A must stop if you are driving from Nanaimo to Tofino on the Alberni-Pacific Rim Highway. About 25 km West of Parksville on Vancouver Island, British Columbia one can find the Cathedral Grove. Before visiting the island I asked an Islander what can't we miss, he said stop by "Cathedral Grove." And that we did.
These towering giants are 300-800 years old, meaning some of them were mature before Christopher Columbus 'discovered' the new world. Being here makes you realize why the local natives didn't build churches, they didn't need stain glass and stacked rocks to get the awe inspiring feeling of what God created. Nature provided it.
There are thousands of trails on Vancouver Island including the famous Pacific Rim Trail. Some of the trails here take weeks to hike, but Cathedral Grove is a short loop through an old growth temperate rainforest. Totally worth the stop.
If you love lush greenery, taking photos or enjoying the calming effects of an untouched virgin forest this place is for you. Some trees grow up to nearly 100 m tall and have diameters of up to 6 m on this island. The type you can drive a car through, but in the Cathedral Grove Douglas-Firs aren't quite that large.
The path winds through the grove and goes over little streams. The ferns tell you how wet the forest is here. For trees to grow so big, they need a lot of water and mild temperatures. The Pacific Ocean and Coastal mountains help these coastal forests get a couple of meters of rain per year.
A sign marks the biggest tree in the grove. It's taller and straighter than the Leaning Tower of Pisa. The big tree is also about the same age as the tower give or take a decade.
Don't be fooled, this thing is massive. It's almost 3 m in diameter and has been through a lot. How many thousands of people have hugged this tree?
Giant Trees is right. The Douglas Fir was named after David Douglas, what an honor. He explored the area 200 years ago and we continue to explore it today. Thank you for reading.
All Photos were taken with an S22 or an iPhone 14 pro and are unfiltered
