GPOD on the Road: The Famous Trees of Vancouver Island

Trees so spectacular they’re worth traveling for

Happy Friday GPODers !

A couple week ago I partake in my plant determination from Victoria , the capital of British Columbia and largest city on Vancouver Island . These included incredible container combinations , absolutely manicure plantings , and a sensational topiary foundation . Today , I ’m thrilled to be able to show off the other , more wild prospect of the island .

Whether you ’re a foodie , a beach leaver , or an avid hiker , Vancouver Island really has something for everyone . For me , the biggest lot to Vancouver Island was its absolutely unbelievable trees . Home to one of the last temperate rain forest , the soft clime and farseeing showery season have created some of the magnanimous and oldest trees in the world . While I was prepared to some huge , pretty amazing looking trees , I was not prepare for all the unbelievable ways trees have develop on the island in old emergence forests , on drop-off - sides and along beaches , and even on the tip of a access the midriff of lake .

Yes , you show that right field . This is call the Fairy Lake Bonsai Tree , and no , it ’s not some crazy art induction . In a distant lake near the town of Port Renfrew , a tiny hemlock fir has handle to take source and grow from an old logarithm a good distance from the lake ’s shore .

So far from shore in fact , that rapid climb is required and a phone camera struggles to capture this small specimen that is resist the odds . Really rifle to show that nature can awe - inspire in packages heavy and small .

Of course , the monumental trees did not disappoint either . Vancouver Island is most known for its populations of western blood-red cedar , Douglas true fir , and Sitka smarten up , but there are about 20 different native specie on the island with many of them growing to dizzying heights . I spot this in enormous red true cedar in Avatar Grove , a peachy spot for tree sighting and home to a jolly ill-famed tree .

Not the largest or oldest , but the gnarliest tree in Canada . identify by theAncient Forest Alliancein 2009 , the moniker is a pretty raw one and it does n’t seem there was a competition or qualifications to verify its title , but I do n’t suppose anyone is repugn it .

The massive red true cedar sit on a World Wide Web of roots that clings to a exorbitant gradient , with the biggest burls I ’ve ever seen .

Next up is another notable tree with an evenly interesting name , Big Lonely Doug is the second largest Douglas fir tree in Canada , but one of a much sadder story . None of these Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree are very well marked from the route ( something I find to be a out of sight blessing to keep these goliath a little more saved ) , but I discover this rudimentary signaling for Doug particularly heartwarming .

He ’s hard to miss , and for a annihilating reason . Doug is a solitary specimen , for some reason saved by a lumberjack , once only surrounded by stumps and clear earth . I was thrilled to see the sphere start to fill up in again with Modern growth , even if it made spotting and hiking down to Doug a little more challenging .

Looking up from the base is a disorienting experience , and again difficult to conquer in a very unlike way than the tiny bozo on Fairy Lake . While sail around this wonder of nature , I ran into someone prove to capture Doug on a drone camera . He said that footage was n’t even accurately depicting its order of magnitude .

While an amazing peck to see , it is also a melancholy reminder of the damage that has been done to our old - development forests and the many trees we ’re still fighting to protect .

To end this Friday post on a lighter banknote , I want to include some not as famous , but as center - catching Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree I saw in my adventures . place in Juan de Fuca Provincial Park , Botanical Beach boast a riches of coastal works and nautical life that storm and delight . The twists and turns in this bare tree absolutely swash my brain .

Resilience in its everlasting form . All of these incredible Tree were marking of the resiliency of mother nature , and the peach that can grow from all kinds of setting . Wonders to get , and inspiring organism to share this world with .

Have a mythic weekend everyone , and I encourage you all to go out and look up to a long - lived plant . Whether it ’s something in your own garden you planted years ago , or an old tree in a local park , there is so much to be acquire from a living affair that has weathered so many storms .

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