The Mighty and Mystical Redwoods of Big Sur, California

For all the panoramas, beaches, cliffs, parks, Big Sur is inseparable from the majesty of the Redwoods,.

Redwoods are the mightiest trees on earth. And exist, for the most part, only in California. They can range from 200 to over 400 feet, and can be thousands of years old. The oldest can have a base so wide you can drive a car through it. The tops so tall that scientists have discovered and still study the micro climates and unique eco-systems that form the canopy.

But beyond their might and height, the Redwoods are a spiritual presence. Often they grow in circles as if a family, and form a center that seems to drain all sound of man and forest. You stand in the center of a grove and the stillness is almost mystical. If you have never experienced what we describe, make sure to never pass a grove on a hike, go inside it, sit on a log, close your eyes. It will change you.

Big Sur is known for its Redwoods; they are the dominant citizen of this mountain-to-sea land. They bridge the area from the high, granite-covered peaks to the dramatic drop to the Pacific. Humans are the visitors, and they did not make much room for us, which is just fine.

Other great Redwood parks? The famous, but heavily over-visited Muir Woods, just north of San Francisco; and the Armstrong forest, near the Russian River in Sonoma — a much less touristy way to experience their majesty.

 

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