A giant ponderosa pine in the Pacific Northwest has died

One of the oldest and tallest ponderosa pines in the Pacific Northwest has died with little fanfare after hundreds of years.
The Columbian says the so-called “Big Tree” was a well-known attraction for tourists driving through the Columbia River Gorge.
The 213-foot-tall ponderosa near Trout Lake in the Gifford Pinchot National Forest in southwest Washington died last year but its demise was not made public.
The Big Tree contained about 22,000 board feet of lumber – enough w