Travel Trees, also known as the Trees of Merlin or the Trees of Magic, are characters and locations in Princess Gwenevere and the Jewel Riders, introduced in the pilot episode "Jewel Quest, Part I". Travel Trees were voiced by the late Bob Kaliban and the late Peter Fernandez (Grandfather Travel Tree). They are the titular characters of the episode "Travel Trees Can't Dance".
They are sentient magical trees that can speak and have the ability to open a door into the realm of wild magic. Merlin has placed them in each of the seven regions of the kingdom of Avalon, usually grouped in rings of four, creating portals to enter the invisible network of mild magic for anyone who controls a power jewel and is deemed worthy.
The special ring at the Enchanted Gardens outside the Crystal Palace
Travel rings[]
Travel Trees are able to talk and are grown by Merlin in a special garden near his house. Merlin had spent considerable time wandering the lands of the kingdom and carefully placing rings of four trees in key spots to provide more focused, concentrated paths through the Wild Magic for a less risky way to travel through it. Whoever wields an Enchanted Jewel can ask permission from these mighty trees to ride the rivers of wild magic, transporting humans and animals to appear inside Travel Tree ring elsewhere in Avalon. Travel Trees look different depending on their location. They do not grow near the Bordermists and the very special Grandfather Travel Tree is alone.
To use a ring, one must ask politely. Travel Trees hate impoliteness or rudeness. Standing in the center of a ring of Travel Trees with an Enchanted Jewel raised, one must ask, “By the power of the (stone), I ask you, mighty Travel Tree, please take me to [destination].” If the trees are feeling friendly, they will send the person to the destination. The Trees briefly crystallize when activated. Faeries of the Faeryland can activate Travel Trees too.
Lady Kale force-opens a wild magic portal vortex in a storyboard sketch
But now, since the evil Lady Kale broke the magic bond of Merlin's Jewel Box, Travel Trees have not been feeling very well. The outbreaks of wild magic are giving the trees massive heartburn. On top of that, Kale uses her Dark Stone to open Travel Tree portals whenever she feels like it, without even asking. Such rudeness is making Travel Trees sick, and they respond to Kale with a courteous mockery, sending her to wrong destinations to obstruct her. But as Travel Trees weaken, riding the wild magic becomes more and more dangerous.
- "Song of the Rainbow": “Trees of magic, field and wood, if we may and if we could travel with you, take us all, if you please, to Rainbow Falls.”
- "Revenge of the Dark Stone": “Trees of Merlin, hear our call: help us, great trees — catch our fall! Great trees of magic, trees of wood, we need your help, please, trees of good! Wherever we journey, wherever we roam, oh, great trees of Merlin, bring us home!”
- "Morgana": “Trees of magic and wood so grand, gathered here as friends we stand. Share with us your most precious gift as we start our journey, sure and swift. For times to come and times that have gone, let’s ride the Wild Magic for Avalon!”
Grandfather Tree[]
The Grandfather Travel Tree is an ancient and very special Travel Tree, hidden in a mystical clearing within the Forests of Arden, that opens a portal leading to the Heart of Avalon. It is introduced in "The Fortune Jewel" and featured in the episode "Lady of the Lake".
The Grandfather Tree actually has a "face" and could only be called on by Merlin. It gets nearly destroyed by Lady Kale when it denies her the passage as "the evil cannot enter the Heart of Avalon", and so she uses the Dark Stone to violently force open the entry and go inside with Morgana, after which the tree explodes. However, it is then restored to life by the Jewel Riders and the Pack thanks to the combined power of their Enchanted Jewels and the help of all other trees of Arden, allowing the Jewel Riders to go after Kale and Morgana for the final battle.
Behind the scenes[]
The concepts of Travel Trees (only hinted at with crystalline forest affected by the magic) and riding the Wild Magic did not exist in the Enchanted Camelot scripts. They were translated as Magic Trees (arbres magiques) in French, Merlin's Trees (Drzewa Merlina) in Polish, and Guide-Trees (еревья-проводники) in Russian.
See also[]
- Gliders and Kit, creatures that can open wild magic portals anywhere
- "Travel Trees Can't Dance" (season one episode)
- Wishing Tree
| Avalon |
|---|
| Avalon (Merlin, royal family) Magic (Crown Jewels, Enchanted Jewels, Jewel Riders, Travel Trees)   Geography |
| Characters |
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| List of characters List of episodic characters Main characters |
| Magic |
|---|
  Magic, Wild Magic, Jewel Quest, Jewel Armor |
