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| Klootchy Creek Giant |
Searching for giant trees is a favorite past time for many Oregonians. I remember visiting the Klootchy Creek Giant Spruce near Seaside many times. Its size was impressive: over 17 feet in diameter and 200 feet tall. It was once touted as the world's largest Sitka spruce, a distinction it shared with the Quinault Lake Spruce in Washington. Then the Klootchy Creek Giant lost a big piece of its trunk during a windstorm in 2007. In 2011, it was cut down to this large stump that you can visit now without worrying that another piece might fall off.
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| Cape Meares Spruce |
With the demise of the Klootchy Creek Giant, another Sitka spruce has the distinction of being the largest, at least in the state of Oregon. It is located at Cape Meares at the end of a short trail that starts where Cape Meares Lighthouse Drive meets Bayshore Dr. It's 144 feet tall and 15.5 feet in diameter.
Another notable Sitka spruce at Cape Meares is the Octopus Tree. Its branches were bent when it was younger so that they grew out and then up, forming the shape of an octopus. This was evidently a special meeting place of Tillamook tribal natives. Now it has a massive base with huge limbs reaching out from the trunk before they ascend to over 100 feet. It's located and the end of a short trail that leads up from the parking lot at the lighthouse.
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| Octopus Tree at Cape Meares |
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| Cape Perpetua Giant Spruce |
Another impressive Sitka spruce is located near Cape Perpetua south of Yachats. It's not as massive as the one at Cape Meares, but it is taller. It is over 185 feet high and almost 16 feet in diameter. It's located at the end of the Giant Spruce Trail that begins at the Cape Perpetua Visitor Center.
Finally, if you want to see the world champion Sitka spruce, now you will have to drive up the coast of Washington to the south shore of Lake Quinault. It's at the end of a short trail next to Rain Forest Resort Village.
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| Lake Quinault Spruce |
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References
Klootchy Creek Giant Sitka Spruce
Cape Meares Big Spruce
Cape Perpetua Giant Spruce
Lake Quinault Spruce
I remember that Klootchy tree... we used to stop there when bringing visitors to the coast. BTW, there's another giant spruce in McMinnville: The Spuce Goose!
ReplyDeleteI am a fan of that octopus tree!
ReplyDeleteHello Ken-
ReplyDeleteBeen a while since I visited your blog. How sad it is to see the Klootchy Creek Giant Spruce reduced to a stump. This used to be a favorite stop with our daughters when they were little... we always liked it best before the walkway was constructed. Truth be told, we haven't visited since before the windstorm... really? That long ago? 2007!
The Lake Quinault spruce is a beauty... did you by chance stay at the lodge when you were up that way?
Jane
The spruce near Cape Perpetua could contend with the Cape Meare's spruce if the Cape spruce is really 16' diameter and over 180 ft. tall ... and if the burls were not included on the Cape Meares spruce.
ReplyDeletePresently, Oregon's largest spruce is Falcon's Tower. More info at > http://www.mdvaden.com/klootchy_spruce.shtml
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DeleteThe spruce near Cape Perpetua could contend with the Cape Meare's spruce if the Cape spruce is really 16' diameter and over 180 ft. tall ... and if the burls were not included on the Cape Meares spruce.
ReplyDeletePresently, Oregon's largest spruce is Falcon's Tower. More info at > http://www.mdvaden.com/klootchy_spruce.shtml