http://www.co.clatsop.or.us/default.asp?deptid=10000&pageid=511
As many of you seem to have noticed, we recently had a storm that some have referred to as a Pacific Hurricane. I don't really know how accurate that is, but the coast towns suffered considerably. For us, it was no more than a rainstorm. Until this week Oregon was home to the largest Giant Sitka Spruce in the nation when it snapped in half during the high winds of the storm. It had been damaged in a storm last year, requiring the park service to eliminate tourist visits for fear that all or parts of it would fall. Sergio and I happened across this tree on one of our first trips to the coast. We just saw a sign and pulled off the road. The tree was a pleasant surprise. It would have been a wee sapling around the Crusades. This date is pretty impressive, but the thing that just baffles me is that this tree managed to live out it's entire life naturally. In a state where half the drive to the coast is clear-cut land, it seems amazing that someone at some time didn't cash in on the giant. It also says something for the park service for not cutting it down when it became dangerous, but instead letting it do it's own thing and just keeping the people away. It will be missed. If you want to know more about the tree you can follow the web address above.
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