What's wrong with this image?
There's a lot of marketing of national parks going on out there in the business world, but is it always accurate?
Take a close look at the image accompanying this post and ask yourself, "What's right in the title of this drawing?"
Hint: “What's right is wrong, but it's not the opposite of left.”
The drawing and caption were taken from the back panel of a box of Safeway brand “Rice Pockets” cereal titled the “7 Wonders of North America.” The subtitle (not shown) challenges, “How much do you know about the National Wonders located in North America?”
If you're well-familiar with Sequoia National Park, it's clear from the drawing that the editors of the cereal package are not familiar with the park at all. Nevertheless, let's take up their challenge! Take a look at the drawing and title and figure out what's wrong, and then challenge yourself to answer the question of what's right. Traveler readers are always more than up for a national park-related challenge, so I suspect you will find things I didn't notice, or even know!
We'll share the answers with you tomorrow.
Traveler trivia: In case you're curious, the other “wonders” the cereal box features are: Garden of the Gods, Natural Bridge National Monument, Yellowstone, Niagara Falls, Yosemite, and Mammoth Cave. Past comments on the Traveler regarding which parks are best indicate that most of you would disagree with that list, so let's not go there in this article!
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Comments
Where to start - there isn't much that's correct!
It's a little hard to read, but I think the sign says Chandelier Tree. Which is privately owned, a coast redwood not a Giant Sequoia, and in Leggett, California. The Wawona Tree, which was in Yosemite not Sequoia National Park, was a drive through tree but it fell down in 1969.
The Chandelier Tree pictured is actually found in Leggett, CA (about 450 NW of Sequoia National Park). While there are no drive through trees in Sequoia, there is the famous drive through Tunnel Log created by a fallen giant sequoia that had a tunnel cut through as a visitor attraction around 1938.
This is a picture of Chandelier Tree, which is not in Sequoia National Park. It is a Coast Redwood tree that is privately owned, located near Leggett. California. This tree is in northern California not too far from the coast (about 185 miles north of San Francisco). Sequoia National Park is about 450 miles away (about 285 miles south east of San Francisco).
There was a second "drive-thru" sequoia in Yosemite -- at least back in 1970. The Wawona Tree was in the Mariposa grove, but there was also one in the Tuolumne Grove (I think it was). That tree, however, was a stump and was not a living tree. Does anyone know if it is still a drive-thru?
I also found this in Wikipedia (for whatever it may be worth . . . . ) The California Tunnel Tree: Cut in 1895 to allow coaches to pass through it (and as a marketing scheme to attract visitors to the grove), this is the only living tree with a tunnel in it since the fall of the Wawona Tunnel Tree in 1969.
Is there some way I can shoot some photos of the tree to Traveler?
Sequoia National Park used to have a fallen tree that was set up so that one could drive on top of it for a small section. It's still there (I saw it), but it's since cracked to the point where it can't be driven over any more.
So far all the comments are correct; it is the Chandelier Tree and it is a Coast Redwood. In fact your comments are so close to duplicating what I wrote for the follow up article for tomorrow that I'm thinking I probably didn't have to write it!! You Traveler readers are pretty amazing!
Yes there is a drive-thru tree "stump" at Tuolumne Grove in Yosemite, you can't drive through it anymore but you can hike through. There are at least 2 redwood trees you can still drive through over on the north California coast, more on that tomorrow.
I forgot that Sequoia has a downed sequoia that one can drive through.
http://www.nps.gov/archive/seki/tlog_pic.htm
I mentioned the log one can drive over. Here's an older photo, although it's no longer in any condition for that purpose:
http://www.nps.gov/archive/seki/autolpic.htm
And CAPTCHA for today is "Government impact".
The vehicle should have a license plate!
So what did I win? :)