail and left the tree down where it fell. The trend nowadays is to let the natural process happen no matter what. I have seen a gas station removed in Yosemite National Park for that reason and i have seen campsites reduced/eliminated to take the park back the way it was which is not possible doe to the popularity of the parks .
In the old days there was a very popular tree in Yosemite where they actully CUT a hole at the base so that car could drive thru is and often times people would stop and take a p icture of themselves ...this was more like a publicity stunt from the forestry people. The tree fell over many years ago. I never actually saw that specific tree before it fell over. At Sequoia National Park (adjacent to Kings Canyon National Park) there is a tree that fell over and the officials cut a hole for cars to drive thru it. Again this was done years ago on a short side road and i dont believe this would be done nowadays due to the different philosophy about the park and how it should be maintained. Im sure that they still sell the postcard about the first tree where they made a hole for cars on the living tree.

 

[Roscue2]

Photos one and two speak to me. In photo 2, u can see the fire scars from who knows how long ago. The tree to the left in the second photo appears to have been struck by lightening at some point from the looks of the split. Still alive and kicking though.

I recall in the early 2000s one of the trees (can't remember where or what it was called) fell over. It was estimated to be over 3000 yrs old, and when it fell it made national news.

Detector, in Kings Canyon, do they have similar tourist development like Yosemite Valley, or is it more natural with few gift shops, food, ect?

HH and GL

 

[Detector Man]

Kings Canyon and Sequoia are, as you probably know, adjacent to each other.....both parks have all the modern conveniences but i doubt they have the number of visitors Yosemite does...there are no buses all over the place...several souvenir shops and you can have a nice meal in both parks but i dont believe the cafeterias are anywhere as as big as the one in Yosemite....to put it simply Yosemite is a whole different thing...in fact its almost out of control and they are headed, eventually, towards limiting the number of humans getting in the place...
The "problem" with Yosemite is that EVERYTHING to see is, pretty much, in the valley . Whereas the other two parks you have to drive to see things...not sure if they have water falls...it is a lot quieter than Yosemite...more peaceful ...fall and spring time is always the best at any of the 3 parks.

Over the years ive seen quite a few trees with lighting scars...i plan on going back either soon or in the spring......and for those who dont know about snow ( i wouldnt believe it until i saw it myself) the snow level is above the bottom of the roof at the visitor center during snow season...

RE: the tree that fell ....i believe youre speaking of the same tree i mentioned in my post ...they had a big whoopdidoo about the hiking trail and what to do with the tree.. i believe it was in the area known as Lodgepole within the park.

 

[Roscue2]

Thanks for the info. I will have to go to Sequoia and Kings Canyon sometime. A little further than Yosemite, but it will be a new experience. Yosemite definitely is busy year round. It has become very popular over the last 100 years, and I too have heard they are going to begin limiting the number of people per a day.