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Mountain, lead youthroughdense forests ofpine andoakandfields carpeted with assorted
wildflowers.
WARRIOR FOR THE WILDERNESS
Through all the wonderful centuries since Christ's time, God has cared for these trees
…butHecannotsavethemfromfools—onlyUncleSamcandothat.”Sowrotenatur-
alist JohnMuir in 1901,only a few years after first being awed byCalifornia'smighty
redwoods, whose durable, versatile woodmade them a prime target fortimber barons.
Muir's campaign to persuade Uncle Sam to set aside precious public land was so suc-
cessful that he became a leading champion of our national park system. His contribu-
tionsarehonoredatbothMuirWoodsNationalMonumentandtheJohnMuirNational
Historic Site in nearby Martinez, California.
7.
Fort Ross State Historic Park
Visitors to this windswept coastal terrace invariably wonder what an Imperial Russian out-
post is doing here. The explanation dates back to 1742, when Russian fur trappers first
crossed the Bering Strait, the body of water separating Siberia from Alaska. The trade in
sea-otterpeltsdrewthemdeepintoCalifornia,andby1812,representativesoftheRussian-
American Fur Company waded ashore to establish a fortified supply depot.
The Russian presence at Fort Rossiya, or Russia (later trimmed to Ross), was short-
lived, however. By 1820 hunting had decimated the sea-otter population, and the foggy
coastal climate made farming difficult. In 1841 the Russians sold the depot to John Sutter,
whostrippeditbareandhauleditslivestockandarsenaltotheSacramentoValley.Someof
the settlers dispersed into the hills, giving the interior towns their distinct Russian flavor.
Today's Fort Ross is largely a reconstruction, though faithful to the original. Carefully
re-created is the weathered redwood stockade, the comparatively lavish commander's
headquarters, and a Russian Orthodox chapel crowned by two towers. Perhaps most au-
thentic of all is the mood of the place, for no visitor can stand on this isolated bluff,
whipped relentlessly by wind and waves, and not imagine the loneliness felt by a trans-
planted settler who found himself in a beautiful land so far from home.
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