Day3 My last full day in California was dedicated to hiking and exploring some of California's redwood forests. A one hour drive south brings me to Big Basin Redwoods State Park. This is California's oldest State Park, and home to the largest continuous stand of ancient coast redwoods south of San Francisco. This beautiful park is home to thousands of redwoods and is not very crowded. It is mainly for hiking with only a few campgrounds available.

The redwoods are awesome and can only really be appreciated in person, a picture can not capture the real size height you get by standing next to one. I'm always amazed that such a hardy species of tree is so limited as to where it can survive. Redwoods can live to be 2,000 years old or more potentially. They are not harmed by any insect or disease, can withstand forest fires, lighting strikes and wind yet they only exist in this small area of the world. You cannot transplant a redwood or grow one in a nursery. They can only survive in this small geographical area and unique environment of coastal California.

It is easy to see why loggers quickly flocked here to cut these giant trees but it was interesting to learn how efforts to save the trees quickly took hold. Attempts to photograph the trees and send word back east were often met with disbelief. It was thought people were exaggerating or falsifying or doctoring pictures to describe these trees. Like I said you have to

see them in person. Luckily conservation efforts where able to preserve some areas before being completely logged. These efforts are a big part of our nations best known conservation history, including names like John Muir, and Teddy Roosevelt and the beginning of the National Park System.

The hiking was great and before I knew it I had to return to my hotel and pack up to return to Wisconsin the following morning.