Gary and Brenda's California Trip

California
San Francisco, Yosemite National Park, Muir Woods, Napa and Sonoma Valley, and some Coast

DAY 4, Part 5: Some Trees and Bark of Yosemite

Ponderosa Pine tree near parking lot. Composite of 3 pictures.

under two very tall trees
We took a guided tram tour during which we rode under and between these two tall specimens.

Incense Cypress tree bark

Incense Cypress tree bark. Often confused with coastal redwoods by many and even sequoias by some. Sequoias have a unique color that is recognizable right away. It is lighter than either the redwood or the cypress. The redwood can be differentiated from the cypress, because the redwood has much deeper grooves or crevices in its bark than the cypress.

Ponderosa Pine. Described in some books as being like a patchwork of bark.

young Sequioia bark

The above two pictures are of a young Sequoia tree -- 80-90 years old. One of the guides said that Sequoias are not native to the Yosemite Valley. There are three groves of Sequoias at the edges of the park where you can see older and much larger specimens. He said that someone planted 4-5 Sequoias in the valley at some point in the early 20th century.