I took a couple of walks in some Redwood groves near the Navarro River on Friday and explored a little bit of the Montgomery Woods grove. Nothing extreme, just enough to get off the trail and take a look around. The forest was very cold again this weekend, damp, water dripping from the canopy, saturating the forest floor.
Where is the rain? This time last year, it seemed like it was raining every single day. It's been just over a year since I moved to Northern California. Other than an early storm system in October, and a day or two here and there, it hasn't really started raining this year.
What does it mean for the redwoods? I don't know. The fog seems to be doing a pretty darn good job keeping things damp. I wanted to focus on the trees, more than the mushrooms. I gave myself a pretty good crick in the neck from staring up at the canopy. I just read recently that huckleberry bushes can grow at the top of the trees, filled with ripe berries in the fall!
I know its obscene to take a picture of a dollar bill anywhere in these forests, but its all I had to show the scale of these giant mushrooms growing near the base of one particular redwood. How mystical are these forests! Spend some time in them, and they become a part of you.
Something draws you back time and time again to these forests. I don't particularly enjoy hiking in these woods either. Usually I am cold, coughing in the damp air, craving warmth and sunlight. My clothes get wet and muddy. There is probably no way I would choose to live amongst them. Yet they call for a visit regularly.
The trees and this unique ecosystem are easy to take for granted. On the way to work, I can easily put in a CD, drive through grove after grove, daydreaming about something else, mindlessly taking curve after curve.
Every so often, something will stir inside saying "Look where you are! Look at these magnificent trees! Get out of the car and take a look around!" The fact that this is a truly unique ecosystem, located only here in Northern California, is a reason to celebrate.
Until next time...
I took a couple of walks in some Redwood groves near the Navarro River on Friday and explored a little bit of the Montgomery Woods grove. Nothing extreme, just enough to get off the trail and take a look around. The forest was very cold again this weekend, damp, water dripping from the canopy, saturating the forest floor.
Where is the rain? This time last year, it seemed like it was raining every single day. It's been just over a year since I moved to Northern California. Other than an early storm system in October, and a day or two here and there, it hasn't really started raining this year.
What does it mean for the redwoods? I don't know. The fog seems to be doing a pretty darn good job keeping things damp. I wanted to focus on the trees, more than the mushrooms. I gave myself a pretty good crick in the neck from staring up at the canopy. I just read recently that huckleberry bushes can grow at the top of the trees, filled with ripe berries in the fall!
I know its obscene to take a picture of a dollar bill anywhere in these forests, but its all I had to show the scale of these giant mushrooms growing near the base of one particular redwood. How mystical are these forests! Spend some time in them, and they become a part of you.
Something draws you back time and time again to these forests. I don't particularly enjoy hiking in these woods either. Usually I am cold, coughing in the damp air, craving warmth and sunlight. My clothes get wet and muddy. There is probably no way I would choose to live amongst them. Yet they call for a visit regularly.
The trees and this unique ecosystem are easy to take for granted. On the way to work, I can easily put in a CD, drive through grove after grove, daydreaming about something else, mindlessly taking curve after curve.
Every so often, something will stir inside saying "Look where you are! Look at these magnificent trees! Get out of the car and take a look around!" The fact that this is a truly unique ecosystem, located only here in Northern California, is a reason to celebrate.
Until next time...
Dollar bills used to be trees so they go great together!
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