|
Leaving Crescent City |
Redwoods National Park! As we left
Crescent City, an old sea pelican bid us travel well. I approached respectfully. He gave me a dignified pose.
|
Pelican |
We took the Newton B. Drury Scenic Parkway. You won't go far on that road before you will be startled by the tall, solemn giants, bathed in white light, that stand silent sentinel. Seeing them, placid, mute, undeniable as all glory, made me wonder: What plain truths am I not seeing? How do we grow blind?
|
Natural cathedral |
Part of the answer may have been revealed in a conversation we had with a married couple from Orange, Texas. They were warm, slow-talking, plainly-vested folk. The kind of folk who would not fathom pretension or vanity. I mentioned that we were from
Portland and that I hadn't been here, to the Redwoods, in 40 years.
"But that's just a day's drive away, isn't it?" said the old guy.
I shrugged. "Crazy, ain't it?"
He laughed the laugh that comes when you discover something obvious. "That's the way it goes. You never see what's close."
The old gent took our picture. We shook hands and bid each other travel well.
|
Gigantic! |
We spoke with many people on the trails. People from all over the United States and all over the world. Many Texans, some
Arizona folk, a friendly, intelligent couple from Denver, some folks from the
Netherlands, some
Germans, some
Swiss.
|
Lichen on the foot of a giant |
And we saw many of the giant Coast Redwoods.
The great trees may live for 2000 years or more. They are among the largest trees in the world.
|
Delicate life |
A crowd had gathered around "Big Tree" at a pull-out along the
highway. Big Tree stands 350 feet high, with a 21.6 foot diameter. He
is approximately 1500 years old.
A ranger stood nearby, dispensing facts and information. He indicated places some 30 to 50
feet from the ground, where the tree has started to rot. "So, Big Tree
is dying, then?" I asked.
"It's got some rot, but that doesn't mean it won't live another 300 or 400 years or more."
That
made me scratch my chin.
|
Banana slugs procreatin' |
The ranger was full of interesting facts.
The biggest enemy of the Coast Redwood is wind. Especially after a heavy rainfall, when the soil is water-saturated. Redwood roots
spread far and wide, but never deep. A tree 200 feet tall will delve no
more than 12 feet into the earth. Coast Redwoods are in their prime
at about 800 to 900 years of age. That is when they are tallest.
After that, the wind tops them.
|
Maty in nature |
Only one of every million
sequoia seeds will ever sprout. The seeds need bare earth; no needles,
no encroachment from fern or rhododendron; only bare soil will do. And of those
one-in-a-million sprouts that find bare soil, only those that have the good fortune to find sunlight will survive.
But they are patient. A
sprout may remain a sprout for 30 or 40 years, awaiting opportunity.
|
Holy light |
Because eventually, even 1500-year-old Big Tree will fall. Big Tree sprouted up out of the earth as Rome
and Persia were vying for dominance in the Middle East. What will the
world be like when Big Tree finally falls? It is possible that even the sapling white oak
in
Mount Tabor Park will have lived a full life, died, and returned to earth
before Big Tree succumbs.
The fall of a Coast Redwood is a
cataclysm and Big Tree will be no exception. Each tree is a universe
entire for the flora and fauna that live upon it. But when Big Tree falls, hopefully, there will be 30 and 40 year old sprouts to drink in the light
that his fall lets in. Hopefully, they will then begin their centuries-long journey skyward.
|
Elk bein' mellow |
Redwoods National Park is one of the reasons I love America. Spare me
the red, white, and blue jingoism and the warlike
fake patriotism.
|
Curious plant life |
I
love America because of these great treasures; these endowments of the Great Whatever. It's a love for the
land of America. The land itself.
|
Inside a charred bole |
As the rock band Kansas sang:
Virgin land of forest green
Dark and stormy plains
Here all life abounds
Sunlit valley, mountain fields
Unseen in the rain
Here all life abounds
|
Maty on the Lady Bird Johnson trail |
Redwoods National Park exemplifies the unfathomable endowment of this wondrous land. Looking upon it, my heart hurts for the
many millions who never have the opportunity to see how beautiful is this world.
|
Redwood jay |
We can be a people of knowledge and generosity. We can be a people
that others welcome to their lands with hope and glad hearts.
|
Ancient grove |
That's what I remembered when I went to Redwoods National Park.
No comments:
Post a Comment