“A fool sees not the same tree that a wise man sees.”
William Blake
“The Man Who Planted Trees,” a timeless story by Jean Giono, delivers an inspiring message. It tells the story of Elzeard Bouffier. After his wife and son die, he begins planting one hundred acorns each day in a barren land in southern France. Wondrous things start to happen. Brooks that have been dry for years start to flow. Birds begin to sing. Slowly, the land is filled with life. People become prosperous and happy. All of this is the result of one man working alone and expecting nothing in return.
My bicycle journey often reminds me of Giono’s story. How beautiful the trees are! The oak trees that grace the Texas Hill Country provide shade on a hot Texas day. After passing through the endless pine forests of East Texas and Louisiana, I approach Natchez, Mississippi. I admire the grand old oak trees draped with Spanish moss. Later, on the Natchez Trace Parkway, I occasionally find the road completely arched over by the beautiful trees on either side. I feel the flutter of light scattered by the leaves on my face. The shade provides a cool, moist habitat for tiny asters, daisies, and wild irises. Their sparks of color ignite the shade and delight my eyes. “Earth laughs in flowers,” said Emerson.
All across the west, the bushy juniper furnishes hiding places for the dedicated stealth camper. I have read that these trees use so much water that removing them has an effect similar to what happened when Elzeard Bouffier planted trees. Brooks start to flow, flowers bloom, and birds sing. My grandfather was an original settler in Stonewall County, Texas. He confirmed that mesquite and juniper are invasive species. He described West Texas as originally having waist high grass and flowing streams.
Occasionally, I see a specimen of a particular tree that is simply jaw dropping. In downtown Twisp, Washington, I pass by an enormous weeping willow tree. Its presence especially resonates because Twisp was ravaged by wildfires on at least two separate occasions during my bicycle journey.
I had never seen the coastal redwoods until the first year of my bicycle journey. Now, I detour off of Highway 101 onto the “Avenue of the Giants” each year. There are several of these scenic detours. Each is a loop of about thirty miles that winds through groves of redwoods and then eventually takes you back to Highway 101. I have never seen anything to compare to these giant trees! Their sheer scale makes you feel as if you have arrived in some strange, magical kingdom where anything is possible!
Everything about these trees is big. The bark on these trees is incredible. Approximately twelve inches thick on the largest trees, with high levels of tannins to resist insects, it is heavy, dense, and slightly spongy to the touch. The bark runs in columns up the tree. The space between these columns is wider than your hand. The coastal redwoods are the tallest trees on earth. The giant sequoias, found further inland, are the largest by volume.
The largest tree on earth by volume is the General Sherman in Sequoia National Park. A branch broke off the General Sherman in 1978. It was 150 feet long and seven feet in diameter! The age of some of these trees is as astounding as their immense size. They are older than the English language. Centuries older than the world’s religions. Standing under one of these trees causes one to reach for new superlatives. You soon run out of words for “big.” Large, very large, huge, enormous, gigantic, mind blowing… Human beings just aren’t equipped linguistically to deal with these trees!
The Mariposa Grove, a collection of about 500 mature giant sequoias, is located forty-five minutes by shuttle from Yosemite Valley. The Mariposa Grove reopened in 2018 after being closed for a three year, $40 million renovation. Park rangers feared that asphalt covering the root systems of the trees and exhaust fumes from cars was damaging the trees. The renovation involved removing the parking area near the trees, replacing the asphalt with permeable walking paths, and building a new parking area further from the trees. Visitors are encouraged to take a shuttle bus to visit the trees. John Muir, the famous naturalist, whose writings first called attention to the grandeur of Yosemite, called the giant sequoias the “noblest of God’s trees.” These trees remain very much the way John Muir first saw them more than a century ago.
It is easy to assume that science has everything figured out. This is not necessarily so. For example, neither scientists nor medical doctors know exactly how anesthesia agents actually work. Apparently, the anesthesia operates at some fundamental biological level. Plants are affected by anesthesia just as humans and animals are! Recently, I read that the Venus fly trap will “freeze motionless” when anesthesia is applied and won’t resume moving until the anesthesia wears off. Plants are much more complex that previously thought. For example, if a plant is located in nutrient poor soil, it will send out a signal to other nearby plants. They, in turn, will respond by sending the requested nutrients via the shared underground root system. I can’t help thinking about this “secret life of plants” whenever I use my saw to cut off a tree limb, without anesthesia, to make space for my tent!
I have read that one of the most popular shows on public TV in the Scandinavian countries consists of two old guys sitting in front of a well tended fire and occasionally saying something about the virtues of a particular firewood. After a long silence, Lavrens says, “Svein, this apple wood sure burns nicely.” Svein replies, “Yes, Lavrens, it sure does.” Thrilling! Humans have a unique, emotional bond with wood in all its forms. Imagine cutting a hearty piece of bread on a well worn, wooden cutting board and serving it to your family seated around a beautiful, old, wooden table. The very picture of domestic bliss!
Early in our nation’s history, eye witnesses described skies darkened for days by enormous flocks of passenger pigeons. Scientists estimate these flocks contained billions of birds! This enormous population had evolved to take advantage of the various nuts found in the mixed hardwood forests like those you see along the Natchez Trace Parkway. These birds helped feed a growing urban population. They were hunted so voraciously that the passenger pigeon was driven to extinction.
One of the highlights of my trip each year is the time I spend in Waynesboro, Virginia. There is a free campground for Appalachian Trail hikers in Waynesboro. I love talking to the hikers. They are generally either recent high school graduates taking some time off before heading to college, or they are recent college graduates on an adventure before facing the real world. They are fun to talk to because they are idealistic, enthusiastic, and in high spirits from hiking outdoors. They go by “trail” names. One young man was called “Whitman” because he looked a lot like the picture of Walt Whitman in “Leaves of Grass.” One optimistic young woman had the trail name “Bright Side” because she looked on the bright side of things even when hiking conditions were miserable. “We’ll get there soon!” I was soon christened “Ten Speed” because of my bicycle.
I was not alone in enjoying talking to the hikers. An older gentleman named Leonard, who lived nearby, joined us almost everyday. Leonard had a playful sense of humor and was full of wisdom. Leonard and I hit it off right away. I noticed that the young hikers sometimes tired of his lengthy stories. Naturally, it wasn’t long until I was his primary audience. I loved listening to Leonard. He told me about the time he met Clint Eastwood. He also told me about his career as a forest ranger. Leonard loved trees and supported a project to restore local forests by planting native species. I had met my very own “Man Who Planted Trees!” After several annual trips passing through Waynesboro, I became friends with Leonard. I resolved to buy a copy of Giono’s book, “The Man Who Planted Trees,” to give to Leonard as a present. I finally accomplished this in year seven of my journey.