Scotts Seein America: Arrival in our new "home" state.

We have landed in Box Elder (Rapid City) South Dakota....our new home state. We are here for a month...ugh!! We have to spend one night to update our drivers license address and register to vote, and 30 days to apply for our conceal and carry permit. So here we are. Anticipating this long stay I have been making a list of things we have been wanting to get done but couldn't because we were either travelling or visiting. My list is now 31 items long and the first couple of days we were here I accomplished very little because I got tired each time I looked at the list and had to take a nap.

One of the items on my list is to catch up on this blog. Today's is about our time in Eureka, CA. The Redwood National Forest was on my bucket list. And although I was more impressed with the Avenue of The Giants than the National Park, they were both awesome.

Our camera, nor our photography skills do justice to this phenomenon.

The Avenue of The Giants a 32 mile scenic highway runs through Humboldt Redwoods State Park. The overshadowing of the Coast Redwoods surround the area and give this stretch its name. We took a walk of Founders Grove to view the Dyerville Giant which was 370 feet tall at the time of its demise in 1991. This champion of redwoods is believed to exist as long as 1,600 years and was taller, larger and older than any other trees around it.

Ron actually looks small next to these giants!

Dyersville Giant....can you see Ron at the end?

It was measured at 370 ft, 17 ft in diameter, 52 ft in circumference and is estimated to weigh over 1,000,000 pounds.

During the rainy season the soil became saturated causing another large tree to fall hitting a second tree causing it to lean. A week later the leaning tree fell striking the Dyerville Giant causing it to fall. The fall was heard miles away, being described as the sound of a train wreck, with mud splattering 15 feet up its trunk from the impact. It is still living, creating a home and food source for plants and animals.

Of course we had to take in one of the drive-through trees that you see on all of the postcards and travel brochures. There are 3 different areas that feature a tree that you can drive through and each tree is privately owned and charge $6.00 to participate. We choose the Shrine Drive-Thru Tree. Not sure this was such a great idea unless you are driving a Smart car. This tourist trap ....um attraction also has a small house built from a redwood (thus a tree house) .

Shrine Drive Thru Tree. Redwood is 5000 years old, 275 ft high, 21 ft in diameter and 64 ft circumference.
I let Ron do the driving....if anyone was going to scrape the paint off the side of the car it was going to be him.

We also took a short detour through the town of Weott.
This town of 288 people now live in the hills due to experiencing two severe floods in 1955 and 1964.

This pole with it's top 33 feet above street level indicates where the water crested during the 1964 flood that obliterated the town of Weott.

After leaving a day enjoying the redwoods and our way back to the campground we drove through the town of Scotia. This little town has an interesting history. It is a "company town" which was previously wholly owned by the Pacific Lumber Company. It is currently home to 850 past or present mill employees and their dependents. Scotia is one of a handful of company towns to survive the Great Depression.

In recent years the Pacific Lumber Company expressed a desire to sell the homes to employees and retirees who currently live there. Sale of commercial buildings would also occur from the lumber companies Chapter 11 reorganization plan and control transferring to various other entities.