DAY 37. Today we walked amongst Giants

We are now in Three Rivers, CA and on the doorstep of Sequoia & King's Canyon National Parks. It was an early start to the day and as we have discovered, this strategy pays off and allows us a quiet traffic free ride into the park.

The road was amazing and soon we began to see what we had come for

The Bikes got parked and we headed down the trail.

and this is me standing in front of the largest living tree on the planet!!

We were lucky enough to meet up with a Park Ranger who gave the gathered crowd a very informative talk about the trees we had all come to admire. Even though they are truly giants, their cones are only the size of a chicken egg

 However a mature Sequoia may bear thousands of cones at a time.

The seeds are also tiny compared to the enormity of the tree. No bigger than an oat flake!
After learning all about the forest we were in, we continued our walk, marveling at these amazing trees. We were very quiet as we walked as it truly was awe inspiring.

 This one still has it's crown and shows the beautiful conical shape of the younger trees.

 A more mature tree has a much broader base as it's top has died off and it no longer grows taller

Another view of General Sherman. These trees look like they have giant feet complete with toes. I am convinced that Tolkien based the Ent's in Lord of the Rings on the Sequoias.

It turns out that forest fires are a good thing if you are a Sequoia. They are resistant to burning and the heat causes their pine cones to open and shed their seeds. The seeds are then able to germinate and sprout on the forest floor which has been cleared of all the undergrowth that would otherwise prevent the tiny seed from sprouting.

 Most of the trees had scars on their trunks from past fires.

A group of young sequoias growing on the forest floor.

In the 1950's these amazing trees were being cut down if they threatened to encroach or fall on the small cabins or camps that had been built amongst them. In the 1960's forest fires were suppressed. Fortunately, it was noticed that no new trees were growing, the role of fire came to be understood and fires were no longer extinguished. All the cabins were moved out of the park resulting in a slow recovery of this amazing forest of giants. This park now preserves that forest, no lodging is allowed  amongst the trees and areas remain closed to human foot traffic to allow continued recovery.

Once again we are left in wonder at the beauty of this country. We will never forget the Sequoias that only grow in this small tract of the Sierra Nevada.