Redwoods was the next stop on our National Parks hit parade, a 5 hour drive from Lassen Volcanic. This would be our last of the 8 California parks we visit. For 3 weeks we have been in California, from Death Valley and Channel Islands to Sequoia and Kings Canyon. Redwoods would end our California travels. It was a great ending.
We stayed in the Jedediah Smith State Park campground and were overjoyed to find that it had showers! That’s right, Jed Clampett and Granny were going to be able to take actual showers. Woohoo! In addition, the campground had flush toilets, hot water at the bathroom sinks, a strong wi-fi signal, water adjacent to our site and shade. The only thing to prevent it from getting a perfect score on the Dabiero campground rating system was the lack of electricity. But it had showers. Did I say that already?
Redwoods is a truly delightful national park. Beth and I loved the abundant stands of 200 to 300 foot plus giant trees. While not as large by volume as the sequoias, the redwood grows taller and some where in the park is Hyperion, the tallest tree in the world at 380 feet. To keep it safe, the park service doesn’t give its location. After a remarkably stunning drive up the California coastline on Route 101 N, which offers breathtaking views of the rocky pacific, we stopped for lunch at the Elk Grove picnic area. From there we hiked to Trillium Falls before heading to Lady Bird Johnson Grove for a hike among old towering Redwoods. On the way to the grove we saw a herd of 14 elk grazing in a meadow near ‘Elk Grove. We noticed a large stag with antlers among the herd.
Typically, travel days don’t offer much of a chance to do any sightseeing, but since we had an early start and arrived by noon we were able to check off 3 must-see locations before setting up camp. As soon as the tent was set up it was off to the showers. We went to bed feeling and smelling clean for the first time in a long while.
For our full day in the park we spent the morning on a 8.25 mile hike of the Hiouchi and Mill Creek trails. These trails took us deep into the Redwood Forest from which the park gets its name. On every side and with every step the stately redwoods surrounded us. The forest was damp, quiet, very dark green and smelled of pine sap. The trail was a brown line weaving through lush green ferns and towering redwoods with a river running parallel. This hike was perhaps our favorite so far.
We ate a hearty pancake lunch using a Walmart box pancake mix with imitation blueberries. It’s amazing what some water and heat can do to a tasteless mix. I’m not sure what imitation blueberries are but I guess they are less expensive than the real ones. Either way, the pancakes were quite tasty and they replenished the calories we expended that morning.
After lunch we hiked a couple of shorter loop trails near our campground. Redwoods were everywhere. We came across one downed giant and the root system was at least 20 feet across and 15 foot high. It dwarfed me. Granted at 5’7″ I’m no giant but standing in front of this monster made me feel like an ant. These trees have a way of doing that.
We walked about ten miles that day and we were happy to take showers and wash off the sweat. I loaded up $1.25 for 7 minutes of hot water blisss and turned on the water but nothing happened. I hit the coin box several times to no avail. I wrapped my towel around me and reluctantly gathered all my belongings and moved to the next shower where I enjoyed a wonderful 3 minute shower with the 50 cents I had left. It was better than no shower at all.
In the morning we say goodbye to flush toilets, warm water and showers as we pack up our belongings and head north to a new state–Oregon and Crater Lake National Park.