By Chuck Woodbury
This news makes me sick. In Northern California’s magnificent Redwood National Park and its interwoven California State Parks, thieves are making off with monuments symbolic of the area that we, the humble stewards of our land, have created in its honor.
No one who visits this part of America will ever forget what they see and what they feel. The old-growth redwood trees tower above you. They humble you. You are the size of bug next to them. There are few other places on earth where a trail hike can be so magnificent, so “never-forgettable.”
And now, here come some pea-brained, mentally deficient Beavis and Butt-heads who steal some of the monuments. Why?
They have made off with memorial plaques for veterans, donor recognition markers, cherished sculptures of canoes and coho salmon (see above). They’ve even stolen items as mundane as shower drains (which reveals their tiny brains do not allow them to understand the value of everyday objects).
Thefts first noticed in January 2025
According to a news release, park officials first noticed the thefts “as early as January 2025.” Karla Jovel, a California State Parks interpreter with the North Coast Redwood District, told SFGATE that most of the thefts have occurred in the northern reaches of Redwood National and State Parks. That is the jointly managed complex of one national and three state parks spanning 139,000 acres in Humboldt and Del Norte counties. Together, the parks preserve 45% of the world’s remaining old-growth coastal redwoods.
The news release noted that the stolen items “celebrate and recognize individuals and groups who have contributed to the redwood forests.” Among the most notable: a 20-inch bronze recreation of a dugout canoe used by the Tolowa people and a statue of a coho salmon.
Jovel said that the parks are working “to replace the stolen items with models that are of less cost and less interest to thieves.” What a shame!
Park officials are urging the public to be on the lookout for any suspicious activity. Anyone aware of these items being resold or who has information about the thefts should contact Ranger Greg McKisson at (707) 498-4362 or leave a tip anonymously at (707) 465-7353.
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RVT1229b
Busted up, melted down, resold as junk…
Thief is a thief no matter the location…
I’ll stop now before I get banned…
Correct, all items mentioned are bronze, brass or copper. Theft of brass shower drain covers is not totally unheard of.
Theft and destruction of this type is a childish cry for attention. Even negative attention is better than none from a child’s viewpoint. But suspecting it wasn’t children who did it.
The perpetrator(s) got an adrenalin rush. If caught, they will have years, perhaps decades, of a dull life with people controlling every minute of your boring life.
I suspect their “rush” is more from the drugs they bought when they sold the bronze for scrap.
It’s just shameful..
If this is happening when the parks have rangers patrolling imagine the result of the government shutdown and no rangers. We need a push to close and lock the parks if there is a shutdown.
Thank you for the news, Chuck! A common insult that was hurled back and forth among those in my peer-group as an undergraduate immediately comes to mind, “think MUCH?!” The implication was that the target of the comment was NOT thinking and behaving stupidly. Sadly, the derisive comment seems to fit the culprits all too well. Sadly, too, is the elevated expense of replacement and perhaps additional theft-prevention measures. Have a great week and safe travels!