Getting back to nature can be like going back in time, especially if you wander through one of these woodlands—all amongst the oldest on Earth.
Some are old growth, meaning they haven’t been molested much by people, while others are forests that have been regenerating on the same land for time periods that make centuries look like seconds.
And a few, like the Bristlecone Pine Forest in California, are made up of some of the oldest existing living life forms.
Lace up your hiking boots, grab your pack, and prepare to enter some of the most ancient places on our planet.
The Tarkine, Australia
You can pull freshwater crayfish the size of lobsters out of the rivers in Tasmania's Tarkine forest. That's no exaggeration—the island's isolated Tarkine woodland is a glimpse back to life on Earth 300 million years ago.
It is the second largest swatch of temperate rainforest in the world and home to 3,000-year-old Huon Pines, the second oldest living trees in the world.
Visit today because less than five percent of the trees are protected and the forest is threatened by mining and logging. It's breathtakingly beautiful—a blanket of myrtle, blackwood, sassafras, and eucalyptus trees covering, ferny hills, waterfalls and gullies. Bunk at Bonorong's Tarkine Trails' Tiger Ridge, a hike-in only glamping getaway, little more than half-a-mile into the wilderness.
They lead day hikes through the most beautiful parts of the forest, and you're almost assured to see signs of the Tasmanian Devil—they work with the Tassie government to monitor these elusive and endangered critters.
Otherwise, there are a cluster of rustic towns surrounding the woods to call home—no matter which you pick, spend some time asking about the local Tarkine aboriginals, whose culture, like the forest, is in danger of disappearing.
The Aracuaria Forest, Chile
The Aracuraria tree, a Chilean pine which can live to be 1000 years old, is thought to have evolved its peculiar upside-down paintbrush shape to ward off plant-eating dinosaurs 180 million years ago.
Chile's since given these Jurassic-era beanstalks National Monument status. The forest is most gorgeous in central Chile's Conguillio National Park and Tolhuacaca National Park, with some astounding mountain backdrops. But you'll also see these trees if you do the Villaricca Volcano summit, the most popular day hike in the area.
You can book beforehand with Amity Tours orSummit Chile, but if you know some Spanish you can also pick up a guide in Pucón.
Head there between November and December and you'll catch the coning season, which yields pineapple-shaped conifers that produce seeds the indigenous Penuenche use in local dishes.
Yakushima Forest, Japan
The moss-covered stones and nappy roots of Yakusugi trees—Japanese Cedar—have been steeping in these constantly wet woods for around 7,000 years.
This small island's foliage was so beautiful to 17th Century Edo-era royalty, they cultivated lush gardens of it on the mainland. But the wide-trunked trees grow naturally all over Yakushima. Seeing this UNESCO World Heritage site is fairly straight forward—land at Yakushima Airport and either rent a car or take the bus that circumnavigates the mountainous island.
There are hotels along the northern and southern coasts. Shiratani-Unsuiky Park has the most easily accessed iconic spots, including the vision that inspired the backdrop of eco-animé classic Princess Mononoke.
If you hike the extended trails in the park, you can sleep in one of six semi-permanent shelters set up for campers. Look for the Takatsuka Hut, designed out of cardboard tubes by famed green-architect Shingeru Ban. May and October are the driest times to go, but you should still pack for the rain.
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