Dr. Aurelia Reinhardt Redwood Regional Park, Regional park in Oakland hills, United States.
Dr. Aurelia Reinhardt Redwood Regional Park protects the largest remaining natural stand of coast redwood in the East Bay, in the hills east of Oakland. The redwoods here are third-growth trees, many over 100 years old, regrown after logging ended in the 19th century. The park lies in a linear valley where winds funneled through the Golden Gate create coastal conditions.
Heavy logging in the 1800s removed much of the original forest to provide lumber for Bay Area development. The trees visible today grew back over generations, forming what is now called a third-growth forest.
The park was named for Dr. Aurelia Reinhardt in 2019, when the entire park took her name; a grove there had once been named for her. Reinhardt was a president of Mills College. The redwoods themselves are third-growth trees, many over 100 years old, regrown after the logging of 1845–1860 and after the 1906 earthquake.
The park holds 40 miles (64 km) of trails for hiking, jogging, archery and horseback riding. Four reservable picnic sites take groups of 50 to 150 people and are accessible to visitors with disabilities; overnight group camping needs a reservation. A children's play structure sits a quarter mile down Stream Trail from the Canyon Meadow staging area. Trails can close after severe weather or for maintenance.
One original redwood tree survives near Merritt College, rising 93 feet from a rocky outcrop that prevented loggers from reaching it. This tree escaped the saw because of its impossible-to-access location on the stone face.
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