Day: July 30, 2022

Coyote Gulch’s excellent EV adventure — Sequoias

Coyote Gulch’s rented Tesla Model 3 charging (Level 2) at Gulch Manor July 30, 2022.

I’ve started a bucket list of places I want to visit before climate change forever changes them. First up are the Sequoias in California. One article that I read recently said that 25% of them have burned since 2015 and last year wildfire threatened some of the most famous trees in the Sequoia and King’s Canyon National Parks (where I’m headed).

Like many Westerners, giant sequoias came recently from farther east. Of course, “recent” is a relative term. “You’re talking millions of years (ago),” William Libby said. The retired University of California, Berkeley, plant geneticist has been studying the West Coast’s towering trees for more than half a century. Needing cooler, wetter climates, the tree species arrived at their current locations some 4,500 years ago — about two generations. “They left behind all kinds of Eastern species that did not make it with them, and encountered all kinds of new things in their environment,” Libby said. Today, sequoias grow on the slopes of California’s Sierra Nevada.

For the drive I was able to rent a Tesla so I’ll be leaving zero emissions along the road except when I charge with dirty power of course.

Posting may be intermittent due to the possibility that I’ll be having too much fun.

The General Sherman sequoia tree is wrapped in fire-resistant foil to protect it from the KNP Complex fire. (National Park Service)
The General Sherman sequoia tree is wrapped in fire-resistant foil to protect it from the KNP Complex fire. (National Park Service)
Firefighter Lindsay Freitag sprays down a giant sequoia along the Trail of 100 Giants to extinguish heat.(Garrett Dickman / National Park Service)
Firefighter Lindsay Freitag sprays down a giant sequoia along the Trail of 100 Giants to extinguish heat.(Garrett Dickman / National Park Service)
Wildland firefighters apply structure wrap to the base of a giant sequoia tree to protect it from the KNP Complex Wildfire, September 17, 2021. Photo credit: Inciweb.org
Wildland firefighters apply structure wrap to the base of a giant sequoia tree to protect it from the KNP Complex Wildfire, September 17, 2021. Photo credit: Inciweb.org
Roosevelt driving through a sequoia tree tunnel. By SMU Central University Libraries - https://www.flickr.com/photos/smu_cul_digitalcollections/14994749857/, No restrictions, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=53266489
Roosevelt driving through a sequoia tree tunnel. By SMU Central University Libraries – https://www.flickr.com/photos/smu_cul_digitalcollections/14994749857/, No restrictions, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=53266489
Like many Westerners, giant sequoias came recently from farther east. Of course, “recent” is a relative term. “You’re talking millions of years (ago),” William Libby said. The retired University of California, Berkeley, plant geneticist has been studying the West Coast’s towering trees for more than half a century. Needing cooler, wetter climates, the tree species arrived at their current locations some 4,500 years ago — about two generations. “They left behind all kinds of Eastern species that did not make it with them, and encountered all kinds of new things in their environment,” Libby said. Today, sequoias grow on the slopes of California’s Sierra Nevada.
Like many Westerners, giant sequoias came recently from farther east. Of course, “recent” is a relative term. “You’re talking millions of years (ago),” William Libby said. The retired University of California, Berkeley, plant geneticist has been studying the West Coast’s towering trees for more than half a century. Needing cooler, wetter climates, the tree species arrived at their current locations some 4,500 years ago — about two generations. “They left behind all kinds of Eastern species that did not make it with them, and encountered all kinds of new things in their environment,” Libby said. Today, sequoias grow on the slopes of California’s Sierra Nevada.