Welcome home - Sequoia National Forest

by Angela Stanton

Title

Welcome home - Sequoia National Forest

Artist

Angela Stanton

Medium

Photograph - Photograph With Texture

Description

This is a photograph of a dear walking next to the paved road in the Giant Sequoia Forest in California. The day was misty and dark with occasional spots of sun. The tree trunk in the back is the characteristic Sequoia fire "triangle" that quick forest fires cause. The photograph has a fine texture added to enhance the light on the deer and and its way. The tree trunk it is heading to is one of the tallest trees in the forest. Compare the size of that giant Sequoia trunk to the one just behind the tree, which is a common but full grown tree! In fact, I have images of trees like Christmas trees growing inside of the fire-triangle of the Giant Sequoias.
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You may wonder what I mean by "fire triangle". Obviously it is a triangle split opening at the base of the trunk of the tree but what is it and how it got there?! The Giant Sequoias are often hit by lightening and fires are very common--in fact necessary for the survival of the trees. The seedlings must pop open from the heat of the fire in order to become fertile! The giant triangular cracks at the base of the older trees represent them having one through at least one fire season in their lives when the heat literally pops the tree open. But these fires don't actually hurt the trees. They rarely burn at all and the trees are so tall that the flame never gets to the top. Indeed, this is pretty much a fire-proof forest once there was enough of a fire to get the seedlings going. Our nature preservation efforts of stopping forest fires ate all cost actually stunted the growth and development of the Giant Sequoias! Now that we understand how much fires are necessary, fires there caused by nature are no longer stopped!
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The Giant Sequoias are known to only survive at altitudes of 7000 to 9000 feet but to my biggest surprise I found one (a single one) at about 5000 altitude with its characteristic triangle burn opening! Not sure if it is a freak of nature or if an accidental fire spark that few a seedling that far.
The Giant Sequoias is a National Park in mid to northern California bordering Nevada. The road up is quite a ride on its own and should you be coming on the back road (from the north) you will find yourself quite dizzy from the many turns of the road on a dime and with extreme elevation changes. Coming from the southern entry the road is of more comfort but much longer. Wherever you decide to come from to visit the place, you must visit it at least once in your life time and hug those trees (or try to hug a little part of it) that are were born before Christ's biblical birth.

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October 12th, 2010

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