Anuradhapura was Sri Lanka’s first capital, founded in the 4th century BCE by King Pandukabhaya. It is considered the first city in the country to have embraced Buddhism. Today it is a UNESCO World Heritage site, home to massive ancient stupas, vast archaeological ruins, and a sacred tree.
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Have you ever noticed quite how varied are the barks of different tree species? At least as much so as their leaves and fruits, yet we seem to take much less notice of them.
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There is something about being amongst trees that speaks to all of us. Our deep-rooted (pun intended) appreciation of them spans cultures, geographies, and histories. Forests appear in the stories and myths of so many cultures, as mysterious places where both danger and magic can be found.
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Woods (and forests) are lovely. But their very darkness and deepness can make them hard to do justice to as a photographer. One tree can merge into another, and another, and … It’s hard for the eye to find a single point of interest on which to settle and focus.
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The great redwoods and sequoias of California are not merely trees; they stand to remind us of the beauty and resilience of nature. They have inspired countless artists, writers and nature lovers. They epitomise strength, survival and the grandeur of the natural world.
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We had already seen and loved the coastal redwoods in the Humboldt Redwoods State Park. But while those are the tallest trees to be found anywhere in the world, they are not the most massive overall. That honour belongs to their cousins, the giant sequoias (as measured by a combination of height and width).
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No, it isn’t possible to successfully photograph a redwood tree, nor to convey its impact; you have to experience it for yourself. Walking among these groves is unlike any other forest walk. More than by any other trees, we are dwarfed by them, and awed by a palpable sense of their great age. That age, that immense size, their sheer presence; only by being there can we feel those qualities.
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What we in the UK call autumn is known for the most part as fall in the US. On our recent California trip we made sure to comment on the ‘fall colours’! But why the difference?
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Kahlil Gabran’s likening of trees to poems 'that the earth writes upon the sky' is often quoted, I know. And yes, the branches of trees, their twigs and leaves, do seem a little like writing against the sky. But there is more to this poem.
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In his poem 'To Autumn' John Keats describes the autumn we all know and love, with lingering warm weather and bountiful harvests. But he also celebrates later autumn days, when winter seems just over the horizon. Both have their beauty.
