Читать книгу Hiking & Backpacking Big Sur. Your complete guide to the trails of Big Sur, Ventana Wilderness, and Silver Peak Wilderness онлайн

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Redwood forests form a narrow belt along the coast from central California to southern Oregon. They are prized for their longevity (1000 years or more) and height (stretching some 250 to 300 feet above the forest floor). The tallest trees and healthiest groves rise farther north at Redwood National Park. Big Sur represents the redwood’s southern stronghold, which peters out near Salmon Creek in southern Big Sur, close to the coastal California fog belt. As redwoods approach their southern limit, the trees are noticeably diminished in size.

In its warmer, drier southern range, this moisture-loving species is restricted to cool, damp valleys, canyons, ravines, and gullies. The fossil record proves that 50 million years ago redwoods were widespread throughout the Northern Hemisphere, including Greenland, Asia, and Europe. As the climate changed, so did the species’ range.

Although redwoods can live for thousands of years, the desire for lumber makes the fast-growing, massive trees commercially valuable. At the turn of the century, the Big Sur region sustained massive logging operations that cleared much of the ancient stands. Remaining old-growth redwood forests are confined to a few coastal drainages, including the Little Sur, Big Sur, Partington, McWay, Big Creek, and Palo Colorado Canyons.