Redwoods National & State Parks
Redwoods National Park is comprised of California State Parks. We ventured through them one autumn season and are here to tell you about it.
Our adventure kicked off at Jedediah Smith State Park near Crescent City. We had an awesome breakfast at Hiouchi Cafe before heading to the nearby visitor center. The portions were large and the sausage was local. We highly recommend stopping here for a meal if you visit.
Our next stop was at the Stout Memorial Grove. This was a short half-mile trail, but the majesty was mighty. We traversed through the old-growth Redwoods to the sound of the nearby Smith River. This is one of the park’s more popular trails, and we understand why – it is an easily accessible way to experience the park’s beauty.
We also hiked the Grove of Titans Trail. This is a 1.5-mile trail that is largely on an elevated boardwalk to protect the forest floor and includes lots of steps. We were so pleased to spot one of the famous banana slugs on this trail!
The drive through Jedediah Smith felt very peaceful and prehistoric.
We made our way down the coast and through the Avenue of Giants, a 31-mile drive through the Humbolt Redwoods State Park. We enjoyed stopping at the Ancient Redwoods Gift Shop for goodies on this stretch.
Our next stop was in the Prairie Creek Redwoods State Park. We browsed their visitor center, which probably had the largest selection of the three we visited. We walked around their outdoor space a little bit to stretch our legs. Unfortunately, the well-loved Lady Bird Johnson Trail was closed during our visit but maybe we will catch it in the future. We did spot some elk on our drive out of this area!
Our last stop was the beachside Thomas H. Kuchel Visitor Center. This visitor center was the most informative about the ecology of the redwoods and the culture.
We made our way through the parks in a day with our book ends being Crescent City and Eureka, where Redwoods can also be traversed at the zoo.
We did not camp on this trip but we do think it would be the best way to enjoy the park!
We made this trip after visiting Crater Lake National Park and the Umpqua Hot Springs in the National Forest. You can read about that here.