Iconic 1,000-year-old Pioneer Cabin tree collapses as deadly storm blasts California By Katy Galimberti, AccuWeather staff writer January 09, 2017, 9:22:50 AM EST The famed Pioneer Cabin tree, known for its hollow center that allowed cars to pass through, collapsed during the intense storm that blasted California with heavy rain. The giant sequoia was located in the Calaveras Big Trees State Park in Calaveras County, about 80 miles southeast of Sacramento. A park volunteer found the collapsed iconic tree on Sunday, Jan. 8. (Facebook photo/Calaveras Big Trees Association/Jim Allday) The tree was a popular tourist site since the 1880s when a group of pioneers carved out the center. It became an iconic part of the state park. Until recently, cars were allowed to drive through. Jim Allday, a park volunteer, found the collapsed tree on Sunday as a major storm barreled over central and northern California. A healthy Pioneer Cabin tree stands in Calaveras Big Trees State Park. (Photo/Amber Rack) "When I went out there (Sunday afternoon), the trail was literally a river; the trail is washed out," Allday said, according to the San Francisco Chronicle. "I could see the tree on the ground. It looked like it was laying in a pond or lake with a river running through it." The tree has shallow roots and its health has been deteriorating, Allday said. According to the Calaveras Big Trees Association's Facebook page, "the storm was just too much" for the famed Sequoia, that was believed to be possibly more than 1,000 years old.
I saw this earlier. Sad to some extent. I imagine it would have been something to witness fall though.....
You guy's are just twisted I heard about it on the radio today, bummer wonder how many cords in that baby?
I heard it on the radio as well... They said the tree was some 33 ft in diameter (don't know if that was DBH or not ) They also said it was carved out in response to one in Redwood forest(?) so as to draw visitors. This Pioneer Cabin tree was apparently on private land at the time...
That sucks. I wonder how many bids they will get for the log (s)? Surely they won't let it rot, right?
No doubt! Scotty Overkill, how big a bar ya got? (Little Roy D. Mercer reference hidden in there... "How big a boy are ya?")
Have to wonder if it would still be standing if they hadn't, you know, CARVED A GIANT HOLE IN THE TRUNK!!! It's all good, though. I aint no tree hugga'!
