SLOW SALLY & CREW

By the time we reached northern California, months of life on the road were taking their toll and we were exhausted. Despite our best efforts, we were falling behind on our travel itinerary: too many epic sights, not enough time. As travel fatigue set in, our planning became increasingly sloppy and winging it became our modus operandi. We often get lucky when we wing it and experience the joy of unplanned awesomeness, but our luck ran out in the Redwoods and the lack of planning bit us in the backside… on several occasions.

In this post, we share our biggest mistakes in visiting the California Redwoods, but also some of the things we got right. Learn from us in planning your own adventure in this majestic area.

Our Mistakes

Mistake #1: Speeding Through the Avenue of the Giants

The Avenue of the Giants has been coined the most scenic drive among the redwoods. The 31-mile scenic by-way, just off Highway 101, is lined by titan trees and winds through little hamlets, campgrounds and picnic areas. It’s exactly our kind of thing.

We spent a morning exploring the famous Glass Beach in Fort Bragg and were in a rush to get to Eureka, our next destination. We had done zero Redwoods research at that point and were unaware that our route would take us right past the famous Avenue of the Giants.

As we sped along Highway 101, I was delightfully surprised to see massive redwood trees. “Wow!” I thought to myself, “very impressive for random roadside trees”. I was completely oblivious to the fact that we were passing by (unfortunately not through) one of the finest forest drives in the world. Oops… next time I guess?!

Mistake #2: Misunderstanding the Redwoods National & State Parks

In a very brief Google search, I read that the Redwood National Park was renowned for the world’s tallest trees. Perfect! That’s what we had come for. Research complete.

I had missed one detail. What the website specifically stated was that the tallest trees are in the “Redwood National & State Parks”. It turns out that the Redwoods National Park and 3 surrounding State Parks are jointly managed and essentially function as 1 large, dispersed park system. And in a reversal of roles, the State Parks in the system are older and more impressive than the National Park. Sometimes details are important!

This missed detail caused a lot of confusion, leading to mistake #3…

Mistake #3: Ignoring the State Parks

Based on our miniscule research efforts, we headed straight for the National Park, which we assumed would be the crown jewel of the area. The best and largest concentrations of redwood trees would surely be there. Right? Besides, dogs aren’t allowed on the trails in California State Parks, so there would be no advantage to visiting a State Park. Right?! Fair assumptions… but no.

Jebediah Smith, Del Norte, and Prairie Creek Redwoods State Parks were created in the 1920s and are far older than the National Park. They also protect some of the finest remaining examples of the coastal redwoods. By the time we realized this, there wasn’t a single campsite available in any of the State Parks and we were running out of time to explore the area.

Mistake #4: Not Allocating Enough Time For the Redwoods

When we reached the Redwoods, we were behind schedule and had little time to spare. We had only 3 days to spend in the area, including our visit to the city of Eureka, and it wasn’t enough. The Redwoods region is sprawling and there’s so much to see and do. If we’d had more time and weren’t so travel weary, we would have had the flexibility and motivation to pivot, make plans on the fly, and adjust our itinerary as required. For example, we were only 30-40 miles past the Avenue of the Giants when we visited Eureka. Had we been rich in time, we could have backtracked and spent a day exploring the scenic by-way. In hindsight, we needed at least 5 days in the area.

What We Got Right

Our experience in the Redwoods wasn’t all mistakes and fails. We lucked into getting some things right and we’re sharing those with you below.

Visiting Nearby Eureka

Despite being the biggest city between San Francisco and Portland, Eureka is relatively small. It’s famous for its Victorian architecture and arts scene, two things that are right up our alley. After many days of hiking along rugged, windblown shorelines, we were ready for some time in the city. The architecture was as colourful and ornate as we hoped. Parking downtown was cheap and convenient. The bagels sandwiches at Los Bagels were to die for and helped fuel our day of urban exploring. We especially appreciated that they had dog-friendly, outdoor seating. Beautiful colourful murals abound in the city, which won us over almost immediately.

I’d be remiss not to mention that we were shocked by the extent of homelessness in Eureka, given that it’s a relatively small city. Many of the public spaces are being occupied as temporary homes and it’s clearly an issue that the city is grappling with. As tourists, we did at times feel like we were intruding on peoples homes by attempting to visit some of those public spaces. One homeless man took time to chat with us and share some great recommendations for the best things to see in a day, which we really appreciated.

Hiking the Tall Trees Grove

It’s rare that we book anything in advance, but we had our hearts set on hiking the Tall Trees Grove trail in the Redwoods National Park. It was featured in National Geographic in 1963, at which time the grove was home to Libby – the tallest tree in the world. Unfortunately, her top died back in 1994 and she dropped from #1 to #34… talk about falling off your pedestal! However, the grove still has many redwoods over 350 feet tall and the experience blew our minds.

You might be wondering, how we hiked the trail with Walter in tow. We didn’t! As usually, we took turns hiking the trail while the other person sat in the van with Walter. Oh, the sacrifices we make for our furry friend.

Boondocking at DeMartin Beach

DeMartin Beach, just north of Redwoods National Park, was without a doubt our most scenic boondocking spot on the California coast. We stumbled upon it late in the day after our Tall Trees Grove hike and couldn’t have wished for a better spot. The sunset was majestic and we woke to the sound of waves lapping at the beach. We couldn’t believe our luck because over the past few years, overnight parking has been banned in the majority of ocean front parking lots.

We’d love to recommend that you follow in our footsteps and spend a night at this awesome spot but unfortunately, according to iOverlander, overnight parking is now prohibited (as of October 2024). Another great coastal boondocking spot bites the dust 😦

Camping At Florence Keller County Park

It was a lovely Saturday in April when we arrived in the northern part of the Redwoods and campsites in the State Parks were fully booked. We were scrambling to find a campground when we discovered Florence Keller County Park. It was perfect for us: first come, first serve camping, nestled in a young Redwood grove for $20/night. iOverlander to the rescue once again! The amenities left a lot to be desired but after so many nights of boondocking, we were grateful for a real campsite with privacy, a picnic table, and plenty of little dog-friendly trails.

Stay Tuned

In our next post, we cross into Oregon and discover one of the best places you’ve never heard of.