More tall trees

What seems like half a lifetime ago, I stopped to visit the Valley of the Giants near Walpole in Western Australia. The Tingle trees there are unique in that they will not grow anywhere else on the planet. They are also pretty big trees – they can be 75m tall and have a circumference at the base of 20m (246' by 65').

While in California, I thought to visit the Giant Redwoods, but it turns out that they're a considerable distance from the city and my appetite for whole-day bus trips was waning. Instead, and more or less on the doorstep, are the last remaining Coastal Redwoods on the planet. These, too, are pretty big trees and these, too, only grow in a specific area of California. They're slightly taller than the red tingles of Australia though; in the Muir Woods National Park, the tallest tree is 270' (82m) but they have been measured at 400' (122m).

Muir Woods is part of the Golden Gate national park:

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When I was in Australia, I visited several National Parks and was often the only visitor. At the Valley of the Giants, I think there were about 10 other people in the park at the time. Muir Woods was a little different as it was mobbed! I suppose it makes a difference that the forest is on the edge of a pretty large city and it was still the school summer holidays.

The trees are no less impressive for the crowds, though.

The park is actually very beautiful, albeit a little crowded. With a little patience, it was possible to take photographs without other people though:


Near the entrance to the park, is this slice of a tree:

According to the rings, this tree was around 1000 years old when it toppled over. The roots of the trees are only about 10' (3m) deep, but can extend up to 80' (24m) around the tree. They tend to interlock with each other to provide stability, but it doesn't always work. Every so often, one of the trees will crack and branches or entire trees will fall to the forest floor. These are always left to provide a habitat for wildlife and to recycle nutrients.

The tour bus went out to Muir Woods via the affluent town of Sausalito which was originally created as holiday homes for wealthy San Franciscans, who were the only ones who could afford the private boats to take them across. This was before there was a ferry service, and certainly before the Golden Gate Bridge was built.

The return leg stopped briefly at the Muir Beach Outlook. Looking south along the coast, you can see the inlet to San Francisco Bay beyond the last distinct headland.

Rather than drive back into the city, the tour returns on the Sausalito ferry, which affords great views of the city:

Mark Twain is credited with the line, the coldest winter I ever spent was a summer in San Francisco. It's certainly true that the city was pleasantly cool, but one particular feature of San Francisco's weather that can make it very cool is the fog. As the inland valleys warm up during the day, the air in them rises which draws air in from the sea. This air must pass over a very cold ocean current just off shore creating the fog which is then drawn in through the Golden Gate.

In this picture you can see the fog blowing in over the top of the headland behind Sausalito:

From the ferry, you get a good view of the Golden Gate Bridge. It is often seen with the tops of the towers hiding in the fog:

Closer to the city, we passed Alcatraz, the notorious prison:

The ferry lands, appropriately enough, at the Ferry Building – an impressive structure at the western end of Market Street. Until the 1989 earthquake, the road along the water front in San Francisco was an elevated, two-level highway which effectively cut the city off from the sea. When the highway was damaged in the earthquake, the decision was taken not to repair it, but to tear it down and create open spaces for recreation. The Ferry Building was refurbished as part of the same programme of works.

In the background, you can see some tendrils of that fog twisting around the point of the TransAmerica Pyramid.