Welcome to middleforkgiants.com, my name is Brad Allen. I live in Redmond, Washington and am an avid outdoorsperson. Growing up in the Pacific Northwest, I developed a deep love for the Cascade Mountains and the forests. In 2005, while hiking in the Big Beaver Valley in the North Cascades I took a picture of our group passing in front of a tree. It was only much later that I realized how big this tree was. I used this picture for several months on my work computer and it just seemed to 'speak' to me.

In 2007 I read Wild Trees by Richard Preston and was struck by how the largest tree in the Redwoods was measured as in 2004. I bought Robert VanPelt's book Forest Giants of the Pacific Coast and realized how much forest might still be unexplored out there.  I had heard about old growth in the Middle Fork Valley.  The Middle Fork Snoqualmie Valley has several key features that might lead to some remaining old growth.  It is lower elevation, receives massive rainfall (up to 100" per year in places), and was logged early when trees were plentiful and loggers weren't quite as efficient.  It's most notable feature is that it is close to home.

So, during the Winter of 2008, I headed out on my first tree finding trip.  An unusual mass of snow that year stopped us sooner than we expected so we went up the CCC trail from the South end.  Part way up, Ellie and I came across CCC tree #1, a cedar which I later measured at over 200'.  A beautiful example of old growth, I was hooked.  This site and my blog are tracking my excursions into the Middle Fork in my Search for Giants.