Tracking the Tallest Tree

by Janet Carle, Sierra District Ranger/WAVE Editor

The tallest tree in the world is a Coast Redwood in Northern California. That much we know. However, the honor of being "tallest" has been passed around quite a bit lately. For many years, Redwood National Park had the tree, named "Tall Tree", located along upper Prairie Creek and measuring 367.8 feet . "So many people have stood on the base of the tree that the ground is hard packed" , Humboldt State botany professor Steve Sillett told the Associated Press in the late 1990's. "By the 1970s , 10 to 15 feet of the tree's top was dead and dying. By the 1990s, 10 feet of its top had fallen away".
Professor Sillett has been instrumental in spotting and measuring tall trees. In fact, the "Tall Tree" took the title away from the "Founder's Tree" on Dyerville Flat in Humboldt Redwoods State Park, which was considered tallest for many years. The "Mendocino Tree" , located in Montgomery Woods State Reserve near Ukiah, was measured by Sillett at 367.5 feet. Learning from the fate of the "Tall Tree", no signs or arrows indicated which tree was the champ.

The "Mendocino Tree" did not rule for long, however. The current tallest tree is the "Stratosphere Giant" which, at 369.5 feet, seems to have been the tallest all along. The "Giant" is located in the Rockefeller Forest of Humboldt Redwoods SP. Where exactly? That is a well-kept secret. The good news? All of these trees have been on protected parkland.

Visitors seem to have a fascination with the biggest of the big and the tallest of the tall. Ranger Kathie Kinzie agreed with the words of Karl Poppelreiter, her predecessor at Montgomery Woods SR, " The Mendocino Tree really doesn't stand out among the rest. The significance of this particular tree is that it's part of a grove with a large number of tall trees. This is a wonderful place to come and enjoy creation. There's no place as lush and beautiful and enjoyable as a redwood forest".

Thanks to Greg Picard, Kathie Kinzie, and Emily Peterson for help with this article.

Who Is Next?

As you all know, the Department is in the midst of a major re-organization of Districts. For each issue of the WAVE, we are planning to focus on a geographical area, along the lines of the current "sectors." This will allow us to look at a manageable number of park units each time.

Next up is the Mojave Sector of the current Angeles District. It's about time I got to Providence Mountains! My thanks to the staff of the Mendocino District for all their help with this issue. Please pass the newsletter on to a co-worker--more CSPRA members are always welcome.

Janet Carle, Editor