I came across this fallen giant today while exploring a section of Rockefeller Forest. It looked like a fresh fall, as in couple weeks or even couple days fresh. This was a big, old giant. I'm guessing it had a cbh of near 40 feet. It's crazy to think it has been standing in this spot for over a thousand years and finally was laid to rest within the month.
It's also interesting how these old giants seem to throw off all their limbs in the final fall. I'd imagine many of them simply get buried into the ground. The rest seem to scatter in a massive debris field. This is the closest I will get to climbing one of these amazing trees. As I walked towards the top of the tree, I noticed lots of different lichen scattered around. Again, it all looked very fresh.
One of the coolest moments for me was walking up to a notch that was probably 3/5 of the way up the tree. The notch still had a large chunk of soil attached to it, with mosses and ferns growing out of it. From the ground, you can see these notches and gardens growing on the standing trees. Only a handful of tree climbing scientists get to examine the contents. I peeled off a chunk of the soil that probably took decades if not centuries to accumulate on the notch, and pretended to be a scientist.
Along with the ferns and moss were some centipedes with yellow spots. They appeared to be mating. I guess if it's the end of the world, you might as well find someone to love eh?!
RIP old redwood giant.
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