Top 5 Trees Worth a Detour Just to Stand Underneath

Trees so old, huge or strange that standing under one makes your problems feel like a rounding error.

1. 1

   General Sherman — Sequoia National Park, California

   By volume it's the largest living tree on Earth, and no photo prepares you for looking up and not finding the top.

2. 2

   Árbol del Tule — Santa María del Tule, Oaxaca

   Its trunk is so wide it takes a crowd holding hands to circle it, and locals will happily point out the animals they see in the bark.

3. 3

   Angel Oak — Johns Island, South Carolina

   Its limbs sprawl sideways along the ground like it got bored of growing up, and the shade it throws covers more ground than most houses.

4. 4

   Pando — Fishlake National Forest, Utah

   It looks like an ordinary aspen grove until you learn it's one organism, and after that the whole hillside feels like it's watching you.

5. 5

   Major Oak — Sherwood Forest, England

   It needs props to hold up its limbs these days, but standing where Robin Hood supposedly hid out still beats most castle tours.