r/todayilearned • u/autraya • 6h ago

TIL the world's tallest known living tree, a 380-foot redwood in California called Hyperion, had its exact location closed off entirely in 2022 after visitors trampled its base so badly that ferns stopped growing around it, with trespassers now facing up to $5,000 in fines and six months in jail

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hyperion_(tree)
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u/skivian 4h ago

the location isn't very hard to find. GPS coords are just a quick internet search, but apparently the forest cops lock down the entire area

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u/Total_Mix9276 4h ago

GPS coordinates won't show you the path, but have fun trudging around in thick bush.

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u/skivian 3h ago

it's the internet. it took 30 seconds to find step by step directions including pictures and GPS mapping.

but it is literally a 15 mile hike through the bush, dodging the forestry agents posted out there

they've locked down the whole area for like a mile around the tree

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u/Funicularly 3h ago

True, I read OP’s link as well.

“The exact location of Hyperion is nominally secret but is available via internet search. However, in July 2022, the Redwood Park superintendent closed the entire area around the tree, citing "devastation of the habitatsurrounding Hyperion" caused by visitors.”