Nothing says “America, the land of excess” quite like driving a vehicle through the belly of a 2,000-year-old living monument. For me, this tree tunnel terror felt frightening and exhilarating all at the same time. I’m typically not one for tourist traps—give me a scenic drive over a gift shop any day. But there’s something unique about driving through a perfectly innocent tree that was minding its own business for millennia. But then again, Leggett, California’s drive-though tree park isn’t your typical roadside attraction.
When I first read about the six-foot tunnel carved through a coast redwood, my inner environmentalist shook his head in disapproval. “Tree abuse!” I thought, imagining some lumberjack with a chainsaw and questionable ethics. That was before I found myself grinning like a kid on Christmas morning while inching my Nissan Leaf through a man-made tunnel with inches to spare. Turns out, sometimes the cheesy attractions are cheesy for a good reason—they’re actually kind of awesome.
Tree Tunnel Terror Sparks U-Haul Flashbacks
We paid our entry fee and drove the dirt road to the tree. My first thought as we approached the tree tunnel was that this was a piece of cake. After all, a 2021 Nissan Leaf is a small car and the tunnel looked so big. But inside the tunnel, those inches on either side of the car seemed to shrink. Suddenly, those inches looked like millimeters and the claustrophobia set in. This was like being trapped in a giant MRI tunnel with no panic button!
Then, the real dilemma hit me. My car was inside a coastal redwood and there was only one way out—forward. I was suddenly having flashbacks to the time I drove a U-Haul from Spokane, WA to Alameda, CA. At the time, I checked the ‘never do this again’ box on my bucket list. I’m doing the same thing again.
Spotting Bigfoot and His Friends
In addition to not asking if I was claustrophobic at the entrance, the lady never mentioned all of the wood carvings near the gift shop. However, she did mention the gift shop and the coupon that we should be sure to use.
We didn’t hit the gift shop, but we did spot statues of birds, bears, and even Bigfoot. Obviously, somebody had some serious talent. The good news was that the time spent admiring the wood carvings gave me time to come down from my automobile-claustrophobia induced adrenaline high. That was good news because we had a lot of windy roads ahead of us as we headed deeper into redwood country.
Final Thoughts and Looking Ahead
I would never condone carving out the center of a redwood to turn it into a tourist attraction, but the tunnel was created in the 1930s and there’s no way to change the past. The good news is that the park has been owned and operated by the same family since 1922. For once, I felt like I wasn’t supporting a giant conglomerate. Last week, I said we’d be visiting Digby Island in this week’s post, but I changed my mind. I’ll have another fun destination for you next week—I just won’t make any promises as to where that will be!
If you enjoyed this week’s Friday Morning Post, please leave a comment with your time on the puzzle. I’d also love to hear your thoughts on the post! Thanks for being here!
See all my Friday Morning Posts here. If you missed last week’s post, you can use this link to view Embracing Fall with a West Coast Leaf Tour.
19:15! That was really difficult! But fun. I love these weird roadside attractions.
19.50 tough one!
9:41, what great carvings!
10:22, a tough one today!
Nice picture. My time was 11:12.
10:04 Loved the puzzle even though it was my slowest time yet. Lovely part of the country to drive in. Thanks for the remembrances.
My time was 10:39 – What a tough puzzle! Loved the story and the wood carvings. I hope you are enjoying your trip.
Today’s puzzle was really tough. My score was 6:43. Hopefully, that was the closest I’ll ever come to Bigfoot!
19:29 for me. This one was fun but hard for me!
This was a challenge! 11:08
I remember driving by/through these trees in the distant past
We drove by here the last time we were up here, but thought it was too kitschy! This time, it was just a whim, but a fun one!
10:10 my all time worst time yet! but i love how talented someone is to have made those carvings, amazing. so glad you stopped there , thanks for sharing
I agree, Kat. Someone is very talented.