The Redwoods, by Lesley

"This land is your land, this land is my land;
From California, to the New York islands;
From the Redwood Forests, to the Gulf Stream waters;
This land is made for you and me."

The redwood forests overwhelmed me. Those trees have been there for three thousand years. Henry VIII was only five hundred years ago. Dinosaurs roamed amongst the trees. Evidence of the redwoods living in the coastal plains up to two hundred million years ago is found there. I hugged those trees and felt like a real tree hugger! They are as beautiful as anything I have experienced and made me feel young.

As I went walking, I saw a sign there;
On the sign there, it said PRIVATE PROPERY;
On the backside, it said nothing;
That side was made for you and me...

So says a little known verse of the song by Woody Guthrie. We were shocked to find that the verse was correct for this famous section of the redwoods. The spectacular tree that has the road running through is privately owned. As we approached a voice said "Halt! Deposit five dollars at the kiosk. If you wish to drive through the tree, deposit ten dollars". This land is made for you and me!