Redwood National & State Parks are located along the Pacific Coast in Northern California. Instead of one large park, you'll find a series of parks. These include Prairie Creek Redwoods State Park, Del Norte Coast Redwoods State Park, Jedediah Smith Redwoods State Park - all of which were established in the 1920s, and Redwood National Park which was established in 1968.
This mosaic of parks totals about 132,000 acres of land and is visited by approximately 420,000 people a year. The busiest month to visit is July and quietest is December. The parks are open all year and are beautiful in all seasons. There is no admission fee, although the state parks do have an overnight vehicle fee and an $8 per day-use fee in certain areas.
Your first stop, no matter from which direction you are coming, should be at a Visitor Center to pick up a map and chat with the rangers and get their recommendations. This is a good rule of thumb to follow when on the road. Road and trail conditions are constantly changing and it's always best to get the inside scoop before you head out on your adventure.
Now that you have the lay of the land, let's chat about five tips to enhance your Redwood Experience:
The Redwoods - The big draw here is obviously the majestic redwoods themselves. As a quick aside, here's a point of differentiation to make you a master arborist: People often commingle redwood trees and giant sequoia trees. Though they are both naturally grown only in California, they are very different. Giant Sequoias only grow in the California Sierra Nevadas - They can reach 280 (+/-) feet tall and forty (+/-) feet in diameter making them the largest living thing on Earth. Coastal Redwoods, however, are the tallest trees on Earth and can soar as high as 380 (+/-) feet and twenty (+/-) feet in diameter.
As far as where to see them, any of the parks have outstanding groves of redwoods and trails that will take you back into the forest. Here are two of our favorites:
- The Simpson-Reed Grove in Jedediah Smith Redwoods Park - an easy one-mile loop trail from the parking lot off of US 199, this was one of our favorite place in the parks. The beautiful canopy of the towering 1000 year old trees and the lush ground cover that abounds in the area really transports you back to a prehistoric time where you find yourself looking over your shoulder for dinosaurs.
Others Trees of Note:
- Near the Prairie Creek Visitor Center is the Big Tree - estimated to be over 1500 years old.
Lodging - Crescent City is the largest city in the area, and you'll be able to find many lodging choices here. If you are looking to find a place that is a bit more off the beaten path where you can get immersed in the area then we have the perfect place for you. The Requa Inn, located in Klamath which is just north of Prairie Creek Redwoods Park, is a small, understated Arts and Crafts inn that has been around for more than 100 years. It was built back when Requa was a bustling fishing center in the late 1800's. There are fifteen beautifully decorated rooms here and they offer a delicious breakfast along with dinner service on selected evenings during the busier seasons. Check their website for the most current info. This is centrally located which makes it convenient to all points of interest on your (and this) list!
Klamath River Overlook - Not too far from the Requa Inn is the Klamath Overlook. Here, you will see the mouth of the Klamath River as it ends its 263 mile journey from the headwaters in Upper Klamath Lake in Oregon. It is a beautiful vista point with a view across the parks and the Pacific Ocean.
During migration season you may even catch a gray whale, and if you are a bird watcher this is a prime location to catch a sighting of murres, cormorants, and pigeon guillemots. The quarter-mile hike down to the lower overlook offers a more dramatic look at the surroundings and, if you are up to it, is well worth the extra time.
Fern Canyon - This should definitely be on your list of things to see because of its unique qualities. The canyon is located in the Prairie Creek area, south of the Klamath River Overlook. The trailhead and parking are off Davidson Road but the Canyon can also be accessed via several other trails in the area. A portion of the road is unpaved and you will cross creeks depending upon the weather conditions, so make sure your vehicle is good to go. Check the park map that you picked up at the Visitor Center for more detail.
This is an easy hike, although when you get to Fern Canyon you will be walking up a wet and uneven creek bed where you may have to hop over a few fallen trees. There is a path that leads you up so that you can look down into the canyon. It has a small elevation gain, but the trails are well-maintained and marked. The canyon itself is lined with an amazing blanket of ferns. Some have ancestry dating back over 325 million years. Perhaps that accounts for the fact that a scene from Stephen Spielberg's The Lost World: Jurassic Park was filmed here. The area will look different with each trip back as the winter storms and subsequent torrents of water are constantly changing the landscape.
NOTE - Due to a landslide in this area in late November 2015, the main road into the area has been closed. There are trails that will get you down to the canyon but they are more strenuous. Be sure to check with park officials to get the latest updates and information.
Roosevelt Elk - While Olympic National Park In Washington is home to the largest unmanaged herd of Roosevelt Elk in the Pacific Northwest they are once again a prominent inhabitant of the Redwood Parks as well. By 1925 the number of elk had dropped to just fifteen within the area located in Prairie Creek Redwoods State Park. Through conservation efforts they total over one thousand today. They are entertaining to watch and a certain crowd pleaser. Although you should be keeping your eyes open at all times, the best places to view the herds are in Prairie Creek:
- Elk Prairie
- Davidson Road
- Gold Bluffs Beach
We've taken you to the trees, scenic overlooks, lush canyons, and wildlife viewing so you should have a good overview of the area now. I personally cannot get enough of quiet hikes in the redwood forests! As mentioned earlier, there are a number of other places to see the redwoods in California such as Grizzly Creek Redwoods State Park, where you can see the Star Wars tree used in the filming of Return of the Jedi as the moon of Endor (you know, where Luke and Leia were being chased by stormtroopers on landspeeders), Humboldt Redwoods State Park, Avenue of the Giants, Muir Woods near San Francisco and down as far south as Big Sur.
As you can see, there are many options and much to do here in the Golden State. At the end of the day it's important to just get up, get out, and Find Your Park!
Since you are definitely road-tripping, don't miss other National Park & Monuments in the area:
Oregon Caves National Monument & Preserve - 92 miles from Klamath CA
Crater Lake National Park - 184 miles from Klamath CA
John Day Fossil Beds National Monument - 418 miles from Klamath, CA
Lava Beds National Monument - 242 miles from Klamath CA
Lassen National Park - 239 miles from Klamath CA
Be forever Wandering But Not Lost. Want more National Park tips? Go to www.wanderingbutnotlost.com and Discover Your Path! Follow our daily posts on Instagram at
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