World’s Tallest Living Pine Tree, world record in the Rogue River–Siskiyou National Forest, Oregon

April 6, 2024

World’s Tallest Living Pine Tree, world record in the Rogue River–Siskiyou National Forest in Oregon

Rogue River–Siskiyou National Forest in Oregon, United States--Near Grants Pass, in the southwestern part of Oregon, the Rogue River-Siskiyou National Forest is home to a giant Pine Tree named “Phalanx"; at 268.3 feet it’s as high as a 30 story building and set the world record for being the World’s Tallest Living Pine Tree, according to the WORLD RECORD ACADEMY.

"The ponderosa pine is fairly easy to identify. The orange-hued checked bark is well known to westerners. What might not be as well known though is that these native trees can grow to sizes rivaling giant redwoods," the USDA says.

"Near Grants Pass, in the southwestern part of Oregon, the Rogue River-Siskiyou National Forest is home to the tallest known specimen and was recently measured to be nearly as high as a 30 story building. The tree named “Phalanx” was climbed and measured by tape in October by Portland arborist Will Koomjian. At 268.3 feet it’s the world’s tallest pine tree of any species.

"Located on the Wild Rivers Ranger District, Phalanx is surrounded by a number of other ponderosas over 250 feet in height. ”This is an exciting find,” says Wild Rivers District Ranger Roy Bergstrom. “To have this unique grove of record sized ponderosa pine adds to the botanical wonderment of the Siskiyou mountains.”

"Pinus ponderosa, commonly known as the ponderosa pine, bull pine, blackjack pine, western yellow-pine, or filipinus pine is a very large pine tree species of variable habitat native to mountainous regions of western North America. It is the most widely distributed pine species in North America," the Wiki[edia says.

"The National Register of Big Trees lists a ponderosa pine that is 235 ft (72 metres) tall and 27 ft (8.2 m) in circumference. In January 2011, a Pacific ponderosa pine in the Rogue River–Siskiyou National Forest in Oregon was measured with a laser to be 268 ft 4 in (81.79 m) high.

The measurement was performed by Michael Taylor and Mario Vaden, a professional arborist from Oregon. The tree was climbed on October 13, 2011, by Ascending The Giants (a tree-climbing company in Portland, Oregon) and directly measured with tape-line at 268 ft 3 in (81.77 m) high."

"The Rogue River–Siskiyou National Forest is a United States National Forest in the U.S. states of Oregon and California. The formerly separate Rogue River and Siskiyou National Forests were administratively combined in 2004. Now, the Rogue River–Siskiyou National Forest ranges from the crest of the Cascade Range west into the Siskiyou Mountains, covering almost 1.8 million acres (7,300 km2). Forest headquarters are located in Medford, Oregon," the Wikipedia says.

"The national forest is home to some stands of old growth, including Port Orford cedar and Douglas fir in the Copper Salmon area. A 1993 Forest Service study estimated that the extent of old growth in the forest was 345,300 acres (139,700 ha)[9] some of which occurs in the Red Buttes Wilderness.

"Blue oak, Quercus douglasii, and Canyon live oak, Quercus chrysolepis occur in the Siskiyou National Forest. For the California endemic Blue Oak, the disjunctive stands are occurring near the northern limit of its range, which occur no farther north than Del Norte County. The world's tallest pine tree is a 268.35-foot (81.79 m) ponderosa and is located in the national forest."

"The location of the big pines had not been a secret. They grow in the Rogue River-Siskiyou National Forest, a 24-mile drive southwest of Grants Pass. A campground in the area is named Big Pine and was home to the world's tallest known ponderosa, 259 feet," the OrgonLive.com says.

"What prompted Koomjian's October visit to southern Oregon was that even taller pines had been discovered early this year beyond the campground. A laser measurement made by Michael Taylor, a big tree hunter from Trinity County, Calif., came up with a reading of 268.35 feet.

"The only taller one had been a 269.2-foot-tall sugar pine, but it died from a bark beetle attack in California's Yosemite National Park. Sugar pines are known as the "king of the pines" and typically grow 40 feet higher than ponderosas."

Photos: World’s Tallest Living Pine Tree, world record in the Rogue River–Siskiyou National Forest in Oregon

(1) United States Department of Agriculture

(2,3) azertag.az