Pictures for Pam, Day 209: HFF: The Stout Tree in a Double Dedication with Marie-claire Gallet

(+2 insets!) (please view large so you can actually see me!) :D

Steve and I have been so busy since we got back from our trip a week ago. We've been working around the house cleaning up, preparing for our next trip and doing errands, all of which have taken my time from processing pictures. However, the past couple of days have been a lot more relaxed so I've been able to focus on a few folders that were really important to me.

Specifically, I wanted to make sure I attacked the pictures I took at Jedediah Smith State Park. This lovely place was the first stop on our Oregon Coast trip--though it's not actually on the coast itself but instead a mere five miles inland. Within Jedediah are a number of specific groves, one of them being the magnificent and popular Stout Grove. That was where we decided to enjoy Jedediah's wonderful redwood forest.

Stout Grove was awesome. Although it rained before and after our visit, for some lucky reason the downpour stopped about 15 minutes after we arrived and started up again as we headed out a couple of hours later. What are the odds? I would say that they were in our favor because throughout our trip we were blessed by this happening over and over again. We dearly appreciated the amazing luck we had and made the most of our rain-free opportunities!

We hiked on lovely trails covered in pine-needles, making our passage a silent one. Far above us we could hear birds twittering and sometimes we'd see one fly by and land on a branch just out of our view. We admired the incredibly lush ferns that were absolutely everywhere, as well as the flowers and other plants along the way. The smell of a redwood forest is rich and instantly recognizable and I reveled in the aroma I knew so well as a kid up at our summer cabin that was nestled in a redwood forest too!

Here and there, immense toppled trees lay on the mossy floor, slowly turning into the earth below them. The forest was deeply shadowed and felt very reverent and special. Talking in low tones, we passed only a few other people, all of whom were as awe-struck as we were; they too recognized and honored this ancient forest and its rare trees.

We wanted to find the most famous giant of this grove, "The Stout Tree". It was named after Frank D. Stout, a lumberman whose wife donated the tract of land which is the home of Stout Grove. This incredible behemoth is one of the tallest trees in the world at 340 feet and 16 feet in diameter. It is the tallest tree in Stout grove and when we found ourselves standing before The Stout Tree, it literally took our breath away.

My picture today was actually taken by my husband, and shows me standing in front of the marvelous Stout Tree. (Since I'd just taken a picture of him in front of another tree and also some other places, he didn't care about having his photo taken and really wanted to take a picture of me in front of it!) :D How convenient that there's a fence here…since after all, today is the day I post my picture for Happy Fence Friday! :D

I have also included a fence picture I took within Stout Grove, as well as a picture I took of Steve in front of another truly massive Redwood. Aren't these trees just amazing?! :) (I'll be showing lots of redwood tree pictures in coming days but I don't want to drown you in them all at once!)

Pam, I can't remember if you mentioned visiting a redwood forest while you were in California…I think you might have told me you'd gotten to visit Muir Woods? What a place. It's just nutty there, so many incredible beauties to see. What I love about these trees is that they really let you know how small and insignificant you are! Also, it seems that the older the tree, the more I feel their spirits, so walking among these giants is like communing with family that I deeply respect and love. If only we knew how to communicate with them but they're just so different. Maybe someday someone will figure out how to do it. What I would pay to hear their stories. BTW, I've been really enjoying our chats and you've been on my mind so much today! *BIG, BIG HUGS TO YOU MY DEAR!*

Explored on 6/7/19; highest placement, #2.