U.S. 101 REDWOOD HIGHWAY
5 STARS- Get up and Go! Few Steps Needed, Very easy with wheels
Hi Friends! Thanks for joining us for another week of Slow Paced Journeys. We are finally at our destination!! The beautiful California coast! It is a long trip but really worth it when you see the ocean and amazing coastline. Now we get 3 whole days to enjoy it.
From Redding we took Hwy 299 over to the California coast. This road was very curvy (refer at the bottom of the page to #1) but a beautiful drive. We were heading for Trinidad which is 30 miles north of Eureka. We had visited this area 5 years ago on our first camping trip and loved it. I grew up in Oregon and to me the coast or “beach” is a rocky coastline with the ocean crashing up against it. If you are lucky you may also hear sea lions in the distance. The Trinidad area is everything you can hope for in a coastal area. The temperature was around 65 all of the days. The morning fog rolls in and finally burns off around 2. You can easily find a spot to watch and listen to the waves. Heaven!!
When we stayed before we discovered Patrick’s Point State Park to camp in. It is a large, spacious park within the redwoods and other trees. This brings up this important point #2 (see below). The camp spots are well laid out without a crowded feeling. They have nice bathrooms with showers- a must. Several turnouts and parking areas provide access via path down to beach areas. And you can drive to several overlooks which have great views. There are lots of trails within the park for bicyclists, picnic areas and hiking trails. There is even a recreated Yurok Native American Village. What we really love are the lookout points. Our favorite is Palmers Point, a wonderful place with benches that are there waiting for you to sit and enjoy the view.
You can spend an hour, a half a day, or several days in this park with everything it has to offer. There is an $8 entrance fee that is also good for any other state park you enter that day. We first went in the morning and it was foggy. That is still an amazing way to see the coast. The fog is moving and changing constantly. That makes for erie pictures of the trees. You can still hear the water below which is also very interesting. We love the fog- when you don’t have to drive in it. After being in the area for an hour or so we left and then came back later in the afternoon. The fog was cleared and you could see the water that you could only hear before. Again, you could just sit there for hours sitting and enjoying the peace and quiet.
Because we were not camping this time, but wanted to have the experience of being in the woods, we stayed very close to Patrick’s Point at The Emerald Forest. We had a small cabin with a queen bed and bathroom. They also had tent and RV camping. We were surrounded by trees and ferns. They were very dog friendly with dogs allowed in some cabins and on a leash around the area with 2 fenced in dog runs. They also had a large childrens play area. We found it quiet and comfortable and would definitely stay there again.
Trinidad is a very small town. It takes about 5 minutes from the entrance to the state beach. There are a few shops and restaurants on the main street, but because this was a dog trip we didn’t stop. They do have a nice grocery store if you need to get supplies. Emerald Forest did not have food service so we found a good pizza place by the store in Trinidad. We also had a few meals at The Lighthouse Grill, also in Trinidad. They had great burgers, fries, and a fun thing called a mashed potato cone that Mark really liked. Best of all they made their own homemade ice cream. Mark always goes for chocolate but my favorite was Orange Creamcyle with real orange peel. YUM! There are not many places to stay in the area. For name brand hotels you will have to stay further south by Eureka and drive 30 min. north. But it is a great drive. There are a few roadside inns on Patricks Point Drive. Although we have not explored Eureka it seems like they have many parks and coastal attractions.
After a great 3 days, we were ready to get on the road home, but of course, the scenic slow paced way – north on the 101 – which in this area is called the Redwood Highway. The 101 starts in southern California and ends in the Seattle area. The road is “nicknamed” throughout its path. From Leggett California in Mendocino area to the border of Oregon and California it is called the Redwood Highway. This is for good reason because not only is the Redwood National Park in this area but the great coastal redwood forests are everywhere to see. These beautiful trees are known for their width and height. There bark is jagged and red, while their foliage is dainty and lacelike. The trees actually start on the coast in Big Sur and go up the coastline.
Within the national park area are a few state parks. These were established in the 1920’s and were incorporated into the NP when it was established in 1968. The visitors center that we stopped at is actually for the NP and Prairie Creek Redwoods State Park. There are many park markers along the 101 to point out stops to walk or hike through the forest. The great thing is that they are easy to see and access so anyone can enjoy their majestic size. There are some companies that have set up attractions along the highway. In Klamath there is Trees of Mystery and Sky Trail – a gondola that glides through the trees. Because this is not a pup friendly activity we didn’t go but it looked fun. There are also a couple of trees that you can drive through on private land with fees.
The total time of this drive is under 2 hours. We love this “Redwood Highway” and would not mind if it took twice as long. But on and up to the next part of the journey- the Oregon Coast and Crater Lake. See you back here next Friday for a beautiful end to our trip.
Please check out the photo album of all of the photos!
Make sure you check out the video of the trip on YouTube!
SLOW PACED JOURNEY TRAVEL ADVICE
***1. It will take you twice as long to drive to most of our destinations than you would think. Curves, slower speed limits, 2 lane roads with passing lanes, small towns and sightseeing along the way all factor into a slower trip than you would have on a major highway. This may not be a bad thing, just something to remember.
***2. There are many places on the California Coast that have Redwood trees. Although the National Park is in the very north of California, you have lots of opportunities to see these amazing trees. Some of the largest ones are within or by the Park.
***3. The speed signs as you go through the mountain turns are very accurate. We find that in Utah in the mountains, if the turn speed says 45 you can take it around 65. There were lots of turn speed signs on this trip and if they said 45, you needed to go that. We did a lot of braking.
***4. We traveled with our sweet dog Obi Wan. He is so good in the car and we love to have him with us but it definitely changes the way we eat and sleep on the trip. Make sure if traveling with a pet you get some kind of confirmation from the place you have reserved that they know you need a pet room. Although I requested it, they didn’t always have us down. And if you don’t leave you pet in the car, you will not be trying the best restaurants. Which brings me to the next point.
***5. 2 lane roads means small towns which means a very limited supply of fast food. We don’t like to eat a lot of car food. Normally we have lots of places to pick from. We should have done more research on local food as most places that was what there was to pick from. Those we found were very good and we ate at multiple times. Also if you are hungry and you see somewhere, pull off and stop. You may think you will find somewhere else but then you are out of the town and out of luck.
***6. Last, this trip was great because we did no walking! We were able to see everything we wanted to see by easily pulling off the road and looking out. We will point out these places within the blog but all pictures you see were an easy walk to take. This was the perfect Travel More, Walk Less trip!!