Regardless, the Sequoias and bristlecones are incredibly old. But what makes the Sequoia live so long is even more fascinating.
The bark of the Sequoia repels everything. If you visit these trees, you will note that the bark of the trees seems completely fresh - no signs of age whatsoever.
Somehow, this bark repels both insects and fire. No one in science knows exactly why or how. But the fact that sequoias have no resin helps - rather, the one-foot thick bark is incredibly moist. The tree has evolved to stay impervious to all its attackers.
More remarkable, the sequoia has an astounding resistance to fire. The moist bark, again, repels every single instance of fire. Scientists believe that no natural single fire has ever been directly responsible for the death of a sequoia tree. We head back to the car, and down the miles of road. A cougar stands in our way along the road. We watch him for a few minutes. I know while watching him that most hikers, backpackers and outdoorsmen in North America will never even come close to seeing one. Here I am, an amateur, and a giant cougar is right in front of me; I, protected by my truck. After he watches us in the car for a few minutes, he disappears into the darkness, amongst the pines. When down the road we came to a pack of mule deer, we knew why the cougar was here.
