This post focuses on something most of us, I’m sure, take for granted. TREES.
I think I first “fell in love with” trees during one of my family’s many visits to Muir Woods in Marin County – just north of San Francisco.
To get there, we first had to cross the Golden Gate Bridge, then travel down a long, winding road.
Walking through the old-growth redwoods in that park was always an incredible experience for me, and is probably why I got into backpacking and hiking as an adult.
Luckily, I no longer have to drive hours in order to enjoy walking through groves of trees. They’re everywhere in Sacramento County … and in the foothills just east of us. (Settlers during the Gold Rush in the mid-19th century planted so many trees in this area that eventually, Sacramento was nicknamed the “City of Trees.”)
Besides the shade they give during 100° summers, one reason I love trees is because of the many memories I have surrounding them:
- Walks through Muir Woods
- Rope swings tied to branches above creeks
- Walking through piles of colorful autumn leaves near huge homes in my college town of Chico
- Finding out that my 9-year-old niece had fallen asleep high up in the silver dollar tree in front of our home!
Luckily, living without trees isn’t something I need to worry about. At least, not around here.
