Dean M. Chriss
Photography
Enchanted Woodlands, Washington, Landscape Photograph

Enchanted Woodlands, Old Growth Forest, Washington

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Walking through a Pacific old growth forest is like no other experience in the world. Trees of all varieties grow to unimaginable sizes. Their crowns reach 200 to 380 feet (61 to 116 m) high and their trunks can grow to over 30 feet (9.1 m) in diameter. Seedlings grow beside them and trunks of their ancestors that fell 600 years ago lay rotting on the forest floor, supplying water and nutrients to the younger trees. The entire lifecycle of the forest is plainly visible in every glance. This land of 1000 year old giants feels like an enchanted place, but more than 94% of these forests are already gone. Contrary to popular belief they are not renewable. To find out why check out this essay.