This is a view taken on the return trip from a stroll down the Right path of the fork in the road, and out of the Redwoods.The thing that caught my eye is the tall Bishop pine tree, to the left of the path, standing among all of the dwarfs. Apparently, the occassional pine tree's root will find a fissure through the hardpan and down to the richer soil beneath. When this happens, the tree grows to a normal size, as this one has done.
Retired park ranger Wendell Rickon recently explained to me that, some period of time prior to the dedication, he was tasked with cutting a trail through the site. He, along with a work crew from one of the county minimum security work camps at Parlin Fork or Chamberlin Creek on Highway 20, created the the trails that haven't changed since 1969.
As you look at the photos or walk across the land here, it' should become clear just how fragile this environment really is. Once ground is cleared, for a trail or a campsite, the land just doesn't regenerate... the plants do not eventually grow back. I doubt that 200 people have been here in the last 50 years and some of the foot-worn paths look like wet-season creek beds.