Muir Woods for kids
The Giant Redwoods. The true story of Muir Woods, near Mill Valley, CA, told for kids.
Read along
Okay, explorers, use your quiet voices. We're coming into Muir Woods, a forest of giant redwood trees. Some of these trees are more than one thousand years old! That's older than castles and knights!
And they're tall, tall, tall, taller than a twenty-story building. Long ago, people wanted to cut these trees down to make lumber. But a man and woman named William and Elizabeth Kent bought the forest to save it, and gave it to everybody, forever! They named it after John Muir, a man who loved nature so much he spent his life protecting it.
And keep your eyes on the ground, because the forest is full of banana slugs. They're bright yellow, slimy, and really do look like little bananas! Just don't try to eat one.
Quiz the back seat
What bright yellow animal lives on the redwood forest floor?
Show the answer
Banana slug. The banana slug! Yellow, slimy, and totally not for eating.
3 fun facts
- Became a National Monument in 1908.
- Land donated by William and Elizabeth Kent.
- Some trees here are over 1,000 years old.
For grown-ups
Every Tumbly story is checked claim by claim against the sources below before it's published; stories that don't pass stay off the app and this site. Narration is pre-recorded, and nothing you do on this page is tied to your kids.
Sources
- nps.gov/muwo/learn/nature/plants.htm
- parksconservancy.org/parks/muir-woods-national-monument
- extranomical.com/muir-woods-national-monument
- nps.gov/articles/the-kent-family-and-conservation.htm
- nps.gov/muwo/learn/historyculture/historyofmuirwoods.htm
- gomuirwoods.com/muir/about
- nps.gov/muwo/learn/nature/banana-slug.htm
- facebook.com/groups/thedullclub/posts/3623749471163479
Nearby stories
Why It's Called Mill Valley
Here's a riddle. Why is our town called Mill Valley?
The Crookedest Railroad in the World
Choo choo! Right here in downtown Mill Valley, where the bookstore and café are, there used to be a train station!
The Sleeping Lady Mountain
Look up! That big mountain is Mount Tamalpais.
The Shipwreck in the Fog
Down this road is a valley that ends at a tiny beach. And this valley is named after a ship!All stories in Marin County → · All places
Town and county names: GeoNames (CC BY 4.0).