Hyperion ~ World's Tallest Redwood

In Redwood National and State Parks

With notes about Mountain Lions and Black Bears This page continued from Largest Coast Redwoods

Copyright 2009 by Mario Vaden

Continued from main redwood page: Hyperion ~ Helios

Hyperion coast redwood, discovered 2006 by Chris Atkins and Michael Taylor is the tallest in the world. 2009 measurement 115.61m or 379.1' high, 15.88' diameter breast high, 4.5' above grade.

There is not one way to approach this tallest redwood in the world, which is located uphill from one of the many creeks and brooks. There are just creeks and brooks in the park: no rivers. The largest is Redwood Creek, with Prairie Creek as its largest tributary. And Lost Man Creek makes a confluence 12,000 feet upstream as a Redwood National Park tributary.

Presently, my favorite story of a search by other folks is a 2007 called Above and Beyond. The narrative comes across as if they picked the Redwood Creek trail trailhead using the parking lot off Bald Hills Road, close to Orick. That redwood article opens with them weighing options in hours and pints of blood. It ends with appreciation in the end.

Hyperion, the tallest redwood (2009) was described in a book as being in remote part of Redwood National Park on a hillside in the south end of the park. Because the park is not neatly sliced into north or south on maps, the description is vague. Especially since Prairie Creek is occassionally coupled generically.

With new super tall redwoods found recently and the shroud of mystery around this location, some folks wonder if Hyperion is still the tallest in the world. Some new finds are not being named. But it should be tallest.

Various people expressed interest in Hyperion, assuming it is upslope of a named creek. Redwood National Park has at least 40 miles of creeks with brooks added. 80 miles of slopes with both sides combined.

This area was nicknamed Fog Valley in a book by Richard Preston, describing Steve Sillett and Michael Taylor heading downstream into the rugged region.

In the same book, Preston introduced the use tags on trees (like the 3 peas in a pod). But tags on redwoods are not useful to seekers. Between canopy research and other, there are reams of tags.

And the tags for some redwoods are clear across valleys on other trunks where the window was open to a laser. Between 2008 and 2010, the number of tags multiplied greatly.

Near Hyperion were scads of fresh bear footprints, claw marks on logs and scat. By far the most bear sign I've seen in redwood groves during the past few years.

The traces of bear near there reminded me of Blue Ledge Mine east near Applegate Lake, where in 4 visits I saw black bears twice and traces once. One time coming back down from the mountain, fresh prints were in snow overlapping mine: the bear had sniffed my tracks, but left. Again, that was east near Red Buttes Wilderness.

Black bear attacks are uncommon but trend predatory when they occur. So far no face to face for us in Redwood National Park, but I heard that Michael Taylor encountered a bear before, and others have seen them yearly.

One part of Hyperion Valley had a couple of Mountain Lion tracks. I didn't see Mountain Lion around Hyperion, but saw 3 Mountain Lions running in the same park not far away. These cats can leap 16' vertical and 30' horizontal. I've also seen Mountain Lion tracks to the north in the Valley of the Lost Groves.

Image to right near Hyperion. This is a clawed log in the area. Farther uphill, several small redwoods had strips of bark hanging in shreds too.

Image at right below is one of those Cougar tracks, to show how large their prints are? About 4" wide. Cougar toe digits seem pronounced.

Some folks consider Hyperion as the holy grail of redwoods. One naturalist wrote that they would not set foot on that earth because it was sacred. That sounds imaginative. But it was not like the banana slugs and bears there genuflect.

For now the location remains secret. Hyperion is fairly remote. Maybe it's location should be called Hyperion Hill since it's on a hillside.

Quite a few people have looked for Hyperion without locating it. That's because it is remote. Also, they tend to believe everything they see and read about it, and focus on too narrow of a search area.

Redwoods like this are very inconspicous, because there are super tall redwoods in Prairie Creek RSP, near Lost Man Creek and tributaries, and much of Redwood National Park. They literally cloak each other. And the tops are commonly out of view of a rangefinder.

 

Mountain Lions - Cougars

Mountain Lion notes in case you find tracks or see a Cougar in Redwood National Park:

The first Cougar tracks I saw in Redwood National Park were near Hyperion, so this page looked like as good a spot as any to add this information. The Parks office may appreciate a report about sightings of the Mountain Lions. I filled out a sighting card for the 3 Cougars mentioned above.

Likewise if you see Black Bear. In June 2010, I saw 5 different Black Bears in 5 different areas of Redwood National Park within 2 days. The small sighting cards from the visitor centers, only take about a minute

The photo to the right shows an adult Mountain Lion. That photo was taken near Grants Pass, Oregon, about 80 miles east of Jedediah Smith Redwoods State Park. Mountain Lions live throughout the northern California and southern Oregon area.

• Look for overall round shape of the track, common to most felines. The mountain lion's front foot has 4 toes and heel that registers, which means they make an imprint.
• The front foot is larger and more asymmetrical than the rear.
• The palm of the track is almost twice the size of the digits, unlike canine tracks.
• The heel has a dimple in the middle at the top of the pad just under the two middle toes.
• Between toes and palm pad, is a curved ridge, which some trackers call a linked ridge. Canines have a diamond or pyramid shape in this area.
• Toe shape is oval, and the most striking characteristic is that toes are offset. They point in a different direction from the heel pad with one toe ahead or forward of others.
• One of the outer 2 toes is forward of the other. Dog toes point straight or slightly toward each other.
• If you try to draw an X between a mountain lion's toe pads, note that the X crosses into the heel pad.
• If you draw an imaginary X between dog toe pads, the X does not go into the foot pad. Sometimes you can see claw marks left by a dog above toe pads of the print, not always obvious.

The X trick is not really needed. It's doubtful you will be casting fresh tracks: but just hiking.

Black Bears in the Redwoods

Images at right: top photo is a Black Bear foot print I saw in the winter, east of the redwoods in northern California; bottom pic is Black Bear in the same area, tearing apart an old trunk looking for food.

As with the Mountain Lion information, the choice to use this page was because Redwood National Park has a high Black Bear density. And the Hyperion grove area was riddled with tracks, claw marks and feeding scraps.

Will you see a bear? Not likely. But as mentioned above, I have seen 5 different bears in 2 days, all in different parts of Redwood National Park, but that was not typical for my visits.

Trivia about Winnie-the-Pooh: Winnepeg was a female black bear at London Zoo, 1915 - 1934. Bought as a cub for $20 in Ontario, by Lt Harry Colebourn of a Canadian cavalry regiment during World War I, Winnie was smuggled into Britain as a mascot. Before leaving for France, Colebourn left Winnie at London Zoo. One fan was A. A. Milne's son Christopher Robin, who named his teddy bear “Winnie” giving Winnie-the-Pooh his name.

These animals are strong even though they may lack an outline of chiseled muscles. Black Bears look sort of rounded and fuzzy. But their lives are spent climbing steep hillsides and the redwoods on a daily basis. Weight is in the 200 to 360 lb. range.

Considering that hikers and campers pack food on trails and near campsites, note the food storage tips. Here are a few excerpts I found from the park service regarding Black Bear:

• The highest density of black bears (Ursus americanus) in California roam the forests and oak woodlands of Redwood National and State Park.
• Check in at park visitor centers for information on campgrounds with bear-proof lockers. If your campground does not have lockers, you may be able to borrow a bear-proof canister to pack in and protect your food.
• If bear-proof storage is unavailable, hang food, garbage, and attractants 10 feet out from a tree trunk and 12 feet up from the ground. Pack all your garbage out with you. Cook and store food at least 100 feet away from where you sleep. Wash dishes immediately after use.
• If a bear approaches: STAND UP and wave your arms. SHOUT and make loud noises. Throwing small rocks in the bear’s direction will usually send it running. Be bold, but use good judgement. If you feel threatened, WALK away, don't run. Do not turn your back on the bear. Do not drop your pack.
• If you see a bear, please fill out a wildlife observation card at an visitor center. If you see a bear in a high-use area (campgrounds, parking lots, etc.) or if a bear has obtained human food/garbage, contact a ranger immediately.
• Between toes and palm pad, is a curved ridge, which some trackers call a linked ridge. Canines have a diamond or pyramid shape in this area.
• Black bears are omnivores. In spring, they eat mainly vegetation. Sometimes they rip bark off trees and eat sweet cambium underneath. Bears use powerful, clawed feet to tear apart logs for ants, termites, and insect larvae. Bears visit oak woodlands for acorns. Nuts and berries are nutritious. Bears are very strong and can tear open car doors, windows and coolers for food. Bears also eat dead animals and occasionally prey on mammals, including young deer and elk. Historically, steelhead and salmon filled streams in this area, food source for black bears.

To open a pdf with much more of this information, see Black Bear Information

And for more info, see this article: Wikipedia Black Bear

That document is supplied by the park service. Providing drawings of tracks, the bear and a diagram showing how to hang or suspend food.