The Immortal Tree stands beside the Avenue of the Giants north of Redcrest, and its name comes from what it has lived through. This coast redwood, about two hundred fifty feet tall and around a thousand years old, survived a logging attempt in nineteen oh eight, the great flood of nineteen sixty-four and a lightning strike that took off the top forty-five feet. Markers on the trunk show where the axes struck and how high the water rose. It is not the oldest redwood in the forest, and its fame rests on endurance rather than records. A gift shop and parking area sit in front of it, which makes this an easy stop for travelers short on time.
Near Redcrest stands the Immortal Tree, and it has earned that name about four times over. This one tree survived a logging crew — you can still see the axe cuts where they started on it and, for whatever reason, gave up. It survived the great flood of nineteen sixty-four, standing in water up the trunk. It survived fire. And it survived a lightning strike that blew perhaps forty-five feet clean off its top, which is why its crown looks blunt and battered against the sky. It's around a thousand years old and it is still growing. There's a small pull-out and a marker. I like this tree more than the record-holders, honestly — it isn't the tallest or the biggest, it's just the one that refused to go down, and there's a lot to be said for that.
Photo: Azeusss · CC BY 4.0