Dr Sky Lan 藍永翔 makes her way through the flourishing canopy ecosystem.

During the project, Dr Sky Lan 藍永翔 conducted a lichen survey. Old growth trees like this one, simply due to the length of time they have existed, provide habitat to an extraordinary quantity of lichen species.

Nearly very patch of space in the mid canopy of this tree is occupied by one organism or another. Here, a massive lichen covers the branch completely.

Dr Sky Lan 藍永翔 measures the circumference of a branch. To the left is a patch of moss where this tree’s crown has snapped off and started to regrow.

Inhabiting the cavity left from when the crown snapped, this red tree vole may have been here just moments before we arrived. Fresh leaves indicate the nest is currently being used. 

ISA certified arborist James Luce ventures out onto the thinest of branches to investigate the epiphytes. Each old growth tree is an ecosystem unto itself, with a comparable number and diversity of plant and animal species to the forest floor.

Mikolaj Miazio and Elena Lauterbach take a rest on what has became known as ‘Angel’s Landing’. A major feature of the trunk it is where a large branch broke off. Note the deeply fissured bark on this tree.

The bark at the very base of the tree tells a story of survival. The thick and protective bark bears the signs of fire damage.

While younger trees with thinner bark might not have survived a fire, this old growth tree has been able to fend off the flames, as trees develop thicker bark over time.

While the canopy of these trees is bathed in sunlight and warmth, the forest floor is quite different. In the deep shade only the hardiest of ferns can be found. 

Tree Climbers describe the first ascent of a wild old growth tree as pioneering. No other person has ever gone where they have gone or seen what they have seen. Mikolaj Miazio takes in the view at the end of a long day pioneering this giant tree.

Elena Lauterbach searches one last curious structure on an outer branch before calling it a day. The flat spreading nature of Douglas fir branches make for relatively easy exploration.

The crown of one tree can spread for many dozens of feet either side of the main trunk making for a virtual playground for the climber and red tree vole alike.

The thick undergrowth of ferns and salmonberry barely allowed the team to move let alone set up a place for gear.

A view from the top of the mountains back down into the deep valleys of the Siuslaw National Forest.

Goat Marsh is a special place. The understory lacks the usual shrubs and small trees and instead is carpeted with a delicate layer of herbs. 

Dr Sky Lan uses a tape measure to find the height of this giant tree. The tree is so tall that she needed to measure it in two sections, as the tape was not long enough. 

One of the most remarkable things about this tree was its perfectly straight trunk, which seemed to continue on for ever.

Noble fir requires cool and moist conditions to grow. Therefore, it can often be found in mid- to high- elevations. 

Forest ecologist Andrew Bluhm discovers the forest from a different perspective. Notice the interesting shape of this branch. 

This branch is covered in a delicate layer of lichens. These lichens gather moisture from the air by filtering fog.

Noble fir have an interesting light blue colour to their new growth

Lichens are a curious organism. They are not plants, but a symbiotic relationship between a fungi and algae. 

During the winter, these forests receive a lot of rainfall

One day when we were climbing the trees it was so windy that our tree was swaying quite considerably. It’s a very strange sensation!

Here Dr Sky Lan investigates the number of different lichens growing on the tree’s trunk

The trunks of these trees were so long that it was quite a surreal feeling to climb them. 

This photo illustrates how little light reaches the forest floor, making it a vastly different environment than the canopy

All of our team agreed that Goat’s Marsh was one of the most magical forests we had ever visited. 

Sitka spruce occurs close to the coast in areas of high mist and rainfall

As you can see from these photos, huge gardens of ferns, moss and lichens grow on the branches

These arboreal plants are called epiphytes and they have no connection to the ground and rely on water from mist and rainfall.

Some of these epiphyte clumps can grow so big, and create habitat for animals such as birds and insects. 

Researcher who study epiphytes need to climb trees in order to access the plants

Many species of epiphytes can grow together

Dr Jen Sanger explores the canopy in search of interesting epiphytes. 

This interesting fern has many spores on the underside of its leaf

One of the best things about tree climbing is being able to look at the forest from a different view. 

Our team spent hours exploring the little known world of the canopy. 

Many different epiphytes can co-exist o not he same branch, creating beautiful patchwork of colour

Here we can see many different types of plants: lichens, mosses and ferns

The ferns and mosses in this forest add a sense of magic to the place. 

These forests are an extremely peaceful place. 

This was by far the most difficult site and after a few weeks our team was simply exhausted. 

In such a wet forest it was difficult to keep everything dry. 

It rains a lot in these coastal areas and at times the forests are blanketed in a thick mist. 

The tree was located at the bottom of a steep slope. Our team had to navigate their way up and down this slope every day. 

Many of the large trees had complex formations