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Big Trees

March 10, 2014 David Thomas Leave a Comment

Big Trees One Since we got to California we have been hearing about places to go and things to see.  Obviously Yosemite tops that list, but many other things have been mentioned.  One thing that was not mentioned was Calaveras county Big Trees State Park.

We have discovered that many national parks have smaller parks with great scenery around them.  The benefit is smaller crowds to fight.

In looking at a map of the area after a cave visit in Murphys CA, I saw a small state park located up Route 4 near the town of Arnold, CA.  Not knowing anything about it, we decided to take a look, and are very glad we did.

This grove of trees was discovered originally in 1852 by Augustus T Dowd. Through the next several years, the largest tree was cut down and another had its bark removed to take east for a display.  In 1931, Big Trees State Park was created to preserve the North Grove of giant sequoias, with the South Grove being added later.  The entire park is only approximately 10 square miles in size, and has two campgrounds within its boundaries, one of which is open all year and one which is open late spring and summer.

At the North Grove there is a very nice trail that is easy to walk and offers awesome views of several giant sequoias. We took our children also, and they had a blast over the 1 mile or so walk, climbing on and in several of the downed trees. One tree was cut many years ago so that people could drive their cars through it, and one of the trees has a picture where an entire marching band was playing on top of it.  Several of the fallen trees are also big enough for people (at least kid sized people) to stand up in, as they are usually rotting from the inside out.  The root systems are also  quite large, and easy for people to climb on like a jungle gym.

Overall, we found this to be a great walk for the kids and us, as well as very educational for everyone, us parents included.  We greatly enjoyed our visit here, and are contemplating a return visit to camp in one of the campgrounds.

Cindy on the path in Big Trees State Park in Calaveras County in California
Cindy on the path in Big Trees State Park in California
Nathan inside a root of a giant sequoia
Nathan inside a root of a giant sequoia
Our kids standing on a tree in Big Trees State Par that was felled long ago
The kids on a tree that was felled in Big Trees State Park in California
This shows a tree that has been felled that can be walked through in Big Trees State Park
The path goes through a tree at Big Trees State Park
The walking path going through a giant sequoia
Path through a felled sequoia
Shows Cindy and Nathan in the trunk and root system of a giant sequoia
Cindy and Nathan in the trunk and roots of a giant sequoia
The kids standing in the root system of a standing but dead giant sequoia
Kids in the root system of a standing, but dead giant sequoia
Cindy is standing at the foot of a giant sequoia
Cindy standing at the foot of a giant sequoia
The Thomas kids standing in the root system of a giant sequoia
The Thomas kids standing in the roots of a fallen giant sequoia
This shows the trunk of a giant sequoia from the ground to the first branch
The trunk of a giant sequoia
The family standing on a former dance floor made from the base of a felled sequoia
The family standing on a former dance floor
Shows the trunk of the giant sequoia felled to make the dance floor
The trunk of the tree that makes the dance floor
The Thomas kids are standing at the base of a giant sequoia
The Thomas kids at the base of a giant sequoia
The Thomas kids are standing in a giant sequoia on a road cut though the middle
The kids standing in what was once a road cut through the middle of giant sequoia

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