Not so sure of that. They might cut a section out of it to allow passage that way for a car. Who knows? I think there are laws protecting the trees, even if fallen. I've been through this tree a few times in my life, last time in 2008 during our honeymoon. These trees are a national treasure. One of the wonders of the world. Anyone that's seen these trees knows what I mean. It's a humbling experience, touching and standing next to one of these trees.
No less impressive is the drive through redwoods. Drive Through a Redwood I've driven through all of these I am certain.
Here's a bit of history on other drive through Sequoia trees. The Myth of the Tree You Can Drive Through - Sequoia & Kings Canyon National Parks (U.S. National Park Service)
I used to live in California and had been up there to that grove of giant Sequoia's many times. I had some close friends that lived in that part of the country and we would take a drive over to check them out. It was a nice way to spend a day. I probably have some old photographs somewhere of them. Now another part of History.
Me too. Family friends had a nice cabin near Murphys, we used to spend time up there every summer. I've walked through the tree but never drove through it, back in the 70's. It's sad it blew down but it was gonna happen sooner or later. I'm just glad no one was around when it did, seriously.
I'll have to forward that link to my wife. She showed me the original article last night about the tree falling, which led to a brief "argument". We went to Kings Canyon and Sequoia Nat'l Park in 2014 for our honeymoon and she was upset that the tree we drove through had fallen. I couldn't convince her that the Pioneer Cabin tree was in a completely different area, but she assured me she would find some pictures of us standing under it.
Sequoia wood makes poor lumber, apparently it's very weak. It is resistant to rot, so it could take hundreds of years for the trunk to disappear!
It's sad, but was destined to happen sooner or later. I'm just glad no one was injured or killed, it came down at a perfect time.
Redwood in general is softer than pine. It is valued for its colors and its rot resistance. I still remember living in Quebec and my uncle being so proud that he had spent the money to buy redwood window sills. He thought they were gorgeous but they were really soft. When I lived in SoCal I used some redwood to build a trellis by the front door. It held up well to the elements but was a very soft wood with no real strength.
In 1963, when I was 8 years old, we went out to California driving in a 1958 Plymouth station wagon. There are a few things I remember clearly, Utah, Grand Canyon, Orange groves, Petrified Forest, Disneyland, Knotts Berry Farm (that was where the tranny went on the car)), and of course that big 'ole tree. We drove through it and all I could think of is what a cool place for a tree fort. Well I guess the tree is no longer standing but I would really like to go back there again. Maybe one day.
Both the house we lived in in Wausau, which my parents had built and the house that my family lived in from 1981 until about 4 years ago were sided completely with redwood siding. It's impressive stuff.
Most redwood lumber comes from the costal redwood trees, the super tall ones in Northern Cal. The sequoias, while technically a redwood, are the not quite as tall but have ginormous diameters. Those aren't really used for lumber as they are even weaker than the tall redwoods. I remember being told when I was out there that when they were first harvested in the late 1800's early 1900's that many of the trunks would shatter under their own weight when they fell and only 50% of the wood harvested made it to the mills. It's kind of sad that so many trees that took thousands of years to grow were destroyed and not even used.
