Out in the world · 8 states · New England, the Southeast & Midwest
11 visits. A place to begin.
Choose a tree, plan a visit, and bring a little attention. Choose a forest walk, a garden outing, or a town or campus encounter. Each guide pairs practical visiting information with a simple practice.
Each guide lists when its visitor sources were checked. These are online source checks, not field inspections. Check the linked site guidance before travelling. Champion Map markers show approximate towns or counties; use each guide’s published location information to find the tree.
Visit 01 · Public park visit · Angel Oak Park · Johns Island, South Carolina
Arrive at 3688 Angel Oak Road on Johns Island, using the City of Charleston's directions link. Follow the signed entrance and designated parking. The city pages do not describe parking capacity or a measured parking-to-tree route.
Walking & terrain
Explore the park around the spreading live oak from permitted viewpoints. The city lists benches and picnic facilities, but does not document a step-free route to the tree. Check ground conditions on arrival and keep clear of roots and low branches.
Access, fees & seasons
Admission is free. Posted city hours are Monday–Saturday, 9 a.m.–5 p.m., and Sunday, 1–5 p.m.; last entry is 4:50 p.m. The park is closed on holidays. Food, drinks, blankets, props, and tripods are not allowed on or around the tree. Check the city pages for current notices before travelling.
Use Big Tree Park's entrance at 761 General Hutchison Parkway in Longwood; the county trail page spells the road Hutchinson. Use the park's designated parking and signs for the trees. The county lists restrooms, a water fountain, picnic facilities, and a playground at this trailhead.
Walking & terrain
Follow the park's signed nature walk and boardwalk through the hammock to Lady Liberty. The county does not publish a measured parking-to-tree distance in the reviewed visitor pages. Its 2020 accessibility report lists accessible parking and a sidewalk at the playground; it does not establish the current condition of the entire route to the tree. Confirm the approach and any boardwalk closures with park staff.
Access, fees & seasons
The county's parks brochure lists Big Tree Park and Trailhead as open 8 a.m. to sunset. A separate entry fee is not stated in the reviewed county information. Check current park notices before travelling. Lady Liberty is the living bald cypress described by Seminole County Tourism; the original Senator tree was lost to fire in 2012.
Enter The Morton Arboretum at 4100 Illinois Route 53, Lisle. After admission, use the grounds map and one-way driving route to East Side parking lot P-8 for the Oak Collection. The Arboretum identifies mature bur oaks here; use tree labels or ask staff to help identify a suitable tree. This guide explores a collection, rather than a single designated champion.
Walking & terrain
The Oak Collection extends across 12 acres. Choose a walk suited to your time and mobility from P-8; no single parking-to-tree distance applies. Trails beyond the central visitor area are generally wood-chipped. Ask staff about the day's route conditions and accessibility instead of assuming the collection has a paved final approach.
Access, fees & seasons
The collection is included with paid Arboretum admission, and admission includes parking. Buy online in advance or at the gatehouse; check current ticket prices for your date. General grounds hours are daily, 9 a.m. to sunset, with last entry one hour before sunset. Special holiday and weather arrangements may differ; consult the hours page.
Find the park on Route 185 (Hartford Road), below the bridge on the eastern bank of the Farmington River. The Connecticut register places the tree in this small park. Use the signed park entrance and any designated parking; the facility page does not describe parking capacity.
Walking & terrain
The sources do not publish a measured parking-to-tree distance or a step-free route. This is a riverside park; choose your route according to conditions and keep back from the riverbank.
Access, fees & seasons
Simsbury Parks lists the park as open. Consult its facility page for current information before setting out; park opening hours are not specified there. No admission fee is stated on the facility page; follow posted rules.
Vermont places this tree on the south side of University Green and publishes public tree coordinates in its record. Open the champion record below for that location link.
Walking & terrain
Use campus paths to reach the south side of University Green. Distance depends on your parking place; a measured step-free route to the tree is not supplied by the register. Snow or wet grass may affect your viewpoint.
Access, fees & seasons
Vermont’s record explicitly lists public access. If driving, use designated visitor parking, such as the College Street Visitor Lot, and follow the posted payment and time limits. No separate tree-entry fee is listed; parking charges apply as posted. Follow campus notices during events or winter weather.
DCR’s May 2026 register places this tree on the south side of College Hall, at 10 Elm Street. Use Smith’s campus directions and parking map to plan your arrival.
Walking & terrain
Use Smith’s campus map to plan a route to College Hall from your chosen parking place. A measured route to this tree is not published; the campus map includes accessibility information.
Access, fees & seasons
Smith’s outdoor arboretum and gardens are free and open daily, year-round. Visitor parking includes the West Street garage; consult the visitor page for options. Groups of ten or more should arrange their visit with the garden.
Use the signed Big Pines pull-off on the south side of Route 113A (Chinook Trail), about 2.8 miles west of its junction with Route 113 in Tamworth village. UNH describes the champion pine beside the uphill section of the Betty Steele Trail after the bridge. Download the Conservation Commission’s trail map before setting out; the Champion Map’s town marker is not the trailhead.
Walking & terrain
UNH describes a loop of a little over one mile, crossing the Swift River gorge on a bridge with railings and climbing uphill past the pine. This is a woodland hike. The separate one-third-mile Easy Walker Nature Trail begins near parking, but does not provide the same route to the champion pine. Distance is from UNH’s 2022 guide; follow current trail signs.
Access, fees & seasons
The Conservation Commission manages these trails for pedestrian recreation. The reviewed trail information does not specify an entry fee or fixed opening hours. Check current notices and weather before travelling; snow, ice, or wet conditions can change the walk. The Great Hill tower is an optional, separate uphill extension.
Vermont’s public-access record locates this elm north of Pepin Gym on South Main Street. Middlebury recommends visitor spaces in Q Lot at the Mahaney Arts Center. Use the college campus map for the walk to Pepin Gym and the champion record’s published tree-position link for the final location.
Walking & terrain
A campus walk whose length depends on your parking space and route. No measured parking-to-tree distance or verified step-free final approach is published in the tree record. Use the campus map’s accessible-route and parking information, and stay on established paths where possible.
Access, fees & seasons
The Vermont register explicitly lists public access to the tree. Middlebury says weekday visitors parking Monday–Friday, 8 a.m.–5 p.m., should display a college parking permit; obtain a temporary permit through its visitor-parking page. No separate tree admission fee is listed. Observe campus notices, posted parking restrictions, and event arrangements.
Arrive at 101 Ferry Road (Route 114), Bristol. Check in at the Welcome Center next to the parking lot. Ask for the original giant sequoia planted in 1911 near the Enclosed Garden and Summerhouse, and use Blithewold’s grounds map to choose your route.
Walking & terrain
A garden walk; an exact parking-to-tree distance is not published in the reviewed information. The grounds map identifies path materials, benches, and restrooms. Ask the Welcome Center about a route suited to your mobility and the day’s ground conditions.
Access, fees & seasons
General admission is required for the grounds and is purchased at the Welcome Center. As checked October 7, 2026, adult admission is $22; concessions and reciprocal memberships are listed by Blithewold. Through October 25, grounds hours are Tuesday–Saturday 10 a.m.–4 p.m. and Sunday 10 a.m.–3 p.m.; Mondays are closed. Later-season hours differ. Check both admission and hours pages for your date.
DCR places the Buttonball Tree on North Main Street in Sunderland. The town’s historical brochure and UMass describe it beside the sidewalk. Plan a view from the public sidewalk. A dedicated visitor parking area is not confirmed by these sources: use only legal, signed public parking and check local restrictions before leaving your vehicle.
Walking & terrain
The walking distance depends on where you can legally park. The published sources do not establish a continuous step-free route or current sidewalk condition. Stay clear of traffic and follow any temporary pedestrian diversions.
Access, fees & seasons
This guide is for public-sidewalk viewing, with no ticketed entry described in the sources. It does not establish permission to enter the adjoining yard. Respect fences, root-protection areas, and current signs. The historical brochure dates to 2008 and UMass’s preservation account discusses earlier road works; neither provides live access conditions.
Use the shared Billings Farm & Museum visitor parking at 69 Old River Road, following NPS arrival signs. Vermont places the yellowwood on the road to the national park visitor center and publishes its public tree coordinates. Use the official park map and the champion record’s tree-position link to identify it; the town marker is only approximate.
Walking & terrain
Follow the park’s signed pedestrian approach from the shared parking area toward the visitor center. NPS provides maps and accessibility guidance, but the tree record gives no measured parking-to-tree distance or verified step-free final approach. Check the route with park staff if access details matter for your visit.
Access, fees & seasons
Vermont explicitly lists public access. NPS lists the grounds and trails as open during daylight throughout the year, with no entrance fee; guided tours and the separate Billings Farm & Museum may have charges. Building schedules differ from outdoor access. Check NPS conditions before travel, particularly during winter.