The Giant Trees of Washington State
Trees are really cool!
Mrs. Denmarkguy and I have long been tree lovers and love our forested landscapes around here. Yes, I suppose you could call us "tree huggers," but not in that strange militant way.
Mrs. Denmarkguy at the base of the Duncan Cedar, the world's largest Western Red Cedar
Washington state has a huge timber industry, and forestry is as common as farming around here. People often get upset because the forests of large swaths of mountainside have been cut down, but these are all managed farmed trees, not old growth forest. In fact, along many highways you'll see signs with "planted" and "harvested" dates which are typically 30 to 60 years. On public/state lands, there's usually more of a "select cutting" schedule on 80-120 years.
Sadly, it was not until maybe 75-100 years ago that protections for old growth forest went into effect, so the true ancient forests (typically 250 to 1,000+ years) are quite rare.
As part of our recent trip, we visited several "world's largest" and "nation's largest" tree specimens that are basically roadside attractions (sort of) in our corner of the world.
Back when I lived down in Texas, locals always insisted that there were "lots of trees" in the area — and granted, there were — but as far as I was concerned they were not real trees because they were fairly limited as to size and height.
The ecosystem of Western Washington allows for different species some of which grow to extraordinary sizes.
The Duncan Red Cedar (left) is an estimated 1400-1500 years old, and is the world's largest Western Red Cedar specimen, with the base of the trunk 19.4 feet (5.9m) in diameter, and a height of about 180 feet (about 55m).
Standing next to a tree like this is not just a reminder of how enormous these living organisms are, but also how ancient they are. This tree was already ancient when Columbus set foot on the American continent, quite large and mature at the Battle of Hastings in 1066, and possibly already a tree when the Roman Empire fell!
The tree is actually an entire ecosystem in itself, with smaller trees finding their own lives in crevices far above the forest floor.
If you are really into the natural world — the way we are — it's almost a "religious experience" to stand next to something like this!
This particular tree was spared from logging some 100 years ago because of its impressive size, but basically sits in a forest of generally much younger trees.
A bit further along HWY 101, near Kalaloch, is the former "champion" which sits in a grove of truly massive and ancient companions.
It was the biggest tree of its kind until 2015 when a severe winter storm caused it to split in half, with the fallen trunk remaining in place as a "nurse log" for new growth.
There is a path through the immediate forest, although we didn't walk all that far along it... but it will take you past lots of other ancient trees. Maybe we'll head that way next time we pass the area... when not worn out from a 5-mile hike on the beach!
At left, the former "world's largest" red cedar. There used to be an entire huge tree trunk rising from the knotty structure at upper left.
It's still a very impressive tree!
Of course, the majority of the giant trees along our drive would have required 5-15 mile hikes in rugged terrain to get to, even though they generally do have groomed trails leading to them... but you can't really drive there.
Which is as it should be, as far as I am concerned... trees belong out in the forest, not as tourist attractions for every passer-by.
One of the cool things about this second large cedar is that it actually has a natural "portal" through the base of the trunk, the result of water erosion and runoff over a period of 100s of years.
It's not a large opening, but big enough that you can take a picture of someone, right through the thickness of the tree!
Mrs. Denmarkguy on the other side of the tree!
After visiting these trees, we headed south towards Lake Quinault, where we were going to spend the night — about a two-hour drive.
To give a sense of scale, the Olympic National Park/Olympic National Forest wilderness area covers about 1,600,000 acres (about 6,500 sq. km), most of which is almost completely inaccessible.
A couple of miles from the lodge where we stayed we found the world's largest Sitka Spruce tree... one of eight world record trees in the Quinault valley.
This is another 1,000+ year old tree, almost 200 feet tall... but it's the sheer size at the base that's truly impressive. It almost feels otherworldly; makes you pause and wonder how anything could grow so large!
Below, Mrs. Denmarkguy is having a rest in its shade:
The Lake Quinault area deserves a post of its own, so I'll limit this post just to the trees, and we had one more to visit on this trip... known locally as "The Tree of Life."
We stopped for this one on the homeward leg of our trip... it is located — literally — on the beach, near the Kalaloch campground.
This a scrubby coastal sitka spruce, perhaps 300-350 years old, that clings to the gradually eroding clay slopes by only the tips of its roots, with a tidal cave uunderneath.
It's neither a size nor age champion, but definitely gets the "win" for persevering under the harshest possible conditions.
Botanists have no idea how many years it has left before a winter storm will finally sweep it out to sea... but, for the moment, it is visited by thousands of people every year!
For most people, its significance is the representation of the struggles of life we all have to endure.
All in all, it was a lovely break!
Thanks for stopping by and have a great weekend!
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2026.06.20 01:40 PDT
1577/2841
Good thing that tree was being keep. TREES has very good impact to us humans to protect and give us clean fresh air to breath.