Sonoma Wineries:
Armstrong Grove State Reserve
The tallest and some of the oldest trees in the world, Sequoia sempervirens, commonly known as Coast redwoods, live in a narrow band along the Northern California and Oregon coastline and a few miles inland, with magnificent groves clustered in what is known as the “Redwood Empire” of Northern California. In Armstrong Grove State Reserve, the Parson Jones Tree is over 300 feet tall––longer than the length of a football field. Named for the lumberman who set the groves aside public use in the 1870s. The Colonel Armstrong Tree is at least 1,400 years old––some redwoods live for more than two centuries and reach a diameter of sixteen feet.
A springtime walk can be magical, when the forest floor is carpeted with clover-like sorrel, creamy-white trillium flowers, fairy bells, and wild purple-pink orchids. In winter, mushrooms, mosses and lichens are vibrantly multi-colored. Come September and October, maples, alders and buckeyes sparkle red and gold among the dark, cinnamon-colored trunks of the towering trees.
The article on this page is adapted from the book, Backroads of the California Wine Country by Karen Misuraca (www.karenmisuraca.com), published by Voyageur Press.
Photo Credit: The pictures on this page are by Lisa Moore. www.studioponderosa.com