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Virtual Guidebook to the Northern California Coast and Coast Ranges
Montgomery Woods State Reserve
Mendocino County California
Montgomery Woods is a small but important park located far back in the densely forested mountains of Mendocino County. It preserves a nine acre grove of exceptionally tall redwoods, donated by the owner of the lumber company that logged everything else for miles around.
In 1996 forest surveyors found that the "Mendocino Tree" here was actually the tallest in the world. Records like that never last long, and by 2000 several slightly taller trees were measured in other parks further north. This particular tallest tree was never individually identified, to spare it the destructive foot traffic that other famous trees have suffered. This grove is notable also for its swampy central section and giant chain ferns.
 | Bare ground between the huge trees at the north end of Montgomery Woods (November 13, 2007) | |
 | The trail at Montgomery Woods skirts the swampy grove floor (November 13, 2007) | |
 | Giant chain ferns grow in the swampy lower parts of Montgomery Woods (November 13, 2007) | |
 | One of the largest trees at Montgomery Woods, among the world's tallest (November 13, 2007) | |
 | Oxalis carpets the forest floor at the margins of the grove (November 13, 2007) | |
| Bare ground between the huge trees at the north end of Montgomery Woods (November 13, 2007) | |