Running in the redwoods

We arrived at the Redwood Forest Institute around dusk Friday, August 8, 12 miles into the woods off California 20 between Fort Bragg and Willits. My fiancée Susan and I and our friends Cyd and Paul Keser and their son Ethan would spend the weekend in the Garden Cottage, one of three guest houses run by Charles Bello, founder of the Institute. 


The outside of the cottage is unimpressive. And after the bumpy, winding drive from the highway, past half a dozen other homesteads, those of us versed in the horror film genre were certain Charles or others might show up wielding a chainsaw to greet and eat.

Of course that wasn’t the case at all. Charles is the most amazing man, and a charming soul whose outlook is infectious. As he noted, though, most of us, however moved and inspired by his story, will settle for living vicariously through him. 


Charles, an architect and engineer (UC-San Luis Obispo), is 82 and living his dream. He and his late wife bought 400 acres of California redwood forest in 1968 for $75,000. They raised their three children here and built everything around us — road (some was old logging road), trail, four homes, a workshop, a sawmill and an art gallery for Charles’s redwood sculptures. 

While rustic inside, and outwardly unappealing, the cottage is a treat. It was the first home Charles and Vanna built when they pioneered this land. Family helped erect the structure and completed it — barn-raising style — in a week. Later, a three-bedroom house with three decks (the Grove House) was built to accommodate the growing Bello family.

Ironically, everything is built from redwood. It is everywhere. And yet, Charles has dedicated his life to protecting the towering trees. Hundreds are tagged, registered and protected in perpetuity — for the couple thousand years of their natural lifetime. His sculptures and the coffee tables he has discovered in the stumps of redwoods cut by loggers are made from scrap — waste with a story to tell, a history lesson for the living room.

“Redwoods are a phenomenal tree,” he said, explaining how the colossi are born of seed that is but a speck on your fingernail.

After the children left, Charles built the Glass House, an amazing, curved, open space of wood and glass and stone. Of his retirement home he said, “You’re living in a piece of art. … We built this for $8,500.”

Charles’s inspiration is clear. The influence of the natural world on his work is apparent. The flow and form of the Glass House, the sculptures that emerge from within the wood he has harvested are reflective of the trees and rocks that cover the northern California terrain. 


“The magic words were, ‘wouldn’t it be nice.’ ‘Wouldn’t it be nice’ created a lifetime of work from a 20-minute walk,” he recalled of his woodland wanderings with Vanna.

The lack of privacy in the Glass House led him to build a neighboring guest house, which, with the passing of Vanna, is where Charles now lives. He creates art, saves trees and shares his dream.

“There are people who are wondering what they’re going to have for lunch tomorrow, and I’m doing this,” Charles said of his mission to ensure a legacy so much larger than himself or his art. 

Charles led us on a tour of the homes Saturday morning (minus the Grove House, which only Susan visited later on her own) and we finished our breakfast before taking a hike to the King’s Hole for a swim. Cyd stayed behind to relax at the cottage and enjoy a shower in the outdoor shower house, with water heated by solar energy.

After our icy dip, we walked in search of the Mountain Spring Trail. We somehow missed it on our first pass, though the error bestowed the gift of a lovely hike along the road. As we backtracked toward the cottage, we spotted the sign and split, Suze and I taking the Mountain Spring Trail and Paul and Ethan returning to our weekend abode. 

The trail climbed ever upward and we began to wonder if we would reach the spring. Had we missed another sign? Eventually we came upon a concrete culvert with a weathered wooden box in the ground in front of it. Having seen such arrangements before, I told Suze this could be the spring — rather than the burbling gush of water we expected. Unsure, however, we continued onward. We didn’t want to miss it.

We wound around the mountain higher and then began our descent. Again we considered returning along the path we had trod, but decided to venture ahead. It’s a good thing: The trail found the floor and we exited onto the road by King’s Hole. We later confirmed with Charles that the culvert was the spring in question. What an enjoyable afternoon with my beloved.

Suze decided it was time for a shower. I decided it was time for a run. I grabbed a pair of earbuds for my phone and headed back the way we’d gone earlier, across the foot bridge to the road to King’s Hole. I ran shirtless for the first time, protected from the sun by the reigning redwoods. It was invigorating and wonderful. I’ve not run in such a beautiful setting before. The paved trail at Lake Storey back home doesn’t compare. Truly I was surrounded by God’s splendor.

“You know, it’s been an exciting life,” Charles said.

I’m glad we received the opportunity to be a part of it.

Learn more about Charles Bello and the Redwood Forest Institute at savetrees.org.

Today’s Stats (Saturday, Aug. 9, 2014)
Temp: Unknown — comfortable
Distance: 3.5-4 miles (guesstimate based on elapsed time of 40:37 and typical pace of 10-11 minutes per mile)
Treasure: Intangible, yet priceless.

iPhone Playlist (Shuffle)
Everything I Want - Jace Everett 3:33
Tik Tok - Ke$ha 3:19
Something - Jim Sturgess 2:59
Revolution - Jim Sturgess 2:17
Wish You Were Here - Avril Lavigne 3:45
I Can See It In Your Eyes - Men at Work 3:32
4 Real - Avril Lavigne 3:28
Us and Them (Live at the Empire) - Pink Floyd 8:09
Catch My Disease - Ben Lee 4:13
Geraldine - The Avett Brothers 1:37
Black & White People - Matchbox Twenty 3:45