Among Giants: A Journey Through Muir Woods

A Living Legacy of John Muir

The park owes its name—and existence—to the great naturalist John Muir, who inspired a nation to see forests not as timber to be felled, but as temples to be revered. Muir once wrote, “In every walk with nature, one receives far more than he seeks.” His words linger in the rustling leaves and echo in the quiet footsteps of visitors tracing paths beneath trees that predate the birth of cities, nations, and entire civilizations.

In 1908, President Theodore Roosevelt proclaimed the land a national monument, honoring Muir’s vision to protect these giants forever. To wander here is to step into his dream—an unbroken thread of wilderness preserved for generations yet to come.

Giants Older Than Time

The coastal redwoods (Sequoia sempervirens) that dominate Muir Woods are the tallest trees on Earth. Many soar beyond 250 feet, their trunks wide enough to swallow a city car. Some are over 1,000 years old, silent witnesses to the rise and fall of empires, the sweep of history, and the fragile brevity of human lives.

Walking among them is humbling, almost disorienting—scale becomes irrelevant, time collapses, and every breath is infused with a sense of awe. It is no surprise that Muir himself described redwoods as “cathedrals, grander than any built by the hand of man.”

Why Preservation Matters

Muir Woods is not just a park; it is a reminder of what the world once looked like, before cities spread across valleys and skylines replaced treetops. Once, redwood forests blanketed more than two million acres of California. Today, less than five percent of those ancient groves remain.

To preserve them is not only to safeguard beauty, but to protect biodiversity, carbon-storing ecosystems, and a spiritual refuge for weary souls. As Muir wrote, “The clearest way into the Universe is through a forest wilderness.”

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Empyreal Encounters

When Empyreal Magazine visited, photographer Michael Pizzoli captured the woods in a way that transcends documentation—his lens drew out the quiet reverence etched in every fern, every shaft of sunlight, every shadow leaning against ancient bark.

Looking at the images afterward, we were transported back into that hushed sanctuary. In one frame, a beam of golden light pierced the canopy, igniting the mist in a blaze of ethereal glow. In another, the gnarled base of a thousand-year-old giant became an abstract sculpture of strength and endurance.

We found ourselves whispering even when no one was near, not out of politeness, but reverence. We were in awe.

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Elegance in the Wild

There is a natural artistry in the way Muir Woods presents itself. The textures of velvet moss, the polished red bark, and the soft veils of fog drifting through the canopy feel orchestrated by something beyond design. Each tree stands with a quiet dignity, a model of endurance and grace shaped not by human hands but by centuries of wind, water, and sun.

To stand here is to realize that preservation is not about nostalgia—it is about reverence. It is a recognition that beauty matters, that wildness matters, and that future generations deserve the chance to feel the same awe we felt beneath these giants.

Closing Reflection

Empyreal Magazine left Muir Woods changed. In the words of Muir himself: “Everybody needs beauty as well as bread, places to play in and pray in, where Nature may heal and give strength to body and soul alike.”

And in Muir Woods, beauty is abundant. It humbles, it heals, and it reminds us that we are but brief visitors in a cathedral built of time.

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