The Frances Shrader Old-Growth Trail
A short distance from Winter Springs Ranch, a wonderful trail winds through an old-growth forest of Douglas- fir, Port-Orford-cedar, Oregon myrtle, and tanoak. Below the canopy far above is a thicket of huckleberry, rhododendron, and fern. Below that, on the forest floor, is a multitude of mosses and wildflowers. Two centuries ago, Tututni Indians hunted here and undoubtably some of the trees that we see today were alive then. A Douglas Fir can live 600 years and Port-Orford-Cedar can exist for a milenium! No one knows how old the tanoak and myrtle are because fire can destroy their trunk and branches, but their root systems will live on and regenerate full size trees in no time at all.
More Pictures of the Shrader Trail