Best for Last

Our last day in the Redwoods got lost in an allergic reaction -- that's really the best explanation. I did write a rather humorous beginning to the blog which included my prediction that I was going to die by mosquito plague, but it seems a bit melodramatic now. The last night of our vacay had me riddled in mosquito (or something else...) bites, and a massive allergic reaction to something in Newport. You may think the two are related, but I had the same such reaction on the way down. If you could have bought stock in Benadryl a few days ago, I would have personally made you a millionaire.

Anywho...(Sidebar, my spell check thinks that should be two words. Anyone else feel passionately about it being one?)...We saved one thing for our drive out of Cali -- Stout Grove.  I'm glad we didn't see it on the way in, because everything would have paled in comparison. If you're driving south, and can stop for one thing, make it this. The drive to Stout is...another dirt road! This one had lots of pullouts and really only had a couple of harried situations. The drive is a nice windy "stroll" through massive trees.

 

This picture is slightly out of focus (see above about a dirt road!), but it gives the best feel of the drive. The space between some trees was just narrow enough for a vehicle. It felt magical.

The Stout Grove itself is astounding. One of the things that made it so jaw dropping is there is almost no covering on the forest floor. You can see this giants from floor, to as far as the eye can see.

We don't really have the pictures to show, but another WOW of this grove was the tree damage. A massive flood knocked out many of the trees. Inches of rain, shallow roots on the trees (a redwood trait), and lack of ground cover, made for a perfect storm. I've read a lot in the last week, and honestly I can't remember which flood this was. Either 1955 (which eliminated the town of Dyerville), or the 1964-65 winter, which came on the heels of the tsunami. I'm all researched out. Thinking about this forest floor full of water and then giant trees falling, and being knocked around is terrifying. 

This grove was full of amaziness. Enjoy a few more shots!!

I just can't describe the feeling of standing amongst these trees. I suppose being a PNW girl, trees are trees. This park wasn't really on my radar until I read At the Edge of the Orchard. Chevalier wrote about stumbling across these trees in a way that made me want to see it myself. Can't wait to get to the Sequoia Park now!!  

#findyourpark

Until next time -- T&L out!