11 Jul Bitter Sweet Vacation

If I had more time — I’d convert this blog into a heart on the sleeve inquiry as to the sustainability of America’s current economic vision… but, who has that kind of time?

Here’s a few observations:

On vacation last week to sunny California’s coastal redwood forests, my nephew, girlfriend and I were shocked to learn a few things. Most impressively, according to the US Park Service after just 150 years of logging only about 4% of America’s old growth redwoods remain today. (96% have been cut down.)

Since 1850 logging all over California has reduced total acreage of old growth redwood forests by close to 2 million acres. These acres of course helped build the foundation of our US economy, which I’m thankful for in more ways than I can list — and am not criticizing in this blog. Please read on.

It’s my humble assumption that our fast-acting US economy converted these prehistoric trees into today’s "built" habitat, replacing California’s ancient ecosystems with new American towns, cities, and suburbs. While we three travelers found plenty of places to hike and enjoy beautiful, still-preserved forests, pristine rivers and peaceful places—we noticed that none of the trees we saw were more than 16 feet in diameter. Hmmm. These trees were big, but after a while we got kind of used to ’em.

Then the puzzle starting coming together. Over dinner at a retired logging camp we saw 100+ year old photos of loggers standing atop redwood trunks. These trunks were 27 feet or more in diameter. Later in the trip we found ourselves mystified as we drove across miles and miles of cold, rainy coastal highways. (It was July 4th!) And it struck me: where these cold, inhospitable California beaches former redwood zones? Where we driving through some of the logged areas? (Frankly, it’d be hard not too. 2M acres is huge.) Was much of northern California, before America, a giant rainforest? No one had ever mentioned that before.

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Today, the timber in redwood trees is impressive and the logging continues…

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Your comments appreciated.
Some links to learn more:
Save The Redwoods: Coastal history page
Wildlife Conservation Society: unprotected areas, today
Operation Redwoods: general info
Wikipedia: master info page