Giants of the Pacific

It is hard to grasp the sheer size and scale of this picture, but imagine the tree trunks diameter is around 8 feet. Back in 2003, some friends and I went to the Ventana Wilderness along the Pacific Coast in California. The drive is amazing, our destination was directly inland from the one of the most spectacular coastline I have ever seen -Big Sur. (Kaui's Na'pali wins for most dramatic in a tropical setting).

At the trailhead, we decided to hike down into the valley, instead of hike up the valley trail- mostly because we are lazy. The hike in to the canyon was long and hot. I brought my trusty sherpa from previous ventures, and we managed to sweet talk a few of our friends into hiking with us on the condition that we carry most of the gear. As an aside here, I don't think I had walked more then 3 miles for two years at this point, so stumbling down steep paths with 50 pounds was brutal. I was excited to exhaustion when we reached a good spot to set up camp for the night. Basically the first flat ground where we could pitch a tent. But, sleeping under Redwoods is one of my favorite things to do.


My new tent (purchased 2002-REI half dome- highly recommended), has a moon roof. I'm not sure what you actually call it, but the vent on top is great. As I sat by a mountain creek, listening to silence, I sleepily gazed up through the tent, and saw redwoods towering above me like sentinels. Then, across the open sky between the branches I saw one of the brightest shooting stars of my life. As I closed my eyes I knew every aching muscle was worth it.