Classy Redwoods

After leaving Eureka, we headed into the National Redwood Forest.  And after a brief stop at the Nature Center and a chat with friendly rangers, we headed off to the Lady Bird Johnson Grove.  And that's where I think we saw our largest redwoods of the trip.  It was a beautifully maintained 1.5 mile hike.

 Did you know that when forest fires sweep through a redwood grove, often the giants are unharmed because their bark is a foot thick?  And when they are burned, typically that injures their heartwood which rots away over time--leaving behind their outer shell which continues to grow?  Crazy.

Eureka

            

 

We got a little beach/reading/napping time on the other side of the bay from Eureka.  The plant in the background behind was making red wood mulch.  It was hard not to be disturbed by that after being haunted all day in the Giant Redwood groves.

We stayed at the Victorian Eagle Inn.  It was completely lovely--great bed, great room, totally lovely hostess when we arrived, a small Irish pub on the 1st floor--but come on. . . totally haunted, right?  That's what "Victorian" means.

Avenue of Giants

Second day of coastal driving between Fort Bragg and Eureka and had to veer inland to the Avenue of Giants.  There was nothing outside of San Francisco--occasional towns, but no fast food joints or touristy anything.  Just nature and parks and sketchy little towns.  But as soon as we started to get close to Giant Redwood territory, the wood carvings and Americana and tourist traps started popping up alongside the road. 

All of these little bears were on the porch of the Peg House--probably amazing in-season, but sad a ghost-empty when we arrived. We bought a snack and some stickers and got back on the road as quickly as possible.

 

Even off the coast, the roads were still just as dangerously steep, narrow and wind-y. Just beyond this sign, the road completely doubled back on itself.

 Was totally sucked in by this roadside attraction.  The "One Log House."  It's essentially a narrow trailer made of the trunk of a Giant Redwood.  It's terrible to think of logging those beauties, but they also grow so thick and straight that they almost seem made for cutting down.

 

 

This bear was easily eleven feet tall--all carved out of one piece of wood.

 Just the very start of it. . .Teeny tiny itty bitty Redwoods.

 BIGFOOT!!! (and right by the side of the road, too.  He's gotta be more careful.)

 We learned quickly that we needed to put a person or vehicle next to the trees to be able to judge their size.  We pulled over, overwhelmed by driving through their massiveness.  They come up really quickly.  One minute, you're driving by regular old trees and the next, your in these groves filled with monsters.  I have not been as aware of feeling awe as I was there. . .

 Plus the nerd girl in me totally expected to see Luke and some Stormtroopers speed past and/or see a brachiosauraus crossing the road off in the distance.

 Seriously?

 The moss on the trees was a brilliant green, of course.

 We stopped to see the "Founder's Tree".  Dan sat in front of it and said, "This is huge.  do you think we will see trees bigger than this?" (*spoiler alert. . . yup.)

How I looked for the Next Two Days of Our Trip

 

Because we headed into Giant Redwood territory.  It felt like all I did for days was look straight up into the  sky.  There's nothing that can prepare you for the scale of those trees.  You can look at all of the pictures you want of cars driving through the trees or pictures of big picnic groups joining hands and it taking many people to go around the circumference of the tree, but you can't understand the overwhelming size of the Redwoods until you're standing amongst them.  I have a memory of it now, but even so, I know it's not doing them justice.  It's almost more than the mind can contain.

Added to that is the incredible stillness and quiet in the redwood forests.  You're dumbfounded by the size of the trees, but then you're also confronted by it in a place that is as quiet as church.  I think that it might be hard to visit the Redwood Forests and not be a little overcome or at the very least feel like you're in the heart of something larger than you, something that reduces you to and all of your worries and complaints to their appropriate teeny tiny size.

Mendocino Headlands

Before continuing up the coast from Fort Bragg, we doubled back to visit the Mendocino Headlands. Dan wasn't totally convinced of the value of this backtracking, until we go there. . . Where we hopped around the headlands and stared down cliffs and studied the little plants clinging to the sides of the rocks.  My biggest surprise--vegetation-wise--was how many wild irises grew on rock faces in the wind and salt from the ocean.

sort of blurry/dreamy photo. . . though unintentional in the moment, it's sort of how the trip feels now.  Already a little far away and out of focus.  The constant driving and moving around was exhausting, but I wish we could have kept driving together forever. . .

Kelp Monster!!