| The Giant Sequoia Trees are the
largest and some of the oldest living entities on the planet. Redwoods can
grow higher then Sequoias. But no tree combines height and width such as
the Sequoia, making its volume the largest of any living species. Sequoias
can grow very old, to over 3,000 years, similar to the Redwood. Fires, insects,
and diseases do not kill these trees. However, occasionally they topple
over from root rot, high winds, or lighting strikes. The root system is
very shallow and these giant trees have no tap root. |
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THE SENTINEL |
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Below: CAN YOU SEE LEE DUQUETTE
AT THE BOTTOM OF THE TREE? THE WHOLE TREE WILL NOT FIT IN A PHOTO! |
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| At 700 tons, the Sentinel Tree weighs more
than two fully loaded jumbo jet airplanes - yet it is still just an average
sequoia tree. |
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Below: HARDENED SNOW
and SOME TREE TRUNKS |
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THERE IT IS!
THE LARGEST TREE ON EARTH |
| In front of you stands Karen Duquette and the
General Sherman Tree. The tree's claim to fame as the biggest tree in the
world comes from the volume of this trunk. (see the person in blue down
by the trunk of the tree and how small that person looks) A few other tree
trunks are bigger around. Some trees are taller. But no other tree has more
wood in its trunk than the Sherman Tree. |
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| Below: It's a matter of perspective: Looking up at the General
Sherman Tree for a six-foot tall human is about the same as a mouse looking
up at the six-foot human. And Karen Duquette is not anywhere near six feet tall
- so take a good look at how she has to bend to see even part of the tree. |
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The Sherman Tree's top is dead, so the tree's trunk no
longer gets taller. However, its volume keeps increasing. Each year the
trunk grows wider, adding enough wood to equal another good-sized tree.
The tree's girth is 109 feet around at the ground. |
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Above: The two RV Gypsies
in front of the trunk of the General Sherman Tree. |
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Below; Lee Duquette exploring the fallen tree and the
rings
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Below: Close-ups of the
bark on several Sequoia trees |
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Below: Snow that has hardened into ice beside a small stream of running
water |
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THE SENATE GROUP |
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A burl on the side of this tree
looks like afacial profile. |
A lengthy view of part of a fallen tree. |
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Below: Karen Duquette stood
in the hollow of a giant, fallen tree |
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