Big Sur Trees, and a few other things

[gf beranek]

The redwoods in Big Sur grow only in canyons and cooler north facing slopes. This makes the groves very isolated from one another. There is a lot of open grass lands and chaparral in between. Most of the groves have been logged over. So most of the trees in them are second growth. Average 3 foot. Though small they are coming back in good form. Even the old growth isn't all that big. 8 foot max is the largest I seen. But they average more like 5 to 6 foot.

The pics of the kilns were in Limekiln Creek. There were four of them and each was a little bit different. I'm only guessing that the lime was processed in each kiln to complete the process. All the redwoods in Limekiln Creek were cut down to fire the kilns. Wicked.

Evidence of the 2008 fires in Big Sur is everywhere and it downright devastated some of the groves.

The Canyon bottoms are chock-ful of big boulders too. Many the size of houses. Really trippy places to walk through. Still more exploring to do there. Fantastic place.

 

[Burnham]

Wonderful, as always Jer.

 

[simplypete]

Those kilns are cool. It would be cool to know some history on them. Along with old pictures of the men and environment.

 

[MasterBlaster]

More postcard quality shots! Outstanding! If only those trees grew in more places...

 

[woodworkingboy]

Great to see the place again, Jerry. Some the the open spaces almost remind of Southern California, except for not being so dry. My recollection is that Big Sur was one of the lesser people congested places to hike through. Especially depending on the time of year, one could go days without seeing any other hikers. Perhaps that is different now? Really inspirational to see you two getting around like you do. Looks like a great way to live.

Some history here on California lime kilns:

http://quarriesandbeyond.org/states/ca/stone_industry/ca-stone_indust_upto1950_3.html

 

[chris_girard]

Wow, those are really some beautiful pictues Jer. I didn't know that the fire went through that bad. I see what you mean by trippy too, as the area looks kind of alien like, or maybe something like Alice In Wonderland, do you know what I mean?

 

[Jed]

Jer: Thanks so very much! You make us Washington tree guys a little less guilty for not being able to make an annual pilgrimage to see some real sticks. Thank you so much for taking the time to post this stuff.

Butch: If only Southern Culture grew in more places. (rock sign!)

 

[Al Smith]

Excellant as always . If I'm not mistaken those west coast giants can't grow any place on the planet except that certain area of California .

Kind of like Butch I've been half way around the world twice but for some reason never made it to the west coast .Maybe some day .

 

[flushcut]

Sweet pics!

 

[Altissimus]

... not being well traveled, I have managed to spend some time there ... truly my favorite place on earth .... those photos tug my heart ... something about the combination of ocean, marine life, trees, canyons, relatively undeveloped areas, not sure exactly why but I feel quite comfortable there.. the Hot Springs at Esalin Institute are worth the hassle of the late night hippie ... once we stayed there as guests ... some nice Eucs too!

 

[Bermy]

Great pictures!
Interesting about the kilns...Lime production used to be a fairly big industry in Bermuda back in th day...a fire was laid at the bottom of the kiln, then alternating layers of stone and wood piled on top, then the fire was lit and the whole lot burned. Once it was done the ash and lime was raked out the bottom, then slaked in a pool of water, then dried.
Mind you our stone is pure calcium carbonate...probably quite different to over there, so maybe that explains the different kilns...maybe it had to be burned more than once...?

 

[gf beranek]

I understand the basic idea of the process but there's a lot I don't know. Because all the kilns are a little bit different I just assume there were steps in the process. Maybe it was a matter of grade of the limestone they used.

 

[gf beranek]

Excellant as always . If I'm not mistaken those west coast giants can't grow any place on the planet except that certain area of California .

Kind of like Butch I've been half way around the world twice but for some reason never made it to the west coast .Maybe some day .

Al, the redwood will grow in any mild climate. Just add water and they will be happy trees.

 

[stig]

Mild weather is the key word here.
Mine hasn't made it past 4 feet tall in the 7 years I've had it.
Freezes back every winter.

My sequoia on the other hand is doing fine