Long Meadow Grove facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Long Meadow Grove |
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The "Trail of 100 Giants"
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| Map | |
 Location in California
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| Geography | |
| Location | Tulare County, California, United States |
| Coordinates | 35°58′42″N 118°35′22″W / 35.978284°N 118.589573°W |
| Elevation | 6,690 ft (2,040 m) |
| Area | 340 acres (140 ha) |
| Ecology | |
| Dominant tree species | Sequoiadendron giganteum |
Long Meadow Grove, also known as Redwood Meadow Grove, is a special place filled with huge giant sequoia trees. It is located inside the Sequoia National Forest in California. This grove is about 3.25 mi (5.23 km) west of a town called Johnsondale. It is part of the southern area of the Giant Sequoia National Monument. The U.S. Forest Service takes care of this amazing natural area.
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Exploring Long Meadow Grove
Long Meadow Grove is mostly found on the west side of the Great Western Divide Highway. Right across the road, you'll find the Redwood Meadow Campground. The grove is quite flat, making it easy to walk around from the main road.
The best time to visit is during the summer when the roads are open. In winter, you can still visit, but you'll need skis or a snowmobile to get around. There's a small fee to enter, which helps keep the grove nice. For example, a new wooden boardwalk was built in 2018 to help visitors explore.
The grove covers about 340 acres (1.4 km2), but the giant sequoias grow on a smaller part of this land. Even so, it has about 125 giant sequoia trees that are more than 10 ft (3.0 m) wide. One tree is even wider than 20 ft (6.1 m)!
A special path called the Trail of 100 Giants winds through the grove. This trail is about 1.3 mi (2.1 km) long. It takes you through the area with the most old giant sequoia trees. A long, grassy meadow also runs through the middle of the grove.
A Look Back: History of the Grove
On April 15, 2000, the president at the time, Bill Clinton, made an important announcement. He stood under a tree, now called the Proclamation Tree, and declared that the Giant Sequoia National Monument would be created.
After the winter of 2003-2004, about 200 trees died. These were not giant sequoias, but they were a danger to visitors. Because of this, the trail had to be closed. On April 29, 2004, the Forest Service held a meeting. They showed people the dangerous trees and talked about how to fix the problem.
In May, a small part of the trail was opened again. Forest officials then worked out the best way to remove the rest of the dangerous trees. On August 23, 2004, the whole trail was closed again. This was so the remaining hazard trees could be safely removed.
The Forest Service took extra care to protect the giant sequoias and local animals. They cut down the dangerous trees and cleared away anything that could cause a fire. Some logs were left behind because they are good for the forest's ecosystem. Other wood was chipped, and over 300 cords (more than 1,087 cubic meters) of wood were given to people who had permits to collect firewood. Fire crews also burned some tree limbs in piles. A helicopter was even used to fly out some of the biggest pieces of wood. On July 1, 2005, the trail reopened after it was fixed and made safe again.
Later, on September 30, 2011, two giant sequoias that were growing together fell across the northern part of the main trail. Then, in the winter of 2018-2019, another giant sequoia fell across the first two. This damaged part of the new boardwalk. Experts found that both events happened because of very wet winters. The ground became too soaked with water, which made the trees unstable.
Special Trees You Can Find
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Long Meadow Grove has several amazing sequoia trees that are worth seeing:
- Cedoia: This is a unique sight! It's a giant sequoia and a cedar tree that are growing together as if they are one tree.
- Fallen Giant: This is a giant sequoia that has fallen over. Over time, the forest around it is slowly growing over and reclaiming it.
- Proclamation Tree: This is the famous tree where President Bill Clinton announced the creation of the Giant Sequoia National Monument on April 15, 2000.
- The Sentinels: Imagine five giant sequoia trees growing very close together in a circle. That's The Sentinels!
- Red Chief: This tree is one of the biggest giant sequoias in the world, ranking 40th or 41st in size. It has a huge volume of 28,723 cubic feet (813.3 m3). You can spot Red Chief by its three horn-like branches sticking out from its top.
Images for kids
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The collapsed pair of giant sequoias as seen in November 2017. A third giant sequoia (left, out of frame) collapsed across the northeast end boardwalk the following year.
