Australia chopped down all its big trees, and all this just goes to prove how cool it was that naturalist John Muir and President Roosevelt saw in protecting so much of California's lands at a time when conservation was in its infancy.

Australia still had the record for the tallest hardwood tree in the world. It was called El Grande and it stood out in the lush Tasmanian interior. Folks came from around the world to see this three-hundred fifty year old Eucalyptus. But one day, rangers accidentally burned it to death in a controlled fire gone outta control.

That was back in 2003, but way before that the ice age devastated the vast majority of the great trees of Earth. Only a few monstrous trees still exist, and most of them are to be found in California. All this does not mean that the tallest trees in modern existence have been located on the Pacific coast of North America. Australia is believed to have been held the tallest trees in recordable history. A eucalyptus tree in Victoria, Australia, measured in the nineteenth century, was thought to have measured in at 492 feet.

Sequoia National Park, and its sister park King's Canyon National Park is a diverse subset of the Sierra Range. The really big trees are a small part of the grandeur of this place.

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