The Holiness Of Redwood Trees

Some things just never get old, spending time among the giant redwood trees of Northern California is one of those things.

The coast redwood, sequoia sempervirens, is found only along a narrow band of coastal California from Big Sur in the south to just above the Oregon  border in the north. What’s left of the old growth redwoods have managed to escape the chainsaws of rapacious loggers and have been preserved in state and national parks and private reserves. Here in Humboldt County along the far north coast of California is where the biggest of the big trees can be found. Old growth redwoods can be upwards of 2,000 years old and older which means Jesus himself could have planted one of them. These trees typically top out at 300 feet or taller. The tallest confirmed height of a redwood tree is 380 feet, that distinction belongs to a tree dubbed Hyperion which can be found in a remote area of Redwood National Park just north of here. If you’ve never seen an old growth redwood tree, well this is something that you absolutely must do. Put it on your bucket list along with that trip to Paris or climbing Everest.

Carol and I just sent three days camping in the heart of these majestic redwood trees at Humboldt Redwoods State Park. The park sits on a hillside above the lazy, meandering Eel River, its crystal clear, green-hued waters are the perfect place to cool off after hiking. The campground is heavily forested with mostly second growth redwoods and Douglas fir. Second growth trees are still huge and impressive though, some of which are older than just about anyone currently alive on Earth today, think about that for a minute! But the real crown jewel of Humboldt Redwoods, and the primary reason people come from all over the world to visit here, are the groves of old growth redwoods.

Williams Grove is the main attraction here, it’s  filled with massive old growth behemoths that are awe-inspiring and almost impossible to describe. The morning we arrived, we were the only ones here. Sunlight slanted down through the canopy creating cross hatches of soft, yellow light on the tree trunks and the forest floor. Everywhere, enormous trees towered above us. Our footsteps were muffled by the thick understory, we walked in reverent silence, breathing in the antiquity and the wisdom of the trees; we were in a holy place and walking here felt like praying. These trees are not only tall but wide. Carol and I attempted to measure the girth of one of these giants, it took us eight arm lengths to encircle the tree…that’s 48 feet!! We saw several trees that were even larger than this one. Of course hugging one of these miracles of nature is a requisite ritual. I spread my arms across the face of one such tree, looking up I could see the thick ridges of it’s trunk disappear into the canopy high above me, I felt the roughness of her bark on my cheek, my heart and the heart of this tree were beating as one.

The energy in Williams Grove is hushed and so peaceful. These ancient trees exude such a powerful force. I kept thinking, are these trees God? Am I in heaven? I’m trying hard to describe what I felt at the moment but I come up short. I’ve spent lots of time here in big tree country and always experience these same feelings of speechlessness and wonder. It felt eternal and that I was part of that eternity. As long as these trees are left undisturbed by us meddlesome humans, who knows how long they’ll live? The average lifespan of a human is but a fraction of that of a redwood tree so we’ll never know. Like looking up at the stars on a clear night and trying to grasp the vastness of space, I get that same feeling trying to comprehend the timelessness of these magnificent trees.