Tuesday, July 13, 2004

This tree is really big


This is a very large tree. The Redwoods of Northern California are truly amazing. Apparently the Ewok battle in "Return of the Jedi" was filmed in Redwood National park - just near where this photo was taken. Driving through Northern California and into Oregon is at once awesome and harrowing. You travel through thousand year old forests, drooping with moss, with Redwood trees over 2 metres in diameter stretching up into eternity. And then things start to get a bit weird. You feel it before you notice what has changed. Trees a bit smaller and twisted. Too close together - packed in like sardines. And then you see the sign..."Clearfelled in 1978, due to be harvested 2015 - creating jobs through forestry". Other places look like the big hairy hand of god has reached down with a razor blade and scraped the landscape raw. The scarred hillsides standing out like....like scarred hillsides. In Australia, we (as in 'we' the people - ably represented by our government) get a massive 10 cents per tonne for the privilege of allowing our ancient forests to be woodchipped and sent to Japan. I think the folk over here have the same problem.  Posted by Hello

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