Greetings family and friends, I crossed paths with this week's memorable character, a giant of a man, six decades ago in the redwood forests of Northern California (Nope, it's not Big Foot).....Bill

PAUL BUNYAN - Lumberjack, Gentle Giant

The big guy really gets around! Tales of the exploits of the legendary  towering lumberjack and his companion Babe the Blue Ox began turning up in folktales by North American loggers in bunkhouses and around campfires in the late 1800’s. Large statues of the iconic character can be found throughout the country and at least fifteen towns in several states lay claim to being his place of birth. Disney even made an animated cartoon about Paul and attributing the creation of the Grand Canyon and Great Lakes to him. I first crossed paths with the memorable character in the early 1950’s at the Tree’s of Mystery roadside attraction in Northern California’s redwoods. The original Paul Bunyan figure, salvaged from a temporary parade float, was placed on route 101 to draw attention to the fledgling park but unfortunately the paper mache figure didn’t survive winter in the damp coastal redwoods. A more permanent version of the the double bladed ax wielding Paul Bunyan that I met was constructed from wood, chicken wire, and stucco and stood behind a 100,000 lb. exposed redwood root structure that served as the attractions main entrance until 1961. After more than six decades and growing in stature and in attributed accomplishments, the current towering gentle giant tops out at nearly 50 ft and greets guests by waving, winking and inviting them to experience the parks natural wonders. But alas, after taking in the sites of the classic roadside attraction and picking up a few redwood momentos at the gift shop, modern day guests no longer experience the surprise of returning to their cars and finding it outfitted with a coveted Trees of Mystery bumper sticker.        -Bill