Mariposa Grove

Mariposa Grove is a sequoia grove located near Wawona, California in the southernmost part of Yosemite National Park. It is the largest grove of Giant Sequoias in the park, with several hundred mature examples of the tree. Two of its trees are among the 25 largest Giant Sequoias in the world.  The Giant Sequoia is the world’s largest tree in terms of total volume. They grow to an average height of 50-85 m (150-280 ft) and 5-7 m (16-23 ft) in diameter. Record trees have been reported to be 93.6 m (307 ft) in height and 8.85 m (29 ft) in diameter. The oldest known Giant Sequoia based on ring count is 3,200 years old.

We visited Mariposa Grove on the morning or our last day in Yosemite NP. This first picture features the park’s largest specimen, known as Grizzly Giant. Nothing to do with bears but presumably describes its grizzled appearance.

Grizzly Giant is between 1900–2400 years old: the oldest tree in the grove. In 1932, park officials claimed it as the fifth largest (by volume) tree in the world, but other trees were subsequently found to be larger. It has a volume of 34,010 cubic feet (963 m³), and is counted as the 25th largest tree in the world. It is 210 feet (64 m) tall, and has a heavily buttressed base with a basal circumference of 28 m (92 ft). Grizzly Giant’s first branch from the base is 2 m (6 ft) in diameter.

As with all forests, fires are a natural process. Fires contribute to the rejuvenation of forests and Mariposa Grove is no exception. We saw many examples where sequoias had been burnt, only to survive and flourish. Over time, after many fires the trunks of some trees were burnt right through, creating vast openings in the bases of the trees. Sequoias can survive with the core of their trunks burnt away, as you can see from this following example.

The hole in the trunk is wide enough to drive a pickup truck through it!

Another interesting observation is that sequoias can become very interdependent, on occasion sharing a common root system to help survive. They begin life as single trees but as their roots become intertwined over the years they grow together and become one.

These two impressive spires do in fact share a common root system.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

In an effort to provide a sense of proportion, I enlisted the help of two models to pose with these trees. Pretty impressive! The trees too.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

My last picture needs little description. I wandered into a stand of sequoias, looked up and shot.

Yosemite NP is a wonderful place to visit. I feel like we hardly scratched the surface in our 2-1/2 days there. Recommend it highly.